How to Hide Unwanted Wi-Fi Networks

In today's world, the number of available Wi-Fi networks can be overwhelming. If you want to declutter your list of networks and hide the ones you don't need, this guide will show you how to do it effectively.

Method 1: Hiding Wi-Fi Networks via Router Settings

The most reliable way to hide a Wi-Fi network is by disabling its SSID Broadcast on your router. Here’s how you can do it step by step:

  1. Access your router’s settings by entering 192.168.0.1 or 192.168.1.1 in your web browser.
  2. Log in using your credentials. By default, the username is often admin and the password is also admin.
  3. Navigate to the Wireless Settings section.
  4. Disable the option SSID Broadcast.
  5. Save the changes and restart your router.

Once you disable SSID broadcasting, your Wi-Fi network will not appear in the list of available networks. To connect to it, users will need to enter the network name manually.

Method 2: Filtering Wi-Fi Networks on Your Operating System

If you want to hide specific networks without affecting your router settings, you can use built-in tools in your operating system.

For Windows

  1. Open Command Prompt as an administrator.
  2. Run the command netsh wlan add filter permission=block ssid="Network_Name" networktype=infrastructure, replacing Network_Name with the name of the network you want to hide.
  3. To see the list of blocked networks, use netsh wlan show filters.
  4. If you need to remove a network from the filter, use the command netsh wlan delete filter permission=block ssid="Network_Name" networktype=infrastructure.

For macOS

  1. Open the Terminal application.
  2. Run the command sudo /System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/Apple80211.framework/Versions/Current/Resources/airport -z to reset the Wi-Fi scan.
  3. Remove unwanted networks with sudo networksetup -removepreferredwirelessnetwork en0 "Network_Name".

Method 3: Using Third-Party Apps

There are various third-party apps available that can help you manage and filter Wi-Fi networks, such as WiFi Manager for Android or NetSpot for macOS and Windows. These apps provide user-friendly interfaces for hiding unwanted networks.

Method 4: Disable Auto-Connect for Unwanted Networks

If your device keeps connecting to a network you don't want, you can simply disable the auto-connect option:

  • On Windows: Go to Wi-Fi settings and uncheck "Connect automatically".
  • On Android: Go to Wi-Fi settings, select the network, and turn off auto-connect.
  • On iOS: Go to the Wi-Fi section, select the network, and disable "Auto-Join".