When a printer repeatedly rejects a Wi-Fi password that works fine on your phone or laptop, the cause is rarely a wrong password—it is almost always a WPA3 security incompatibility, a 2.4 GHz vs. 5 GHz band mismatch, or an on-screen character entry glitch.
Follow these steps in order to bypass the password error and get your printer connected.
Many modern routers (especially Wi-Fi 6 and Wi-Fi 7 gateways) use WPA3-Personal or WPA2/WPA3 Mixed Mode by default. Older or mid-range printers cannot authenticate with WPA3 and will falsely report an "Incorrect Password" or "Authentication Failed" error even when the password is typed accurately.
Open a web browser on a computer or phone connected to your Wi-Fi and go to your router's settings page (typically 192.168.1.1 or 192.168.0.1) or open your router's mobile app.
Navigate to Wireless Settings > Security Mode (or Encryption).
Change the security setting from WPA3 or WPA2/WPA3 Mixed to WPA2-PSK (AES) only.
Save changes and let the router restart its Wi-Fi radio (takes 30–60 seconds).
Verification: Re-enter your Wi-Fi password on the printer; it accepts the key without throwing an authentication error.
Printer touchscreens and keypads frequently misread symbols or confuse credentials:
Confirm Wi-Fi Password vs. Router Admin Password: Ensure you are entering the Wireless Network Key (Passphrase) printed on the router label—not the admin login password used to access router settings.
Watch for Auto-Capitalization & Look-Alike Characters: On tiny printer screens, 0 (zero) vs. O (capital o), 1 (one) vs. l (lowercase L) vs. I (capital i), and accidental spaces at the end of the password frequently trigger rejections.
Test via Smartphone App (Bypass Tiny Keyboards): Instead of typing on the printer panel, put the printer into setup mode (hold Wireless + Cancel for 3–5 seconds) and enter the password using your phone's keyboard inside HP Smart, Canon PRINT, Epson Smart Panel, or Brother Mobile Connect.
Verification: Toggle Show Password on the printer screen or app before tapping Connect to confirm every character matches your saved password exactly.
If your router has a physical WPS button and uses WPA2 security, you can bypass password entry entirely:
1.Activate WPS Mode on the Printer:
Prerequisite: Printer powered on.
Press and hold the Wi-Fi or WPS button on your printer for about 3 seconds until the wireless light begins blinking rapidly.
Verification: The printer's wireless indicator flashes continuously to signal pairing mode.
2.Press the WPS Button on Your Router:
Within 2 minutes.
Walk over to your Wi-Fi router and press its physical WPS button (often marked with two curved arrows) for 1 to 2 seconds.
Verification: The router's WPS light blinks while exchanging security keys with the printer.
3.Confirm Connection:
1–2 min.
Wait for the devices to complete pairing automatically.
Verification: Both the router's WPS light and the printer's Wi-Fi light stop blinking and stay solid.
If your router broadcasts separate network names for 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz (for example, HomeWiFi and HomeWiFi_5G), selecting the 5 GHz name on a printer that only supports 2.4 GHz will cause connection or password rejection errors.
Select the 2.4 GHz network name from the printer's Wi-Fi list.
Enter the password assigned specifically to the 2.4 GHz band (some routers allow separate passwords for each band).
Verification: Print a Network Configuration Page from the printer's Setup > Reports menu to confirm it connected to the 2.4 GHz SSID and received a valid IP address.