How to share Wi-Fi from Mac to iPhone or another Mac

There are times when your Wi-Fi network just can’t provide the connection to the internet you need. Perhaps you are at work and the office Wi-Fi just can’t cope with all the iPads and iPhones accessing it so it slows your browsing to a crawl (or your boss decides to change the password for the same reason).

Maybe you are in a hotel and can’t connect all your devices to the room’s Wi-Fi at once. Or possibly you want to allow someone onto your Wi-Fi but you don’t want to give away the password.

Or perhaps it’s the end of the month and you are running out of data. You don’t have to stop surfing! It’s easy to create a hotspot from your Mac and share your connection with other devices via Wi-Fi, and here’s where we show you how.

Before Yes, we do. MacOS Ventura’s update has made some changes to the process. We will demonstrate both of these methods below. Skip to the next section if you aren’t running Ventura.

How to share Wi Fi between Mac and iPhone (in macOS Ventura).

• Materials required: A wired Ethernet connection will be required for your Mac.

1.

Open System Settings > General > Sharing

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If you’re wondering about the location of the sharing options now that System Preferences have been replaced by System Settings, you can find them under General.

2.

Click the i symbol beside Internet Sharing

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Click on Sharing, then click the i to your right. Internet Sharing item Don’t skip this step and jump straight to turning on Internet Sharing.

If asked, authenticate via Touch ID or a Watch by entering a password.

3.

Ethernet Adapter allows you to share your connection

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From the “Share your connection from” pop-up menu, select your ethernet adapter.

4.

Wi-Fi allows you to share your computer’s files

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In the ‘To computers using’ list select Wi-Fi box. The word ‘computers’ here includes devices like your iPhone and iPad.

5.

Choose the Wi-Fi Options you prefer

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Now, click the Wi-Fi Option button at the bottom.

Select Wi-Fi Options, then enter a name and choose a channel. Finally, set Security and create a password.

Channel section: Choose a channel that is higher in number than the low-numbered ones (36, 40 and 44, respectively) to get a wider range of frequencies than the low-numbered channels (1 through 11). The 5GHz frequency band is used by the high-numbered channels. It will be compatible all mainstream electronics, as well as all Apple hardware, that were made within the past few years. If your older devices can only use 2.4GHz connections, you’ll need to stick with 1, 6 or 11.

You have two options in the Security section: WPA2/WPA3 Personal or WPA3 Perssonal. WPA2/WPA3 will offer better compatibility. From WPA3 is no different to WPA2. Here is more information.

Click OK and then click “Done”.

6.

Turn on Internet Sharing

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You can now click the switch right next to Internet Share to allow the sharing of this connection. You’ll see a warning, if you are ready to go ahead click Start.

How to share Wi Fi from Mac to iPhone (pre macOS ventura)

If you haven’t yet installed Ventura, or your Mac isn’t compatible with the 2022 version of macOS, here are the steps you meed to follow.

1. Open System Preferences. Select Sharing. If you don’t see the below screen, click on the icon showing 12 dots.
2. Click on Sharing.
3. Click on the box to the right Internet Sharing.
4. Beside ‘Share your connection from:’ choose Ethernet.
5. Below that, beside ‘To computers using:’ choose Wi-Fi.
6. Next click Wi-Fi Options, this will give you the option to choose a password so that strangers can’t jump on your Wi-Fi (it should be least eight characters). Next, click Security. Then enter your Password. WPA2 stands for 802.11i encryption.
7. Click on the box to the right Internet Sharing.
8. Confirm that this is the turn you wish to make Internet Share by clicking Start
9. Now you can create a Wi-Fi hotspot with your Mac. It is now possible to see the icon with an arrow where you would expect to see a Wi-Fi signal.

How to join the Hotspot created by you

Once you’ve set up your hotspot, you can join the network from any other device.

How to join Hotspot with your iPad/iPhone

1. On your iPhone or iPad go to Settings > Wi-Fi.
2. Select the network you have just created.
3. Once you have created your password, you will be able to access the site.

How to connect to the Hotspot from an other Mac

1. Click on the Wi Fi icon at the top to add another Mac to your Wi Fi hotspot.
2. Choose the Wi-Fi hotspot name you want to join.
3. Now, enter the password for this Wi-Fi network.

How to create a Mac Wi-Fi Hotspot without Ethernet 

But what if you don’t have an Ethernet connection, perhaps your MacBook doesn’t have an Ethernet port and you don’t fancy getting an adaptor, let alone plugging into a wired connection?

Unfortunately your Mac cannot share an internet connection from Wi-Fi using Wi-Fi… unless you have an additional accessory.

While the Mac’s built-in networking card can either connect to Wi-Fi or host its own network, users can buy a Wi-Fi network adapter that should allow one network interface to receive the Wi-Fi connection while the other re-broadcasts it. This is a USB Wifi Adapter Dongle. Amazon: $16.99 Oder £9.99 from Amazon UK.

Once the Wi Fi adapter has been installed and plugged in, you can follow these instructions to select one of the two Wi Fi adapters that you have instead of the Ethernet cable used in step 3.

How to transfer internet data from Mac to iPhone using Bluetooth

But what about if you don’t want to fork out for a Wi-Fi network adapter? There is another option, although it won’t be as fast as Wi-Fi and may not be compatible with as many devices. That’s because, instead of using Wi-Fi to share the internet connection with your other devices, it’ll be using Bluetooth; or, more specifically, Bluetooth PAN (Personal Area Network).

Although the initial connection between devices may take longer due to Bluetooth pairing, it is an alternative to using Wi-Fi to share your internet connection. It should work with most smartphones as well as tablets.

The setup is the same as if you were sharing via Wi-Fi (see the steps above), but make sure you select Bluetooth PAN in the “To computers using” box when confronted with the Configure an internet-sharing network.

These steps will allow you to join the Bluetooth network using your iPhone:

1. Bluetooth must be turned on on your Mac.
2. On your iPhone go to Settings >Bluetooth and make sure Bluetooth is turned on.
3. Now go to Settings > Cellular Data (or Mobile Data) and tap on Personal Hotspot.
4. You will now need to pair your iPhone and computer. Click on Connect to open the Bluetooth pane of System Preferences. Scroll down until you see your iPhone. 
5. You will see a code on both your devices. Click on Pair to pair your iPhones. Tap Pair to enter the code displayed on your computer. 
6. You should now see a blue Bluetooth icon at the top of your iPhone screen. This indicates that the devices have been connected.
7. An arrow will replace the Wi-Fi symbol on your Mac.
8. Open Wi-Fi from your iPhone to find the Mac to which you want to connect.
9. Your iPhone will offer the possibility to join the Personal Hotspot. Click on Join.
10. If you have set a password, enter it.

An article is also available that explains the situation.
How to share your iPhone’s internet connection with your Mac. If you want to expand your Wi-Fi network or avoid dropping outs, read:
How to improve your WiFi connection with a Mac.