How to Fix Personal Hotspot Issues in iOS 15

Want to know how you can address personal hotspot issues on iOS 15?

You could be traveling out of town for a business trip or be in an area where there’s no Wi-Fi, only leaving you with your cellular data network to work with. This is where your personal hotspot feature in your iOS 15 device comes in handy.

Unfortunately, several Apple users have reported an issue with their personal hotspot after updating to iOS 15. Based on the reports, other devices connect to their hotspots. In some cases, they can connect to the personal hotspot, but it repeatedly drops after a few minutes.

So what do you do?

Worry not, for we have written this guide so you can fix the personal hotspot issues on your iOS 15 device.

Now, this is quite a lengthy guide and can be overwhelming to go through and try everything, but we suggest that you approach this post by taking your time and trying out one by one each of the solutions and see which ones work and which ones don’t.

Anyways, without wasting another minute, let’s get started.

How to Use USB Tethering

One workaround you can do if your personal hotspot is not working is to use your lightning cable to tether the internet to your laptop or PC. This should provide a temporary internet connection until your personal hotspot is fixed.

Before you do this, make sure you disable your Wi-Fi function on your iPhone to avoid conflict (Settings > Wi-Fi).

Once you’ve turned disabled Wi-Fi, here’s what you do:

1. First, make sure you have the latest version of iTunes installed on your computer.
2. Then, connect your Mac or Windows PC using the lightning cable to your iOS 15 device. If a message prompt to trust the device, tap on it.

3. Now, check if you can locate your iOS device in iTunes/Finder. If not, try to use a different USB cable. If your using a Windows PC, follow the instructions here.
4. On your Mac, go to System Preferences, then Network and then click on iPhone USB. If you cannot see it, click on the (+) to add the device.

5. Next, click on the Settings (the gear icon) to access the drop-down menu and click on Make Service Inactive option. Click the Apply button to confirm the process.

6. Finally, click on the Settings (the gear icon) again, and this time, click on the Make Service Active option. Click the Apply button to finalize the process.

Now, you can use your phone’s mobile data to browse the web on your Windows or Mac computer.

1. Check for Wi-Fi Interference.

One of the most common causes why you may experience personal hotspot issues such as the connection being too slow, constant stutters, and cut-offs, can be attributed to wireless interference.

It is known for Apple devices that the Wi-Fi and Bluetooth antenna use the same frequency. This means that your other devices can have a hard time connecting to your iOS 15 device’s hotspot due to signal interference.

Due to this, we advise turning off your Bluetooth and Wi-Fi before enabling your personal hotspot.

Apple also recommends that you keep your device away from common everyday objects such as microwaves and wireless phones, which can disrupt the signal of your personal hotspot.

2. Plug In Your Device.

If you find your personal hotspot connection dropping after a few minutes, it may indicate that your iOS 15 device can’t sustain the required power to run the hotspot. This should not happen as your device’s battery should be able to handle any load from the device.

In this case, there might be an issue with iOS 15’s power management, which causes issues when your personal hotspot is enabled.

Simply connect your phone to your charger while using personal hotspot to fix the issue.

3. Restart Your Device.

A temporary error may have occurred on your iOS 15 device, which caused issues with your personal hotspot. To rule this out, simply restart your device to reload its resources and fix potential bugs and glitches.

Here’s what you need to do:

1. First, open the Assistive Touch on your display.
2. After that, go to the Device tab and tap on More.
3. Lastly, choose Restart.

After restarting your device, turn on your personal hotspot and check if the problem is solved.

4. Check Your Mobile Data.

Personal hotspot on iOS devices needs mobile data to work. If your bandwidth allotment for the month is reached, then you won’t be able to access the internet when you connect to your personal hotspot.

With this, we suggest checking your mobile plan status first before using your personal hotspot.

You can also head to Settings > Cellular and ensure that your mobile data is turned on.

5. Enforce Static IP Address.

Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol or DHCP is responsible for giving out IP addresses to devices that want to connect to a network. With this feature not working properly, it is impossible to route data within the network and to the internet.

To work around this issue, you can manually provide the IP address to your devices patterned to your iPhone’s setup.

For Macs:

1. Go ahead and click the Apple menu, then click System Preferences, and then click Network.
2. Then, select the Wi-Fi or Wireless on the network connection option list.
3. Now, click the Configure IPv4 pop-up menu, then choose the Manually option.

Before you enter the following IP addresses and details into your settings, make sure to always keep a record of your current settings, just in case you want to revert.

