You must always pay close attention to your Wi-Fi so that you can know when any unwanted device is connected to it. So, you need to learn how to know how many devices are connected to your wifi router.
This way, you will not end up eating your internet data. The connected devices can deplete your internet data very fast, but it does not end there.
It can also invade your privacy. The connected device can introduce malware and spyware into your system. You of course do not want that to happen.
This is why you need tools that can help you to detect the devices connected to your Wi-Fi and also be able to block these devices if you so desire.
How Many Devices are Connected to Your Wifi Router: 5 Simple Steps
Do you ever wonder how many devices are connected to your home Wi-Fi network? Maybe you’re concerned about bandwidth usage or want to make sure no one is piggybacking on your connection without your knowledge.
Fortunately, it’s easy to find out how many devices are connected to your router. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to do it.
Step 1:
Log into your router’s web interface. The exact process for this will vary depending on your router’s make and model, but you can usually do it by typing your router’s IP address into a web browser.
Step 2:
Once you’re logged in, look for a section that displays information about the devices currently connected to your router. This section is often labeled “Attached Devices,” “Clients,” or something similar.
Step 3:
Take a look at the list of devices and see how many there are. If you see any devices that you don’t recognize, it’s possible that someone is using your Wi-Fi without your permission.
If you’re worried about bandwidth usage, you can also check to see how much data each device is using. This information is usually available in the same section as the list of devices.
Keep in mind that some devices, like smartphones and laptops, will disconnect and reconnect to your Wi-Fi regularly. As a result, they may not always show up on the list of attached devices.
If you want to keep an eye on your home Wi-Fi network, it’s a good idea to check this list periodically to see if there are any changes.
Step 4:
If you want to limit the number of devices that can connect to your Wi-Fi network, most routers have a setting that allows you to do this.
This can be helpful if you’re worried about someone using up all your bandwidth.
To find this setting, look for a section labeled “Wireless Settings,” “Access Control,” or something similar. Once you’ve found it, you’ll be able to specify the maximum number of devices that can connect to your Wi-Fi network.
Keep in mind that limiting the number of devices that can connect to your Wi-Fi network may not be practical if you have a lot of devices or if people are regularly coming and going from your home.
Step 5:
If you want to prevent specific devices from connecting to your Wi-Fi network, most routers also have a setting that allows you to do this.
This can be helpful if you’re concerned about someone using your Wi-Fi without your permission.
To find this setting, look for a section labeled “Wireless Settings,” “Access Control,” or something similar. Once you’ve found it, you’ll be able to specify which devices are allowed to connect to your Wi-Fi network.
Keep in mind that this setting may not be available on all routers. Additionally, it’s possible to bypass this setting by changing the MAC address of a device, so it’s not foolproof.
How to Know How Many Devices Are Connected To My Wifi Router
We are going to mention some methods you can use below. These methods differ in their features and reliability.
Before you read on, please know that you can also increase the number of your device connections on Wifi if you want.
Use Glasswire Pro to see who is Connected
This software can help to protect your privacy and ensure that no unwanted person gets connected to your wifi without your permission.
It can also protect your data, devices, and even your network. It carries out its function by visualizing your network activities.
As a result, it will reveal to you who is connected to your Wi-Fi. You can easily download it on Google Play today and start using it for the intended purpose.
Check below for some of its many great features:
- It will enable you to see who or what your computer is connected to. It does this via the GlassWire network monitoring graph. Aside from showing you what system your device is connected with presently. It will also tell you what devices your PC has connected to in the past
- The program is defined in such a way to detect bandwidth hogs, badly behaving apps, malware, and spyware. Aside from detecting them, it will also block them and prevent them from being connected to your system.
- The app is also able to warn you about changes in the network connected to your PC. It can equally warn you of any unusual change to your app, which may indicate malware
- You can easily monitor other computers that are connected to your network by using GlassWire. It will alert you any time an unknown device or PC gets connected to your Wi-Fi.
The fact that it can detect ad-block unwanted devices from being connected to your Wi-Fi makes this device one of the best to help you detect devices that are connected to your Wi-Fi.
Aside from all the features, we have mentioned above, this app is equally able to keep track consistently of how much data you are using on your mobile devices and PC.
It will alert you ahead of time before you reach your data limit. Any time that a new app gains access to your network, GlassWire will detect and block it instantly.
If anyone tampers with your device or PC in your absence, the app will reveal the activities of the person to you when you come back.
Use your Router’s web interface
You can also check who or what is connected to your Wi-Fi by using the web interface of your router.
This is even considered by many as the best way to find answers to the question of who is connected to your Wi-Fi.
You need to bear in mind that your router is hosting your Wi-Fi network.
As a result of this, it can be trusted when you are looking for the most accurate data or report about the devices connected to your Wi-Fi.
Many of the routers on sale out there come with the function to give you a list of devices connected to your Wi-Fi.
This is to say that not all routers come with this function. When you want to buy a new router, you should first check if it comes with such a function or not. It will save you from heartbreak.
You need to know your IP address before you can access the web interface of your router.
If you do not know the IP address, it can be easily checked from the gateway IP address of the computer by checking the control panel.
Another way to detect the IP address is to run the ipconfig/all command. You will need to use a command prompt window to do this.
