How to View Your Wireless Network Security Key or Password on Windows 10

By Kevin ArrowsUpdated on March 23, 2023

Kevin is a certified Network Engineer

A wireless network is a computer network which uses wireless data connections between network nodes. Wireless networking is an effective method which homes and businesses use to avoid the costly process of introducing cables in a building.

View Your Wireless Network Security Key or Password on Windows 10

Majority of the users use wireless networks for their internet connection. Only very organizations use cables as the medium for internet traffic. These wireless networks mostly have a network security key present to avoid unnecessary devices connecting to them. Sometimes the need arises when you require the password of the wireless network in order to connect another device which isn’t connected yet. There are several methods through which you can retrieve the network security key of all the networks which you ever connected to your computer.

Method 1: Using PowerShell

We can use PowerShell to retrieve all the network passwords stored in your computer and save them to an external note file on your desktop. This is a very effective method which outputs a simple file containing all the information.

Press Windows + S to launch the search bar. Type “powershell” and select the first result which returns. Right click on it and select Run as administrator.

Once in the PowerShell window, run the following command and press Enter.

(netsh wlan show profiles) | Select-String “\:(.+)$” | %{$name=$_.Matches.Groups[1].Value.Trim(); $_} | %{(netsh wlan show profile name=”$name” key=clear)} | Select-String “Key Content\W+\:(.+)$” | %{$pass=$_.Matches.Groups[1].Value.Trim(); $_} | %{[PSCustomObject]@{ PROFILE_NAME=$name;PASSWORD=$pass }} | Format-Table –Wrap

This command will output all the network names and their passwords within your PowerShell.

We can write another command which will output all the results in a file on your Desktop. Run the following command in PowerShell and press Enter.

Navigate to your desktop and locate the file “WirelessNetworkPasswords.txt”. Open it. Here you will see two columns: one for the wireless network ID and the other for its password.

Method 2: Using Command Prompt

If you require a little more information regarding a network, we can use the command prompt to find all the details. First, we will list all the saved networks on your computer. Then we will note the name of the network and use it in another command to find out all the details about it.

Press Windows + S to launch the search bar of your start menu. Type “command prompt” in the dialogue box. Select the first result which returns, right click it and choose Run as administrator.

One in the command prompt window, type the following command and press Enter.

netsh wlan show profiles

This command will list all the saved networks in your computer along with their names.

Make note of the Wireless profile SSID name you want to see the password of. Note the commas and dots carefully as they can make a difference.
Once you have noted the name, type the following command and replace “SSID” with the name you just noted.

netsh wlan show profile name= “SSID” key=clear

For example to find out the password of the profile of “Admiral Aluminum”, we would write the following command

netsh wlan show profile name= “Admiral Aluminum” key=clear

You will see the wireless security key under the tab of Security settings and on the field of Key content. This method is useful if you require more details than just the password of the network.

Method 3: Using Wireless Network Properties

We can also retrieve the security key of any network using the Wireless Network Properties. This method can be executed if you are currently connected to the network. We will navigate to the details of your connection and retrieve the password from there.

Press Windows + X to launch the quick link menu and select “Network Connections” from the list of options available.

Once in the network connections window, click the option of “Change adapter options” present at the top right side of the screen.

Now click on the Wi-Fi network once and click the option “View status of this connection” present at the top.

Now click the option “Wireless Properties” present under the subheading of Connection.

Now head over to the Security tab. Here under the field of Network security key, you will find a checkbox “Show characters”. Click it.

You will be able to see the network key in front of the label of Network security key.

Method 4: Using your Router

You can also retrieve the password of your wireless network using your router. First, you would need the IP to open the settings of your router using your computer. This is usually printed on the back of your router or in its box. The IP’s are like:

192.168.8.1

192.168.1.1

Open your web browser and type the IP in the address field and press Enter. You will be asked to enter the password and username to get access to the settings page. The default password and username for most of the devices are “admin”. You can always consult your box if you haven’t changed the password yourself. Enter the credentials and get access to the settings page.

Once in the Settings, navigate to WLAN settings or Security settings. The options vary from device to device. If the options are different for you, search the category of security under wireless settings.
Once you find it, you will see a field named as “WPA pre-shared key” or “security key”. Again, the name of the field may vary computer to computer.
Select the button of “show password” and the password will be visible on top.

Note: It is advised not to change settings of your router/device if you don’t have knowledge about it. Incorrect configurations can render it unusable and you might need to consult your ISP to fix it for you.