4. Type in the IP Address 172.20.10.10 (, or you can use anything from 172.20.10.2 up to 172.20.10.250. Just make sure you don’t have a duplicate when using multiple devices).
5. For Subnet Mask, type in 255.255.255.0 and for the default gateway, type in 172.20.10.1
6. Then, enter the DNS server address by clicking on Advanced, click DNS, then click the Add button and type in 172.20.10.1.
7. Finally, confirm the configuration and save the changes.

For Windows:

1. Go ahead and click the Windows start icon on your computer. Type control in the search option.
2. Next, find the Control Panel in the list result and click it to launch the settings page.
3. Then, under the Network and Internet settings, click on View network status and tasks to open settings.

4. Under your active connection, click on the link next to connections. Click on the Wi-Fi with the wireless broadcast name.

5. After that, a status window will prompt, and under the Activity section, click on the Properties button.
6. Select Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) and click the Properties button to open the settings page.

Before you enter the following IP addresses and details into your settings, make sure to always keep a record of your current settings, just in case you want to revert.

7. Select Use the following IP Address and Use the following DNS Server addresses. Fill in the details below:

• IP Address: 172.20.10.10
• DNS; 255.255.255.0
• Gateway: 172.20.10.1
• DNS Server: 172.20.10.1

8. Click the OK button to save settings.
9. Finally, click the Close button on the Wi-Fi status page.

For Android devices, however, you will need to refer to the support of the device’s manufacturer (Samsung, OnePlus, Google, etc.) to know how to enforce static IP addresses on your device as the step varies depending on the device.

Once done, reconnect to your personal hotspot to check if the problem is solved.

6. Update to the Latest iOS Version.

There is potential that Apple may have already released a fix for the personal hotspot issues with its latest iOS version updates. It’s easy to lose track of when Apple does release updates since they’re often, but a quick look into your device’s Check for Updates page can help clarify that doubt.

Here’s how you can update your iPhone:

1. First, make sure you have more than 50% battery before updating your device. You can plug in your device if your battery is low.
2. Now, go to Settings, then General, and then choose Software Update.

3. Finally, choose and tap Download and Install and follow the on-screen prompts.

Turn on your personal hotspot afterward and check if the problem is solved.

7. Update Your Wireless Network Drivers (Windows).

If you can’t connect to your iOS device’s personal hotspot, it’s possible that there’s an issue with your network controller. To rule this out, update your network drivers on Windows to patch errors and bugs.

Here’s how you can update your network drivers:

1. First, open the Quick Menu by holding the Windows + X keys on your keyboard.
2. After that, click on Device Manager and expand the Network Controllers tab.
3. Lastly, right-click on your wireless network device and choose Update Driver.

Reboot your system afterward and check if you can connect to your iOS device’s hotspot.

8. Reset Network Settings.

Resetting your network settings could also help address the issues with your personal hotspot on iOS 15. Keep in mind that this won’t delete your existing data so you don’t have to perform a backup.

Here’s how you can reset your network settings on iOS 15:

1. Go ahead and tap on the Settings on your iPhone, then tap General.
2. Now, access the Reset tab.
3. Finally, tap on Reset Network Settings.

Now that you have reset the network settings of your iPhone, you can set up all network configurations from scratch.

9. Restore iPhone and Setup as New.

An untraceable system file that has been corrupted in your device’s software can cause some of your phone features to not work correctly. If this happens, you will need to restore your iPhone entirely.

Here’s how you can restore your iPhone as new:

1. First, connect your device to your computer and backup your iPhone using iTunes.
2. Now, reconnect your device.

3. Look for a restore or update option message, click Restore.

After the process, you will want to first and foremost test if your personal hotspot is working before you restore your backup.

By now, you should be able to find that your iPhone will be able to establish a personal hotspot connection, just like any newly purchased iPhone would.  Once you’ve made sure of that, you can choose to restore your device from the backup.

We advise setting up your iPhone as new to prevent the personal hotspot issues from recurring. Not to mention that if you are considering restoring your backup, then chances are that the corrupted system files may also be in there.

10. Contact Apple for Support.

Now there is a possibility that you have a defective Wi-Fi module on your iPhone. To be sure, you will need an Apple-certified technician to help you out. Their services are available at your nearest Apple Store. But be sure to check your warranty options first before going there.

However, if you don’t have an Apple store in your area, you can check the availability of support in your country. You can still book a repair appointment online and send them your iPhone through a courier.

In that way, they can fix your device in their lab while you monitor the progress through their website.

That ends our guide for fixing personal hotspot issues on iOS 15. If you have questions, drop a comment below, and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible.

If this guide helped you, please share it. 🙂