#235 WiFi Scanners
A quick survey of WiFi scanners
Notes
No scientific assessment here, just quick checks…
tldr: WiFi Explorer is the only one that gave me the full technical details (short of pulling out the big guns with wireshark)
NetSpot
- WiFi analyzer app for macOS offers the most visual and convenient heat maps and more.
- Android, iOS, Windows, MacOS
- commercial and free editions
- good for signal analysis but not config details
WiFi Scanner for Mac OS
- WiFi analyzer app for Mac that also detects access points and clients in ad-hoc mode in case the SSID is broadcasted.
- MacOS
- pretty expensive and no free trial?
iStumbler for Mac
- WiFi analyzer app for Mac will display networks according to their types, i.e. Bluetooth, Bonjour or AirPort.
- currently not available due to issues
- MacOS
WiFi Explorer
- Detect issues that may be affecting connection and the performance of your network, such as channel conflicts, overlapping and configuration issues, etc.
- good for advanced details - allows inspection and export of full technical details of each network
- MacOS
KisMAC
- an open-source WiFi analyzer application for Mac OS that can map wireless networks and lay out the info on their performance so you can easily troubleshoot.
- ATTENTION! KisMAC WiFi scanner is no longer being updated or maintained! The latest version 0.3.3 released Feb 07, 2011
- MacOS
- source still available at https://github.com/IGRSoft/KisMac2
Mac Wireless Diagnostics Tool
- a built-in Mac WiFi analyzer that’s included in all version of macOS.
- MacOS
inSSIDer
- the basic version of this WiFi analyzer allows Mac users to collect all essential information about nearby WiFi networks.
- MacOS, Windows
- failed to detect most networks when I tried it?!
AirRadar
- this free-to-try WiFi analyzer for Mac is great for performing large-scale WiFi site surveys.
- free trial
- basic details
- MacOS
WireShark
- Not specifically for WiFi scanning, however if the need is to capture wifi traffic then it is ideal
- MacOS, Windows