After you have obtained the IP address, you will need to enter it into the address bar of your web browser. You can then press the Enter key.
Normally, this will show the web interface of the router. You can take a look at the router’s documentation if the web interface does not show up as expected.
You can also carry out a web search to know the web interface and model number of the router.
This method does not require that you download any app or software. However, you may not be able to access the information about who is connected to your Wi-Fi via this method if your router does not permit this function.
This method of detecting connected devices to your Wi-Fi works better and faster than any other method you can ever use.
Scan your Wi-Fi network with the software on your computer
This is yet another method via which you can find out the devices connected to your Wi-Fi.
If the method described above does not work for you because your router does not permit it, then you can adopt this method also to check things out.
This method involves the use of a scanning tool and it also works for the intended purpose.
The scanning tool is specially built software that runs on your computer and can easily scan the computer for all the devices connected to your Wi-Fi. It always does a good job of it.
The scanning will detect all the actively-connected devices and list them out for you. This method is only able to detect and list devices that are currently connected but will never be able to detect devices that are already disconnected from the Wi-Fi connection.
This is one advantage that the router web interface tool has over this method. The router web interface tool will show you a list of devices that had been earlier connected but are now disconnected from your Wifi.
So many tools are already created to produce this effect and you can go for any of them to detect devices that are actively connected to your Wifi.
However, you should properly investigate them to know if they can be trusted or not. One of the best ways to know if a tool can be trusted is by reading reviews about it.
The reviews will open your eyes to how reliable the tool is. However, you should only read your reviews from neutral sources of information to enable you to have reliable information about the tool and its usefulness.
When reading reviews about the scanning tool to use, find out if the tool has adware or malware; the past experiences of other end users can reveal this to you.
You should also find out if the tool can cause your PC to run slowly or malfunction. The tool must be able to work in the background so that it will not disturb other things that you are doing on your PC.
It should also be able to alert you immediately a new device gets connected to your Wifi.
Check your connected devices
You can also look for the list of connected devices when looking for the list of devices connected to your Wi-Fi. You need to check for this option in the web interface of your router.
You can connect it with your manufacturer if you find it difficult to locate it. You can check it by looking for a button or link named “attached devices” or something similar to that.
It may also be named “DHCP clients” or even “connected devices”.
It all depends on the particular router. This can be easily detected on the Wi-Fi configuration page. You can also find it on a status page.
You may find the list of connected devices listed out by some other routers. This will help to save you a lot of stress with clicking.
If you are using a D-link router, it will show you a list of the routers connected to your device. You can check under status and then wireless.
The location differs from one router to another. Many of the routers out there provide a list of all the devices that are already connected to your Wi-Fi via DHCP if a device gets configured with a static IP configuration.
When you open the list you will come across the list of devices connected to your Wi-Fi. This information can be seen on so many routers.
The interface will also show you a table that contains a list of devices connected to the Wi-Fi. They will also show you their Mac addresses and hostnames on the network.
If the contact of the list does not give you anything meaningful, you may decide to change the hostnames.
It can also be called the device names and computer names on your device or computer operating system. You will be able to see the hostname on the list also.
The problem is that the hostname cannot be changed on some devices. If you are using android, it may be difficult for you to change the hostname on your android devices.
You may have to root the device before you can do the change of name.
Commonly Asked Questions
How to check who is connected to my Wifi
One of the best ways to do this is to use your router’s web interface. There are, however, several other methods discussed above and they can also serve this purpose.
How can I see what devices are connected to my Wifi?
Many of the methods we have mentioned above can be used for this purpose. However, the best among them is none other than to use your router’s web interface.
It will help you to detect the IP address of the connection to your Wifi. It will help you to make the right decision about which one to block or leave the amount the connected devices.
How to control devices connected to your Wi-Fi.
You can also use any of the methods we have discussed above to control devices that are connected to your Wi-Fi.
Once you detect any device that you are not in agreement with, you can easily block it from your network.
The various methods we have discussed above will not only detect the connected devices but will also enable you to block them if you so desire.
How many devices can I have connected to my wireless router?
It is possible to connect as many as 250 devices to your wireless router. However, the number differs from one router to another.
Examples of devices you can connect to wireless routers are appliances, Smartphones, tablets, cameras, computers, and so on.
Any internet-enabled device can be connected to your Wi-Fi.
Conclusion
From the information we have provided above, you would have learned how you can easily detect any device that is connected to your Wi-Fi.
With the information we have given above, it will not be a problem for you to choose a method via which you can successfully detect the device connected.
If you are not ok with the connection, you are free to block the connected device instantly so that it does not burn your internet data.
There are many methods via which you can detect any connection to your Wi-Fi quite alright, but the function of these methods differs one from the other.
The most reliable of all the methods discussed above is the use of your router’s web interface.
However, it is unfortunate that not all routers can be trusted to give you the list of devices connected to your Wi-Fi.
If you are using such a router, then you can opt for any of the other methods that w have discussed above.
They too can work by detecting and listing the devices connected to your Wi-Fi. Only that they will not show you the devices that have disconnected from the Wi-Fi, which is one area where the use of the web interface of your router shines is better than others.
