Personal Hotspot stopped working on iPhone 13 after iOS 18.4 update

In my case, the issue was resolved by renaming the access point name (APN) in the cellular data settings. It was "internet" for ages and worked, but after the last update, it just stopped working. I renamed it to "ks" which is specific to my service provider and this solved the problem. So I can say that it may be related to the service provider. My suggestion, contact your service provider and find out any alternative APNs they use. Try to use an alternative APN.

Hello there, I've called my carrier and here is the settings that helped - you should go and change your APN settings to value "KS" (It might be different based on your carrier I suppose).

How to find the APN settings - View and edit your Access Point Name (APN) on your iPhone and iPad – Apple Support (UK)

It works now!

I had the same problem and I found a solution, now I will describe the steps I took

1. I found on the Internet depending on my operator APN and changed them to any other possible ones (for mobile data and personal hotspot)
2. Enabled the function "Wi-Fi Calling"
3. Turned on airplane mode, waited a bit and turned it off (to update the network)
4. Waited until the network loaded and started working "Wi-Fi Calling" (instead of the LTE icon or 5G or 4G there will be VoWiFi)
5. I tried connecting to a personal hotspot and everything worked
6. Turned off "Wi-Fi Calling" reset settings APN, then repeated point 3 and everything works fine

I had the same issue after updating to IOS 18.4 just now. The Personal Hotspot Setting was not visible on the settings page. I went to the Cellular Data setting and turned off and then on the Turn On This Line option. After that the Personal Hotspot Setting Appeared on the Settings page. It did not work. I rebooted my phone and the Hotspot was working again.

> went to the Cellular Data setting and turned off and then on the Turn On

I could also not connect to the internet. The above fixed it. Just turn off/on the Cellular Data Settings.

(For me the Hotspot was visible)

Thanks!

UPDATE: The issue appears resolved for me by updating to 18.5

CloudDrift wrote:

I updated my iPhone 13 to iOS 18.4 yesterday, and since then, my Personal Hotspot has stopped working. My MacBook connects to it, but there is no network—no internet access at all, despite being connected. However, internet access on my iPhone itself works without any issues.

I have already followed the troubleshooting steps from Apple Support, including resetting my network settings, but the problem persists.

Has anyone else experienced this issue? If you’ve found a solution, please let me know. Thank you!

Report the issue to your phone carrier, as hotspot is their feature.

CloudDrift wrote:

Hello,

You were right—it does depend on the phone carrier. It’s strange that the issue only appeared after the recent update, but I called Apple Support today, and they gave me recommendations based on my carrier. Thanks for the tip!

Glad you got it sorted out.

As it turns out, Apple diagnostics detected a hardware defect and I am

now waiting for them to resolve the issue.

CloudDrift wrote:

The problem is that the same SIM card and carrier work fine on another phone. Plus, my Personal Hotspot was working smoothly on my iPhone before the update. So, it seems like the issue is caused by the update, not the carrier.

I also tested a different carrier, as I have two SIM cards, but the issue remains. Meanwhile, my MacBook connects without any problems when using a hotspot from another phone.

Is that what your phone carrier support told you when you contacted them?

You do pay them a monthly fee to use their feature hotspot.

But if you don't want to heed my advice, then best of luck to you.

The same issue occurs: the MacBook's internet connection via hotspot is not working, while the iPhone has a perfect connection speed. It worked for a while when I tried to connect a completely different MacBook, and then connected back to mine. But the next day, the issue repeated, and none of the actions helped.

I hope Apple will fix this as soon as possible, as this influences people's work processes.