Mac Wi-Fi signal display does not show ISP connection strength like iPhone

You are missing what those symbols actually mean.

On your iPhone, the vertical bars represent the cell phone signal strength, not an internet connection. The "arc bars" you refer to represent the WiFi signal strength, again not an internet connection.

On your Mac there is only a WiFi signal strength indicator (your "arc bars"), it is not an internet connection.

Actually a slight additional explanation ... it's possible to have a WiFi connection but no internet connection. If there is a WiFi connection but no internet connection via WiFi there will be a yellow "!" symbol overlaid on the WiFi signal strength indicator. The absence of the "!" would indicate you have an internet connection.

Bob593251 wrote:

iphone shows strength of internet connection from ISP with vertical bars, and in-house with arc bars.

Why does mac not do the same?

All we see is arc bars in the menu bar at top.

What am I missing?

Option click on the Wi-Fi icon for RSSI and noise and other details, and — a yet-better view of the local Wi-Fi activity — the app WiFi Explorer is handy. Not free, but useful.

For the details of iPhone calls, use the iPhone app to “call” the “phone number” *3001#12345#*

The cellphone “bars” are per device, and — like the “gages” in cars these days — semi-fictional, and not comparable.

Just for completeness, I will add ...

Your iPhone supports both cellular signals & WiFi. They are 2 different means of communication.

Your Mac only supports ethernet (via WiFi and in some Macs also wired ethernet). Macs do not have cellular capability.

Your Mac has MUCH more information and some tools for analyzing your Wi-Fi connection to the internet, under "Wireless Diagnostics"

Hold down the Option key while you click on the Wi-Fi icon on the menubar to open up the tools for investigating and fixing Wi-Fi issues

Choose "Open Wireless diagnostics", which opens the wireless diagnostics Assistant, but does not proceed.

NB> Wireless Diagnostics is an App that puts up its own MenuBar.

Using its Window menu, there are about eight different things you can do from here,

Assistant (default window)

Info

Logs

Scan

Performance

Sniffer

Sidecar

Diagnostics

The top-level is to choose Diagnostics off the Window menu, or simply click (Continue) to do a quick check for Gross misconfiguration or operating problems. Your Admin password will be required. If any recommendations are shown, you should consider then seriously.

Next is to hold down the Option key and click the Wi-Fi icon as before. The screen that opens shows operating parameters of your Wi-Fi network. There is a great deal of valuable information in those numbers.

Readers are eager to interpret what is going on from the values there. Screenshot, transcribe, or photograph the results and post back in a reply on the forums. Looks like this older one.: