Where is the hotspot setting?
Sharing your connection has six different names across nine systems — one of the worst name-to-system ratios in the catalogue. We read the settings tree of all 43 systems in the catalogue and recorded where each one keeps it.
What each system calls it
9 of the 43 operating systems in our catalogue have this setting, and between them they use five different labels for it:
| Name on screen | Systems |
|---|---|
| Personal Hotspot | 3 |
| Hotspot | 2 |
| Hotspot & tethering | 1 |
| Portable hotspot | 1 |
| Mobile hotspot | 1 |
| Mobile Hotspot | 1 |
The most common is Personal Hotspot, on 3 of the 9. If that is not the word on your screen, the table above is the rest of the vocabulary to try.
Some of those rows differ only in capitalisation — 6 spellings for five actual names. We have kept them apart because that is what is printed on the screen, and a settings search that matches case will tell them apart too.
Where it lives on each system
These are the shortest paths from the first settings screen on the newest release of each system. 7 of the 9 are within two taps; the rest sit deeper, and the table shows how much deeper.
| System | Path | Taps |
|---|---|---|
| iOS 27.0 | Personal Hotspot | 1 |
| Android 17 | Network & internet › Hotspot & tethering | 2 |
| ChromeOS 151 | Network › Hotspot | 2 |
| HyperOS 4.0 | Connection and sharing › Portable hotspot | 2 |
| iPadOS 27.0 | Cellular Data › Personal Hotspot | 2 |
| OxygenOS 16 | Connection and sharing › Hotspot | 2 |
| Windows 11 | Network & internet › Mobile hotspot | 2 |
| iOS 6 6.1 | General › Cellular › Personal Hotspot | 3 |
| One UI 9 | Connections › Mobile Hotspot and Tethering › Mobile Hotspot | 3 |
Each system name above opens the real menu in the simulator, so you can walk the path before you touch your own device.
Why the names came out this way
Tethering is the original term, from the days when you did it with a cable. Hotspot arrived when it became wireless. The compound names — Hotspot & tethering — are vendors covering both, because both words are still in use by different generations of user.
If you cannot find it, the reliable trick is to look inside whatever group holds Wi-Fi and mobile data: it is nearly always filed with the radios it borrows from.
Find it on your own device
If your system is not in the table, or the label on your screen is different again, there are three ways through it:
- Search every system at once for a setting by name — it looks inside all 43 trees, not just the one you are holding.
- Open your own system in the settings simulator and click to the screen without changing anything real.
- Follow the step-by-step guide to joining a Wi-Fi network, or see where that setting lives on every system.
Related settings in the same part of the menu:
All of it comes from the same catalogue: 43 systems, 135 versions, published as an open dataset.
Try it yourself, on the real menusOpen any of 43 operating systems in your browser and walk the Settings tree exactly as it appears on the device. No download, no account.Frequently asked questions
Where is the hotspot setting on most systems?
On 7 of the 9 systems that have it, within two taps of the first settings screen. The most common label is “Personal Hotspot”, used by 3 of them. The table above gives the exact path for each system.
Why can I not find it by searching my settings?
Because settings search matches the label your system uses, and there are five different labels in use for this one setting. Searching for the word your previous device used is the single most common reason a setting appears to be missing.
How many systems have this setting at all?
9 of the 43 operating systems we catalogue. The rest either have no hardware for it or fold the behaviour into something else, which is why a feature that feels universal often is not.