How to change network adapter name on Windows 10

Here are two ways to change the Wi-Fi and Ethernet adapter name on Windows 10.

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@Pureinfotech
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Windows 10 change network name
Windows 10 change network name

Windows 10 automatically assigns a default name for network adapters based on their type (Wi-Fi or Ethernet), but you can always change their names manually to something more specific.

Usually, you don’t need to worry about renaming adapters, but if you have multiple network cards, you may want to change their names to make them easier to identify and manage.

This guide will teach you how to rename the Windows 10 network adapter from Control Panel and PowerShell.

Change network adapter name on Windows 10

To rename a network adapter from Control Panel on Windows 10, use these steps:

  1. Open Start on Windows 10.

  2. Search for Control Panel and click the top result to open the app.

  3. Click on Network and Internet.

  4. Click on Network and Sharing Center.

  5. Click on Change adapter settings from the left navigation pane.

    Change adapter settings

  6. Right-click the Wi-Fi or Ethernet adapter and select the Rename option.

    Control Panel rename network adapter

  7. Specify a new name – for example, Ethernet 10Gb or Wi-Fi6E Card.

Once you complete the steps, the network adapter will apply the new name on Windows 10.

Change network adapter name from PowerShell

To change the network adapter name from PowerShell on Windows 10, use these steps:

  1. Open Start.

  2. Search for PowerShell, right-click the top result, and select the Run as administrator option.

  3. Type the following command to view all the network adapters on your computer and press Enter:

    Get-NetAdapter | Format-List -Property Name

  4. Type the following command to rename the Wi-Fi or Ethernet adapter and press Enter:

    Rename-NetAdapter -Name "OLD-NAME" -NewName "NAME-NAME"

    In the command, change OLD-NAME for the current adapter’s name and NEW-NAME for the new name you want to assign. This example changes the name from Ethernet0 to Ethernet 10Gb:

    Rename-NetAdapter -Name "Ethernet0" -NewName "Ethernet 10Gb"

    PowerShell rename network adapter

After you complete the steps, the PowerShell command will change the name of the wired or wireless network adapter you specified.

About the author
Avatar for Mauro Huculak

Mauro Huculak is a Windows How-To Expert who started Pureinfotech in 2010 as an independent online publication. He has also been a Windows Central contributor for nearly a decade. Mauro has over 15 years of experience writing comprehensive guides and creating professional videos about Windows and software, including Android and Linux. Before becoming a technology writer, he was an IT administrator for seven years. In total, Mauro has over 21 years of combined experience in technology. Throughout his career, he achieved different professional certifications from Microsoft (MSCA), Cisco (CCNP), VMware (VCP), and CompTIA (A+ and Network+), and he has been recognized as a Microsoft MVP for many years. You can follow him on X (Twitter), YouTube, LinkedIn and About.me. Email him at [email protected].