Can it use an Ethernet connection as its source?

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Can it use an Ethernet connection as its source?

Hi everyone,

I hope you can help me with a specific question regarding my iPhone's Personal Hotspot.

I have an iPhone 15. In situations where my home fiber internet is down, I'd like to use my iPhone to provide an internet connection to my home network.

My question is this:

Is it possible for the iPhone, once connected via USB-C to Ethernet (and thus having its own wired connection), to use this Ethernet connection as the "source" for its Personal Hotspot, redistributing internet via Wi-Fi to other devices in the house?

Essentially, I want to know if the iPhone can act like a small "router" that takes internet from an Ethernet cable and shares it via Wi-Fi through its hotspot, instead of using cellular data.

Thanks a lot for any help or information you might have on this!

iPhone 15

Posted on Jun 11, 2025 4:56 AM

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Answer 1

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LotusPilot

Level 10

303,794 points

Jun 11, 2025 5:57 AM in response to Maurocampi

Short answer, no.

While your iPhone can make its own Cellular Internet connection available to other devices via a wireless hotspot (WiFi or Bluetooth) or via tethering (via direct connection to its Lightning or USB-C connection as determined by the iPhone model), the iPhone cannot act a router in the manner that you describe.

How to set up a Personal Hotspot on your iPhone or iPad - Apple Support

If your domestic Internet Router does not itself have built-in WiFi, you can simply add one of many readily available/cheap WiFi Routers that can operate in "bridge" or "Access Point modes."

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Can it use an Ethernet connection as its source?

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