Android phones are designed to show the names of Wi-Fi networks when you search for them in an office or in a public place. However, it can be confusing when your phone doesn’t show the Wi-Fi network at your home or office while other devices can easily connect to the same network. While this can be a temporary bug and a reboot won’t help, you need to take a closer look at the issue.
You can always go back to using cellular data on your Android phone, but that beats the purpose of using a faster and better bandwidth of a Wi-Fi network. Also, it turns out that cellular data is expensive. To help you solve the problem, we have compiled the best solutions for your Android phone not showing Wi-Fi network name.
1. Reboot the Android phone
It’s a good idea to restart your Android phone if you haven’t done so in a while. Let it restart and then search for your preferred Wi-Fi network. Here are the steps to restart your Android phone. Note that these steps are from a Google Pixel phone running Android 13 or later.
Step 1: Swipe down from the home screen to access the notification panel.
Step 2: Swipe down again to expand the quick toggle menu.
Step 3: Tap the power button and choose Restart.
You can also press the power and volume up buttons at the same time and access the power menu.
2. Move closer to the router
Are you trying to connect to a 2.4GHz radio band? It can get crowded and doesn’t deliver the faster speeds of a 5GHz frequency band. If you have a dual-band router, connect your Android to the 5 GHz frequency band and move closer to your router.
3. Reboot router
It’s a good idea to restart your office or home router and try to find the Wi-Fi network on your Android phone. You can access the router’s user interface to restart the router and gracefully shut down all services. If you are unsure about this, you can use the power button on the router to turn it off and on again.
4. Join the Wi-Fi network by scanning a QR code
It’s confusing when your new Android phone can’t connect to a Wi-Fi network while another Android phone is connected to the network. Instead of copying the exact Wi-Fi network details from one Android phone to another, you can generate a QR code and scan it with your newer Android phone to join the network. Here’s how.
Step 1: Open the Settings app on another Android phone.
Step 2: Select “Network and Internet”.
Step 3: Open Internet and tap the Settings icon next to the connected Wi-Fi network.
Step 4: Tap Share and a QR code will be created on your phone.
Step 5 Grab your new Android phone and scan the QR code to join the network.
5. Change your WiFi network name
If our home Wi-Fi network does not show up on Android phones, we changed the Wi-Fi name from the local ISP app. Of course, this may depend on whether your ISP has a dedicated app and whether there is a feature that allows you to do this. In the following screenshots we use our ISP app. The steps may differ in your ISP app.
Step 1: Open the ISP app on Android.
Step 2: Select your wireless network and open the wireless settings.
Step 3: Find an option to edit the name.
Enter the new name and reboot your router. The new Wi-Fi network name should appear on your Android phone. Alternatively, you can log into your router’s user interface and from there change the Wi-Fi name (referred to as the SSID name) and reboot the router.
6. Change WiFi password
While security must be your concern, a complicated password can also be difficult to type, as most modern passwords require a capital letter, a number, a symbol, and be at least eight characters in length. If that turns out to be a challenge, you can change the WiFi password. You can do this from your computer through your router’s interface or use the ISP app (if it supports it).
Step 1: Open the Wi-Fi settings in your router interface or ISP app.
Step 2: Select your WiFi network.
Step 3: Tap on “Edit Password” and enter a new one in the following menu.
You can also check the Wi-Fi network visibility in the same menu.
7. Unlock your Android phone from the network
Have you or someone else blocked your Android phone from accessing the Wi-Fi network? This is what happens when your Android’s MAC address is blocked at the network level by the router from accessing the internet. This means your Wi-Fi network name will not show up on Android. You can unblock the known devices through your router interface or ISP app. Here’s how.
Step 1: Open your Wi-Fi network in router interface or ISP app.
Step 2: Select Connected Devices.
Step 3 Scroll down to check blocked devices. Select your Android phone from the list and click Unlock.
8. Reset Android network settings
If you still don’t see the Wi-Fi network on your Android phone, reset the network settings. This will erase all Wi-Fi network details stored on your phone. That means you have to add the password and other details again on your Android.
Step 1: Open the Settings app and scroll to System.
Step 2: Choose Reset options.
Step 3: Tap on “Reset Wi-Fi, mobile phone and Bluetooth”.
Confirm the same in the following menu.
9. Leave the Mobile Hotspot screen on
Are you trying to search for a hotspot network on your Android phone? You must keep the mobile hotspot screen active on your iPhone or Android device and try to find the same on your Android phone.
10. Reset the internet
You can refresh the network connection on your Android phone and try to find the WiFi network again. Here’s what you need to do. Note that we used a Pixel phone running Android 13 (or higher) to record these steps. The menu options may look different on your Android.
Step 1: Launch the Settings app and open the Network & Internet menu.
Step 2: Choose Internet.
Step 3: Tap on the refresh icon on the top right.
You can check whether the Wi-Fi name is displayed or not.
11. Update Android OS
Android OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) regularly release security patches to fix bugs. You should download and install the latest mobile data software.
Open the Settings app and scroll down to tap System. Next select System update.
Update your Android to the latest version and try to find the Wi-Fi network name.
Enjoy high-speed Wi-Fi connection on Android
If Android does not show the name of the Wi-Fi network, it can cause a lot of inconvenience and is often confusing. However, you can solve that by changing the password and restarting the Android or the router. This usually works for most people unless there is another reason. Which trick worked for you? Share your findings with us in the comments below.
