Hey hotshot, if you’ve got more mobile data than you know what to do with, then why don’t you share some with friends and family by using your Personal Hotspot?
The lowdown on Hotspot: Personal Hotspot is a setting you can activate on your phone which allows your friends and family to connect to your phone’s mobile data via Wi-Fi. It means that if your friend has run out of data for the month, and you’re feeling generous, you can set up a hotspot and let them use some of yours.
How do you set up a Hotspot? It’s easy to setup a Personal Hotspot on your phone! Just follow the steps on the table below:
| Apple | Android |
|---|---|
| 1- Go to Settings > Cellular | 1 - Go to Settings |
| 2- Tap Personal Hotspot | 2 - Tap Network & Internet |
| 3 - Choose your password | 3 - Tap Hotspot & tethering |
| 4 - Set up Wi-Fi Hotspot |
How do you switch on a Hotspot? Just like setting up a Hotspot, it’s super simple to switch it on and off. Just follow the steps below:
| Apple | Android |
|---|---|
| 1 - Go to Settings > Cellular | 1 - Go to Settings |
| 2 - Tap Personal Hotspot | 2 - Tap Network & Internet |
| 3 - Tap the slider to switch it on! | 3 - Tap Hotspot & Tethering |
| 4 - Enable portable Wi-Fi hotspot |
How do you connect to someone’s Personal Hotspot? It’s just as simple to connect to a Hotspot as it is to set one up and switch one on. Follow the steps in the table below:
| Apple | Android |
|---|---|
| 1 - Go to Settings > Wi-Fi | 1 - Go to Settings |
| 2 - Select the hotspot you want to connect to and enter the password | 2 - Tap Network & Internet |
| 3 - Stay on this screen until you’re connected to the Wi-Fi network | 3 - Tap Wi-Fi |
| 4 - Select the hotspot you want to connect to and enter password | |
| 5 - Stay on this screen until you’ve connected your other device to the Wi-Fi network |
If you’re having any difficulties with your phone then you can check out our Troubleshooting pages.
Hotspot FAQ’s
Here are some common questions people have about Personal Hotspot:
1 - How do I know if someone is connected to my Personal Hotspot?
This depends on what kind of device you are using. If you are using an Apple device then the status bar turns blue when a device is connected to your Personal Hotspot, it also shows how many devices have joined. Unfortunately Android devices do not have the ability to show devices connected to your Personal Hotspot.
2 - How will this affect my data usage?
While someone is connected to your Personal Hotspot, you’ll be deducted for any data that they use from your monthly plan. So for example, if you have 5GB and your friend uses 1GB while connected to your hotspot, you will have 4GB left.
3 - Do I have hotspot included in my plan?
Your Personal Hotspot is a feature built in to your smartphone and is not part of your plan. However, to be able to provide a hotspot connection to your friends, you must have a Data Plan.