Chromebooks come with a built-in Wi-Fi password, but if you don’t know it or if you forget it, you can easily find it by looking at the Chromebook’s settings. To find your Wi-Fi password on a Chromebook, open the Chromebook’s settings and click on the Wi-Fi icon. Then, enter your Wi-Fi network name and password into the fields that appear. If you’re using a public Wi-Fi network, your computer will automatically connect to that network and show you the available networks in your area. If you’re using a private Wi-Fi network, you’ll need to enter the network name and password into the fields to connect.

Sadly, this is not an easy thing to do with Chrome OS. While most devices will allow you to see Wi-Fi passwords of previously connected networks, Chromebooks can’t—at least not by default. You have to be in “Developer Mode.”

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What is Developer Mode? It enables a bunch of extra “power user” features, but it comes at a cost. To get into Developer Mode, you’ll need to fully reset your Chromebook. Google also doesn’t support it, so if your device fails in Developer Mode, you might be out of luck. In short, it’s not intended for the average Chromebook user.

We have a full guide on putting your Chromebook into Developer Mode if you’re interested. Once you’re in Developer Mode, here’s how to see Wi-Fi passwords.

First, type Ctrl+Alt+T to open the Crosh command prompt.

Next, type the following commands, pressing Enter after each line:

shell

sudo su

cd home/root

ls

You will get a code string in return. Copy that code, then type cd and paste the code. Press Enter.

Now, type the command more shill/shill.profile , and press Enter.

This will return a list of information about your network. Look for the line that says “Passphrase=rot47:” and copy the random text that follows. This is the encrypted password.

Now type echo randomtexthere | tr ‘!-~’ ‘P-~!-O’  and press Enter. Replace “randomtexthere” with the text you copied.

Finally, you’ll see the unencrypted Wi-Fi password! This is a very frustrating process for something as simple as a Wi-Fi password. There are much easier ways to find Wi-Fi passwords on other devices.

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