Android hotspot not working on a Mac: what to check, in order

When an Android hotspot is not working on a Mac, the fault is usually on the phone side: the hotspot is not really on, the phone has no mobile data to share, Data Saver is blocking it, or the carrier plan does not include tethering. Start by turning the hotspot off and on again, then confirm the phone itself can open a web page on mobile data. If the MacBook joins the hotspot but shows connected with no internet, restart the Mac and switch off any VPN before you try anything else. USB tethering is not a fallback: Google says it does not work with a Mac.

Everything below comes from Google's hotspot help for Android and Pixel, Google's Wi-Fi and hotspot troubleshooting page, and Apple's page If your Mac isn't connecting to the internet over Wi-Fi. Google's menu names are the Pixel ones. On a Samsung Galaxy or another phone the labels differ, so search Settings for "hotspot".

Symptom, cause, fix

The hotspot is not showing up on my Mac. What now?

Work from the phone outwards.

1. Check the hotspot is on. Swipe down from the top of the phone and look at the Hotspot tile. Google's advice is to turn it off and on again even if it looks on.
2. Check Data Saver. Google's Pixel page says Data Saver has to be off to tether by Wi-Fi.
3. On the Mac, click the Wi-Fi icon in the menu bar, then Other Networks. Apple's Wi-Fi guide says that is where nearby networks appear if the one you want is not in the short list.
4. Check the name. Tap the hotspot name on the phone to read it. You are looking for that exact name in the Mac's list.
5. Restart both. Google's troubleshooting page starts with restarting the phone. Apple's page says to restart the Mac.

A useful test at this point is a second device. Google's troubleshooting page suggests it for ordinary Wi-Fi and it applies here too: if a tablet or a friend's phone can see and join the hotspot, the hotspot is fine and the problem is on the Mac. If nothing can see it, the problem is on the phone.

The Mac says connected, but there is no internet. Why?

This is the more common complaint, and it has three likely causes in Google's and Apple's own words.

The phone has nothing to share. A hotspot passes on the phone's mobile data. Open a web page on the phone with its Wi-Fi off. If that fails, the Mac has no chance. Check signal, Airplane mode, and whether you have used up your data allowance.

The carrier blocks or limits tethering. Google puts this warning at the top of its hotspot page: "Some mobile carriers limit or charge extra for tethering." Its troubleshooting page goes further and says not all providers work with hotspots at all. If the phone browses happily and no device can get online through the hotspot, phone the carrier before you spend more time on settings.

The Mac is the odd one out. If another device gets online through the hotspot and the Mac does not, follow Apple's list:

1. Restart the Mac, so it requests a fresh address from the phone.
2. Check the Mac's date and time are right.
3. Turn off any VPN, and any other software that "monitors or interacts with your network connections", then try again.
4. Hold the Option key and click the Wi-Fi icon, then choose Open Wireless Diagnostics.

Why does the hotspot keep turning itself off?

Because the phone is saving battery. Google's Pixel page says the hotspot turns off when no devices are connected, and its troubleshooting page puts the wait at 10 minutes. If the Mac drops off the hotspot for that long, for whatever reason, the hotspot shuts down behind it.

The setting is at Settings > Network & internet > Hotspot & tethering > Wi-Fi hotspot > Turn off hotspot automatically on a Pixel. Switch it off if you would sooner have the hotspot stay up, and plug the phone in. Google recommends "plugging in your devices while tethering".

Should I try USB or Bluetooth tethering instead?

No. Both are dead ends with a Mac, by Google's own account. The Android page says "Mac computers can't tether with Android by USB." The Pixel page adds that Macs on macOS Monterey and later cannot tether through Bluetooth. The Wi-Fi hotspot is the only one of the three that Google supports for a Mac, which is why it is worth fixing. The background is in Android USB tethering on a Mac.

Does The Relay fix hotspot problems?

No. The Relay does not share the phone's internet connection and does not control the hotspot, so it cannot turn the hotspot on from the Mac or repair one that will not connect. Nothing on this page needs a paid app. What The Relay covers is the rest of the gap between an Android phone and a Mac: clipboard, files, texts and login codes, notifications, calls, and links.

Questions people ask

Why is my Android hotspot not showing up on my MacBook?

Most often the hotspot is not on, or Data Saver is stopping it. Turn the hotspot off and on, turn Data Saver off, then click Other Networks in the Mac's Wi-Fi menu. If a second device cannot see the hotspot either, the problem is on the phone.

Why does my Mac say connected to my phone's hotspot but have no internet?

Either the phone has no working mobile data, the carrier does not allow tethering on your plan, or the Mac needs a restart to pick up a fresh network address. Test the phone's own browser on mobile data first, then restart the Mac and turn off any VPN.

Can I use a USB cable if the Wi-Fi hotspot will not work?

Not with a Mac. Google's help page says Mac computers cannot tether with Android by USB. Fix the Wi-Fi hotspot instead.