A splash page is the branded web page a captive portal shows a guest when they connect to a venue's WiFi, presenting the sign-in form, terms of use, marketing opt-in, and any promotional content before internet access is granted.
A splash page is the branded web page a guest sees the moment they connect to a venue's WiFi, before they are allowed onto the internet. It is the visible half of a captive portal: the page carrying the venue's logo, the sign-in method (email form, social login, or voucher code), the terms of use, the marketing opt-in checkbox, and anything the venue wants to promote - a menu, an event, an offer on the next visit.
The two terms are often used interchangeably, but strictly the captive portal is the network mechanism that intercepts a new device's traffic and forces the redirect, while the splash page is the page that redirect lands on. The portal decides that the guest must sign in; the splash page decides how that moment feels and how much data the venue captures.
Splash pages usually load inside the captive network assistant, the stripped-down mini-browser that iOS, Android and Windows open automatically. That browser has no tabs, limited cookie support, and may close itself once connectivity is confirmed, so the page must be lightweight, must not rely on pop-ups or app links, and must host every asset on a domain the walled garden allows. In practice: fast load, one screen, one action.
For pubs, cafes and hotels the splash page is often the most-viewed branded screen the business owns - every guest sees it, every visit. See splash page design best practices for layouts and conversion tips.
A captive portal is a web page that public WiFi users see before being granted internet access - typically used to authenticate users, accept terms, and capture data such as email or social-login identity.
A Captive Network Assistant is the mini-browser that iOS, Android, macOS, and Windows open automatically when they detect a captive portal, triggered by a connectivity probe to a known URL that fails to return the expected response.
Social login is an authentication method that lets a user sign in to a service with an existing account from a provider such as Facebook, Google, or Apple, using the OAuth 2.0 authorisation framework, instead of creating a new username and password.
WiFi email capture is the technique of collecting a guest's email address as a condition of free WiFi access, typically through a captive portal's sign-in form, so the venue can send marketing communications afterwards.
A walled garden, in captive-portal networking, is the allow-list of domains and IP addresses an unauthenticated guest device can reach before signing in - typically the splash page itself plus any social-login, payment, or asset domains the portal needs.
Capture guest emails, run automated email/SMS campaigns, and grow Google reviews - all from your existing WiFi.