How to Check Browsing History via WiFi Router

This wikiHow teaches you how to check your WiFi router’s browsing history using a web browser. Some newer routers, such as those rented by Spectrum (a popular US Internet service provider), may not allow you to see the admin console.

Table of Contents

Steps

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Get the IP address. In some cases, the IP address is usually located at the bottom of the router, but you can also check in Settings (Windows) or Preferences (Mac).

On Windows 10, go to Settings > Network & Internet > View your network properties and look for the number next to the “Default Gateway” heading.
If you’re on a Mac, click the Apple logo > System Preferences > Network > Advanced and look at the number next to the “Router” heading below it. TCP/IP tab.

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Copy IP address. This is a sequence of 8 numeric characters.

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Paste the IP address into the address bar of your web browser. This address will redirect you to your router’s login page.

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Log in with your router’s administrator username and password. Usually these will be located below the router, which you can use to log in if you haven’t changed it before.

Newer routers (such as those rented by Spectrum) will not have this information.

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Review your browsing history. Each router manufacturer will have a different website layout, but generally there are tabs or links to review Wi-Fi usage history and logs. ^{[1] X Research Source}

You’ll see a list of websites (shown as IP addresses) that your router has visited. If you want to see the activity of a specific device, you need to find the IP address of that device (located in a section similar to “Device List”) and compare it with the activity log list. ^{[2] X Research Source}

Advice

If someone on the network is using a virtual private network (aka VPN), these data will be encrypted and, as a result, you won’t be able to see their browsing history.

Steps

Advice

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