Accessing your Netgear router’s web interface
The process for accessing a Netgear router’s configuration screen is actually a little bit easier than most other home router brands.
This is because Netgear uses the routerlogin.com (or routerlogin.net) URL to redirect you to the Netgear router on your own network. That way, you don’t have to remember the IP address of your router. Pretty slick.
To start, open your favorite web browser
- Clear out anything and everything in the address bar
- Type in www.routerlogin.com OR www.routerlogin.net (either one will work)
- Press Enter
You should be directed to the router’s login screen and prompted for a username and password. If not, verify that you spelled www.routerlogin.com or www.routerlogin.net correctly.
If you spelled it correctly, try the other routerlogin varient – assuming you tried www.routerlogin.com the first time – try again, this time using www.routerlogin.net. Likewise, if you tried .net first, try switching to .com.
If it’s still not working, try a different web browser. Also, make sure the computer you are using is connected to your network, either via Wi-Fi or wired in directly.
Find the router’s IP address
If that still doesn’t work, try finding the router’s IP address. See this article for the procedure.
Once you’ve located the router’s IP address, go back to your favorite browser and clear out the address bar again. Now enter the IP address of the router and press enter.
You should finally receive a username and password prompt to login to your router.
Login Credentials
Now you’ll need your router’s administrator credentials in order to login. For Netgear routers, the username is always admin. It cannot be changed to anything else.
The password is whatever you selected when you first set up the router. It is technically a different password than your Wi-Fi password, but it is possible that you used the same password for both, so give that password a try if you’re unsure.
If you still aren’t sure what the password is, try password or 1234 which are the default passwords for most Netgear devices. Perhaps you never changed the password from the default when you first set the router up.
Reset your router’s configuration to factory defaults
If you are still unsure of what your password is, and the default passwords don’t work either, your only choice is to reset your router to the factory default configuration.
Be advised that this will require you to go through the initial set up again – you will have to set up your Wi-Fi network name (SSID), the Wi-Fi password, the new administrator password, and any other special configurations you previously had in place such as static IP addresses, PPPoE usernames/passwords, port forwarding configurations, etc.
Your internet will likely stop functioning until your router is set up again. If your ISP requires you to use a username and password with their service, make sure you have that information accessible.
If you don’t have it, I recommend contacting them and requesting the information before you reset the router – that way you don’t end up without an internet connection longer than necessary.
Reasons why you would need to access your router’s management interface
Below are some of the common reasons why a person would need to access the management interface on their router. It is certainly not an exhaustive list:
- To change their Wi-Fi network name (SSID) or Wi-Fi password
- To change the IP address of their router
- To change the IP address of other devices on their network
- To set up new port forwarding on their router so that they can access their home network via the internet
- To set up a VPN connection
- To access/change their PPPoE credentials provided by their ISP
- To change the hostname of their router
- To change the Wi-Fi channel their router uses
- To enable or disable certain bands (2.4Ghz or 5.0Ghz)
- To check their public IP address
- To find out how many devices are connected to their network
- To implement parental access controls
- To view their bandwidth usage statistics
- To upgrade their firmware or reboot their router
- To modify their firewall settings
Remember the steps for next time
I recommend writing down the steps you used to access your router, and the working username and password.
It’s not every day that you need to change settings on your router, but the need does arise every so often. Save yourself a headache later and write the information down now while it is fresh in your head.
Andrew Namder is an experienced Network Engineer with 20+ years of experience in IT. He loves technology in general, but is truly passionate about computer networking and sharing his knowledge with others. He is a Cisco Certified Network Professional (CCNP) and is working towards achieving the coveted CCIE certification. He can be reached at andrew@infravio.com.