Private Wi-Fi Address: Should You Turn It Off?

Keep your private Wi-Fi address turned on for public, hotel and work networks; it makes it harder for networks to track your phone or laptop across locations by its permanent hardware address. On your own home network, turn it off, or on an iPhone running iOS 18 or later set it to Fixed, only if a router feature that relies on recognizing a device stops working. The usual culprits are IP reservations, port forwarding, parental-control schedules and device blocking.

What a private Wi-Fi address is

Every Wi-Fi device has a hardware address, called a MAC address, that networks use to tell devices apart. If a phone used the same address everywhere, any network it joined could recognize it. Apple’s explanation: a constant address “allows a kind of user tracking or profiling that affects all devices on all Wi-Fi networks.”

A private (or randomized) address replaces the hardware address with a made-up one. Apple calls it Private Wi-Fi Address, on many Android phones the setting is called MAC address type, and Windows calls it Random hardware addresses. They work differently in one important way: how often the address changes.

How often the address changes

iPhone, iPad and Mac

On iOS 18, iPadOS 18, macOS Sequoia 15 and later, Apple offers three settings per network:

• Fixed: “your device uses a private address, but the private address doesn’t rotate.” Your router sees one consistent, made-up address.
• Rotating: “your device uses a private address that rotates to a different private address every two weeks.”
• Off: “your device uses its hardware MAC address.”

Earlier versions have a simple on/off switch. Apple sets new networks to Fixed by default when they use WPA2 or stronger security, and to Rotating when security is weak or missing.

A Fixed address can still change. Apple says resetting network settings gives a device “a different private address the next time it joins the network,” and forgetting a network also forgets its private address, unless you last forgot that network less than 24 hours earlier (two weeks on versions before iOS 18).

Android

Google’s Android documentation says: “For devices running Android 10 or higher, the framework uses a randomized MAC address by default.” In its default, persistent mode, the address is tied to the network profile and “remains the same until a factory reset.” Google adds that it “doesn’t get re-randomized if you forget and re-add the Wi-Fi network.”

Android 12 and later also have a non-persistent mode that re-randomizes, for example when “the current randomized MAC for the network profile was generated more than 24 hours ago.” Google says it is used only for certain networks, such as those set up by an app that requests it. Phone makers can change these menus, so your settings may look different.

Windows

If your Wi-Fi hardware supports it, Windows 11 and Windows 10 have a Random hardware addresses switch, either for all networks or for one network. Microsoft says it can “make it harder for people to track you when your device scans for networks and connects.”

What breaks when the address changes

Your router remembers devices by their address. When the address changes, the router sees a stranger. Router makers list the features that stop working:

ASUS sums it up: “Any MAC related features will be affected.” Linksys gives a practical example for parental controls: a scheduled block fails because “the device keeps getting online during the scheduled time.”

You’ll also see more unknown entries in your router’s device list. ASUS says a device with a new address “appears in device list as a newly connected device.” Our guide to seeing who’s connected to your Wi-Fi covers how to tell those apart from real intruders.

Note what’s on these lists: features that rely on recognizing a device. A private address doesn’t stop the internet working for most people. Apple says that if a device can’t join a network or reach the internet, “you should install the latest software updates. Then try again before you decide whether to turn this feature off.”

When to turn it off (and when Fixed is enough)

Leave it on for coffee shops, airports, hotels, and any network you don’t run. eero calls randomization “a good way to protect your privacy in public places.”

Use Fixed (or Android’s default) at home if you just want your router to recognize your devices. Linksys recommends Fixed because it “will use a unique, non-rotating MAC address,” and says Rotating is “NOT recommended” if you use parental controls or MAC filtering. A Fixed address is enough for a DHCP reservation or a port-forwarding rule to keep working, as long as you don’t reset network settings or forget the network. Our port forwarding guide explains why the reservation comes first.

Turn it off for a device on your home network when:

• A parental-control schedule or block on a child’s device keeps getting around the rules.
• You use MAC filtering or an allow list on your router.
• A device keeps losing its reserved IP address or showing up as new.
• An older Apple device only offers on or off, and you need a stable address.

eero says the protection “may not be necessary for devices in your home.” On a network you control and secure yourself, there’s less to protect against. The trade-off is small at home and larger anywhere else, so change it per network, not everywhere.

How to change it

iPhone or iPad: Open Settings > Wi-Fi, tap the More Info button next to your network, then set Private Wi-Fi Address to Off, Fixed or Rotating (iOS 18 and later) or switch it off on earlier versions.

Mac: Open System Settings > Wi-Fi, click Details next to your network, then choose from the Private Wi-Fi Address menu.

Android: Settings > Network and Internet > Wi-Fi, tap the gear next to your home network, tap MAC address type, then choose Device MAC (ASUS’s steps; menu names vary by phone maker).

Windows 11: Settings > Network & internet > Wi-Fi > Manage known networks, pick your network, and set Random hardware addresses.

After you change it, the device may reconnect and appear in your router’s list under its new address. Delete the old entry and redo any reservation or parental-control assignment for that device. If a device still drops off your network after this, see our guide to why Wi-Fi keeps disconnecting.

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