A VPN-protected hotspot lets you share an encrypted VPN connection with devices that can’t run VPN software themselves, including smart TVs, game consoles, streaming devices, and many smart home products.
This guide explains when a VPN hotspot is useful, how it works, how to set one up on Windows, macOS, and Linux, and how to troubleshoot common problems if your shared VPN connection stops working.
Quick answer
A VPN-protected hotspot is a temporary Wi-Fi network that routes all traffic through a computer running a VPN. Any device that joins the hotspot is automatically protected by that VPN tunnel.
- Windows is the easiest platform to set this up on: turn on Mobile Hotspot, then share your VPN adapter to it via Network Connections.
- Mac requires an Ethernet cable, since macOS can’t share a VPN over Wi-Fi directly.
- Linux needs two network adapters and a few terminal commands.
- Android/iOS hotspots don’t work for this unless the device is rooted or jailbroken, which we don’t recommend.
Why use a VPN with a mobile hotspot?
As well as providing connected devices with encryption, a VPN hotspot also masks your IP address, making it appear as though every connected device is in the same virtual location. This is ideal for families on vacation who want access to home TV, or expats who want their internet to behave as if they were back home.
A VPN hotspot is also useful for:
- Protecting smart TVs, game consoles without access to popular app stores, and smart home or IoT devices that can’t host a VPN directly.
- Letting friends and family use your home’s VPN without installing the app themselves.
- Sharing a VPN connection without a VPN-compatible router, or protecting public Wi-Fi while traveling.
- Bypassing bandwidth throttling without installing a VPN on individual devices.
- Increasing your simultaneous connection allowance. In some cases, all traffic may appear as a single VPN connection, though this depends on the provider and how they count simultaneous sessions.
It’s by far the easiest way to extend VPN protection to your entire home without setting up a full VPN router. All you need is a VPN that supports connection sharing, the right VPN protocol (like OpenVPN), and a computer with a working Wi-Fi adapter.
How to set up a VPN with a mobile hotspot on Windows
Setting up a VPN-protected hotspot on Windows is surprisingly simple. It’s ideal for beginners and anyone who finds VPN routers too technical. The only requirement is a VPN that supports the OpenVPN protocol and is fast enough to handle your traffic without slowdowns.
1. Ensure your VPN app is set to OpenVPN. Many VPNs nowadays are set up to connect using the WireGuard protocol by default. For a smooth VPN mobile hotspot, use the OpenVPN protocol, which creates a virtual adapter that Windows can easily share. OpenVPN UDP or TCP will both work, but we recommend UDP for any tasks that require faster speeds.
2. Open Windows Settings and choose Network & Internet.
3. Select Mobile Hotspot. In the left-hand menu, select Mobile Hotspot.
4. Set ‘Share my internet connection from’ to Wi-Fi. Also, be sure that the hotspot is turned On. You need the virtual Wi-Fi hotspot to be active to complete all the steps.
5. Go to Network Connections. You can navigate there faster by pressing Windows+R and then typing ncpa.cpl.
6. Right-click your VPN adapter (often labeled “TAP” or named after your VPN) and select Properties.
7. Click the Sharing tab in the window that opens.
8. Check the box that says “Allow other network users to connect…” and choose your hotspot from the drop-down list. On my computer, the hotspot appears as “Local Area Connection #2.” This may differ on your device. If you are having trouble identifying your Wi-Fi hotspot, try turning it off and on to see which entry disappears/ reappears.
9. Click OK to save your settings.
Your Windows Mobile Hotspot is now set up to share your VPN connection. The only thing left to do is connect a device to your hotspot to check that it is receiving the correct VPN IP address, as explained below.
Want step-by-step instructions with screenshots? Click here for a detailed guide that explains how to set up a VPN-protected hotspot on Windows.
How to fix “Internet disabled” when sharing VPN on Windows
If you’ve followed the steps in this guide, you should be successfully using a VPN with your mobile hotspot. However, some users encounter the “Internet disabled” error when sharing a VPN on Windows. If you have encountered this problem, use the troubleshooting tips below to get everything working properly.
What to do if you’re losing internet access after enabling VPN sharing:
- Hotspot turned on before sharing? If you didn’t activate it first, the correct connection won’t appear in the Sharing tab’s drop-down list.
- Wrong adapter selected? Choosing “Ethernet” instead of your actual hotspot (e.g., “Local Area Connection #2”) means VPN traffic never reaches it. Toggle the hotspot off and on to confirm which entry it is.
- Restart your TAP adapter. In Network Connections, disable and re-enable your VPN adapter to restart the driver, then reconnect the VPN.
- Public/Private mismatch. If your VPN and hotspot adapters aren’t both set to Private, Windows may block traffic between them (see below).
- Try switching TCP/UDP, or adjust the MTU packet size to 1500, 1460, or 1472 if OpenVPN traffic still isn’t flowing.
How to set both the VPN and hotspot adapters to “Private” networks
Windows blocks communication between adapters when one is set to “Public” and the other to “Private,” which can prevent the hotspot from routing traffic to the VPN.
1. Open Settings > Network & Internet > Wi-Fi (or Ethernet), depending on the adapter type.
2. Click on the network you’re currently connected to.
3. Under Network profile, select Private.
4. Repeat this process for both your active VPN adapter (often labeled TAP or your VPN’s name) and your mobile hotspot adapter (labeled something like “Local Area Connection #2” or similar in Network Connections).
