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User profile for user: dougistaken
dougistaken Author
User level: Level 1
5 points

Connecting Mac to iPhone hotspot — Apple’s instructions are useless

I am trying to connect my Mac to my iPhone hotspot. At Share your internet connection from iPhone - Apple Support I see this:


“Use Bluetooth: To make sure your iPhone is discoverable, go to Settings > Bluetooth and leave the screen showing. On a Mac, use Bluetooth to connect your Mac and iPad. On your iPhone, tap the name of your Mac, then follow the onscreen instructions on your Mac.”


Why does it say “use Bluetooth to connect your Mac and iPad? These are not even instructions for connecting a Mac to an iPad. These are supposed to be instructions for connecting a Mac to an iPhone. It’s like these instructions need some additional proofreading and edits. Look at the heading at the top of the page: “Share your internet connection from iPhone.”


And look at that last sentence: “On your iPhone, tap the name of your Mac, then follow the onscreen instructions...”. There are no onscreen instructions. When I tap the name of my Mac, it says “Connected”. There are no instructions on the screen.


Mac mini, macOS 11.6

Posted on Oct 10, 2022 11:07 AM

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User profile for user: Encryptor5000
Encryptor5000
User level: Level 5
7,568 points

Posted on Oct 10, 2022 9:14 PM

Hi dougistaken,


The simplest way to connect your Mac to your iPhone's personal hotspot would likely be to do it via Wi-Fi. I'd recommend doing the following:


  1. Ensure that you're signed into the same Apple ID on both your Mac and iPhone. On your Mac, check System Preferences at the top of the window. On your iPhone, check Settings, at the top of the page.
  2. Make sure that Wi-Fi and Bluetooth is on for both your Mac and iPhone. They don't have to be connected to each other.
  3. Your iPhone's hotspot should automatically appear in your Mac's Wi-Fi menu. Simply select the hotspot to connect. If that doesn't work, or if it doesn't appear, see the next steps.
  4. On your iPhone, open Control Center, long-press on the grid of wireless icons (Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Airplane Mode, etc), then make sure that the Personal Hotspot icon is lit green. If it isn't, tap on it. The Wi-Fi icon should go gray.
  5. Check the Wi-Fi menu on your Mac again. Your iPhone's hotspot should now appear.
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User profile for user: Encryptor5000
Encryptor5000
User level: Level 5
7,568 points

Oct 10, 2022 9:14 PM in response to dougistaken

Hi dougistaken,


The simplest way to connect your Mac to your iPhone's personal hotspot would likely be to do it via Wi-Fi. I'd recommend doing the following:


  1. Ensure that you're signed into the same Apple ID on both your Mac and iPhone. On your Mac, check System Preferences at the top of the window. On your iPhone, check Settings, at the top of the page.
  2. Make sure that Wi-Fi and Bluetooth is on for both your Mac and iPhone. They don't have to be connected to each other.
  3. Your iPhone's hotspot should automatically appear in your Mac's Wi-Fi menu. Simply select the hotspot to connect. If that doesn't work, or if it doesn't appear, see the next steps.
  4. On your iPhone, open Control Center, long-press on the grid of wireless icons (Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Airplane Mode, etc), then make sure that the Personal Hotspot icon is lit green. If it isn't, tap on it. The Wi-Fi icon should go gray.
  5. Check the Wi-Fi menu on your Mac again. Your iPhone's hotspot should now appear.
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Connecting Mac to iPhone hotspot — Apple’s instructions are useless

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