Your phone or computer is asking for your HP printer's Wi-Fi Direct password, and you're stuck at the connection screen. Start with the printer's touchscreen, an information report, or the HP app to find it. A device that saved the printer's DIRECT network offers another way to retrieve the password.
Before you start, check which password you're looking for: your router password, HP account password, printer-label administrator PIN, and temporary WPS pairing PIN are all different from the Wi-Fi Direct password.
Start with the printer's touchscreen
On a compatible HP touchscreen printer, touch the Wi-Fi Direct icon to display the network name and password.
Note both so you can identify the correct printer network.
For a compatible LaserJet with a white-background touchscreen, including wireless Color LaserJet Pro M454 models, swipe down the top tab to open Dashboard.
Touch Wi-Fi Direct to view its details.
On wireless Color LaserJet Pro MFP 4301, 4302, and 4303 models, open Menu > Settings > Network > Wi-Fi Direct.
If your screen doesn't show the password, try a printed information report or the HP app next.
Print an information report on supported DeskJet and Smart Tank models
On the models below, the Information button gets you the credentials on paper:
- 1.Confirm that your printer is a DeskJet 2900, 4300, 5100, or 5800 series, or a Smart Tank 210, 580, 590, or 5100 series.
- 2.Load paper into the printer.
- 3.Turn on the printer.
- 4.Press the Information button.
- 5.Read the Wi-Fi Direct name and password on the Printer Information Report.
- 6.Match the report's DIRECT network name to the printer network you want to use.
Look up the password through the HP app
The HP app opens Wi-Fi Direct settings for compatible printers it can access.
Open the HP app.
Select your printer.
Choose Advanced Settings, or follow Printer Settings > View All > Advanced Settings if your app uses that layout.
Open Network > Wi-Fi Direct > Setup or Networking > Wi-Fi Direct > Setup, depending on the labels shown. Some interfaces call the destination Wi-Fi Direct Setup.
Enter the printer PIN if prompted. This PIN grants access to the settings; it isn't the Wi-Fi Direct password.
Read the Wi-Fi Direct password in the printer's settings.
Use the report controls for your printer model
No touchscreen, or a different set of menus? Other HP printers use model-specific buttons and report menus, so follow the route that matches your model and control panel.
Load paper before requesting a report.
For HP DeskJet 6000/6400, ENVY 6000/6400, and Tango printers, hold Information until all buttons illuminate.
Press Information and Cancel together to print the report.
On other button-operated HP printers whose model instructions specify this method, hold Wi-Fi Direct for three seconds.
If your model instead specifies the two-button method, press Wi-Fi Direct and Information simultaneously.
For models that use Resume, hold that button for up to 10 seconds until the report prints.
On a supported LaserJet Pro with a white-background touchscreen, swipe down to open Dashboard.
Choose Setup > Reports > Network Configuration Page.
For the older black-background LaserJet interface, open Setup > Reports > Network Summary. Newer black-background models use different menus.
For a wireless LaserJet Pro with a two-line LCD and keypad, press OK.
Open Reports, or Setup > Reports on models that require the extra menu.
Select Network Configuration Page or Network Summary, whichever your printer shows.
Press OK to print.
On wireless Color LaserJet Pro 4201, 4202, and 4203 models, rotate and press the dial at each selection through Menu > Settings > Network Settings > Network Reports > Network Configuration Report > Print.
Read the Wi-Fi Direct password on the printed report. On the 4201–4203 models, a password visibility setting controls whether it appears.
Retrieve a saved password in Windows 11
On a Windows 11 PC that saved the printer's DIRECT network, open Settings > Network & internet > Wi-Fi > Manage known networks.
Select the printer's DIRECT network.
Choose Show to reveal its saved Wi-Fi password.
For a PC already connected to that network, open Settings > Network & internet > Properties instead.
Select Show beside Wi-Fi network password.
Tip: Check that the saved password still matches the printer's current password, and remember that Wi-Fi Direct pairing doesn't always create a saved Wi-Fi profile.
Check Apple devices or share access from Android
On an iPhone running iOS 16 or later, or an iPad running iPadOS 16.1 or later, open Settings > Wi-Fi. Tap Info beside the connected DIRECT network. Tap Password and authenticate to reveal it.
For a previously joined network, open Settings > Wi-Fi > Edit and authenticate. Select its Info button, then Password. On iOS or iPadOS 18 and later, another route is to open Passwords, authenticate, and select Wi-Fi > the printer's DIRECT network > Password.
On a Mac with the Passwords app, open Passwords > Wi-Fi. Select the saved DIRECT network. Hover over Password to reveal it, or click the dots to copy it.
On a Google Pixel connected to the DIRECT network, open Settings > Network & internet > Internet. Select the network's Settings icon, tap Share, and authenticate if prompted. Scan the QR code with the receiving device to share access; this doesn't require a readable password, and other Android manufacturers use different menus.
Set a new password when you can't recover the old one
On HP printers with these browser controls, setting a known Wi-Fi Direct password replaces the old value. You'll need access to the printer's Embedded Web Server.
Enter the printer's LAN IP address in a browser when accessing it over your home network. The address 192.168.223.1 works after a device connects to the printer's DIRECT network, so it doesn't solve the initial unknown-password problem by itself.
Authenticate if prompted using the printer-label PIN and, for LaserJets, the username admin.
Open Network > Wi-Fi Direct > Status > Edit Settings.
Under Connection Method, choose Manual or Advanced.
Enter a new Wi-Fi Direct Password, or select Generate.
Record the password.
Select Apply.
If these controls are unavailable, try your printer's model-specific report method. If administrator credentials block access, ask the person who manages the printer, since administrative settings control password visibility and Wi-Fi Direct availability.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is 12345678 the default password for every HP printer?
No. That number appears in older guidance for specific Neverstop Laser MFP 1200-series configurations; it isn't a universal HP password. Use the credentials displayed by your printer or printed on its report.
Why isn't my LaserJet's Wi-Fi Direct network showing up?
Check whether Wi-Fi Direct is turned off. On a supported white-background LaserJet touchscreen, open Dashboard > Wi-Fi Direct > Setup, then enable Wi-Fi Direct. This makes the network accessible; it doesn't recover its password.
How do I show a hidden password on a Color LaserJet Pro 4201–4203 report?
With network access and any required administrator credentials, open the printer's IP address in a browser. Select Network > Wi-Fi Direct > Configuration. Set Connection Method to Advanced. Disable Do not show the Wi-Fi Direct password on reports or on the printer control panel. Select Apply. Print the Network Configuration Report again.
Can I find this password by signing in to my HP account?
HP documents no way to look up a printer's Wi-Fi Direct password from an HP account online — its own instructions keep that credential on the printer itself. Use the printer's controls, its local settings, or a device that saved its DIRECT network.