If your version of Windows doesn’t show the Network profile setting, use PowerShell instead:
1. With your VPN connected via OpenVPN and your hotspot active (with at least one device joined), right-click Start and select Terminal (Admin).
2. Run Get-NetConnectionProfile and note the name under `Alias` for your VPN and hotspot adapters.
3. Run the following command, but replace the words within the quotation marks with the exact name you made a note of in step 2. The command will look something like this when done correctly: Set-NetConnectionProfile -InterfaceAlias "OpenVPN Data Channel Offload for Surfshark" -NetworkCategory Private
4. Press Enter to run the command, and then run the following command again: Get-NetConnectionProfile
Your VPN connection adapter should now show as private. Repeat this process for the hotspot (if it is set to public).
Additional VPN mobile hotspot troubleshooting tips
- Disable IPv6 on both your VPN adapter and Wi-Fi hotspot (in ncpa.cpl > Properties) if traffic isn’t routing properly.
- Check for firewall conflicts. Windows Defender Firewall or third-party firewalls can sometimes block shared traffic, so try disabling the firewall temporarily to test for conflicts.
- Try another VPN server location. Sometimes, specific VPN servers block traffic forwarding.
- Temporarily disable antivirus software. Some antivirus programs block network adapter bridging or VPN TAP activity.
macOS doesn’t support VPN sharing via Wi-Fi out of the box, but you can share your VPN with another device using an Ethernet cable and Internet Sharing:
1. Connect your VPN using a protocol your provider supports, such as IKEv2 or OpenVPN.
2. Plug your second device into your Mac via Ethernet (or a USB-to-Ethernet adapter).
3. Go to System Settings > General > Sharing > Internet Sharing.
4. Share your connection from Wi-Fi (or the active interface) to Ethernet, then enable Internet Sharing and connect your second device.
This works well for sharing your VPN from a Mac to another computer, game console, or streaming device. Want step-by-step instructions with screenshots? Click here for our full VPN hotspot for Mac guide.
Linux can also create a VPN-protected hotspot, but it requires two network adapters — one for the VPN connection, one for the hotspot — so you can forward traffic from one through the VPN and out to each connected device. Steps may differ slightly by distro.
1. Connect to your VPN using OpenVPN (or WireGuard, depending on distro support).
2. Identify your interfaces using ip addr. Note the interface name for your VPN (like tun0) and the one for your hotspot (like wlan0).
3. Enable IP forwarding by running: sudo sysctl -w net.ipv4.ip_forward=1
4. Create a NAT rule to share the VPN connection: sudo iptables -t nat -A POSTROUTING -o tun0 -j MASQUERADE
5. Start your hotspot using nmcli, hostapd, or your preferred method.
Bear in mind that this NAT rule won’t persist after a reboot unless saved using iptables-save. You will also want to ensure your firewall allows forwarding between interfaces so the mobile hotspot works with the VPN.
Don’t have a Windows, Mac, or Linux computer? It’s a reasonable assumption that connecting your phone to a VPN and turning on its hotspot would share that VPN the same way it does on a desktop — but this method doesn’t work on mobile devices.
Android and iOS don’t route VPN traffic through the mobile hotspot by default, and there’s no setting to enable it. The VPN tunnel only protects traffic from apps on your phone; it doesn’t extend to the Wi-Fi hotspot. Any device using the hotspot bypasses the VPN and uses your regular internet connection instead.
Is it possible to set up a VPN hotspot from a mobile device?
The only way to share a VPN over a hotspot from a mobile device is to root your Android phone or jailbreak your iPhone. We don’t recommend this, due to the serious privacy and security risks it creates.
A rooted mobile device is exponentially more vulnerable to malware infections and hacking. These threats make it extremely dangerous to root smartphones and tablets. If VPN sharing is important to you, we strongly recommend using a desktop or laptop computer to create a secure VPN hotspot instead.
How to run an IP test / IP address checker
Once you have set up your VPN protected Wi-Fi hotspot, you will need to verify that the devices you connect to the hotspot are being routed through the VPN. If the hotspot is working correctly, the test will show you an IP address at the VPN location.
Here are the steps you need to test that your VPN hotspot is working properly:
- Ensure that your mobile hotspot is on and your VPN is connected to a server location (make a note of the location).
- Connect any mobile device to the Wi-Fi hotspot you created on your PC.
- Launch your browser and navigate to an IP checking tool.
- Check that the IP address is the same as the location of the VPN server you selected.
If the IP address matches your VPN server’s location, your device is successfully using the VPN hotspot, with all traffic routed through the encrypted VPN tunnel.
Now that you’ve confirmed the VPN mobile hotspot is working, you can connect any device in your home to it. This includes consoles, smart TVs, streaming sticks, VR headsets, NAS drives, smart home gear, Wi-Fi printers or cameras, and set-top boxes.
The bottom line
A VPN hotspot is the simplest way to extend VPN protection to devices that can’t run a VPN app themselves, and Windows is by far the easiest platform to set it up on.
The two things most likely to trip you up are using the wrong VPN protocol — it should be OpenVPN — and a Public/Private network mismatch, both of which are quick to check once you know where to look. Mac and Linux can do this too, with some extra hardware or setup steps, but phone hotspots are off the table unless you’re willing to root or jailbreak the device. Run the IP-check test above before trusting the setup with anything sensitive, and you’re covered.
