Best Wireless Routers For Any Purpose

It’s impossible to fully enjoy a fast Internet connection without a great wireless router. From laptops to mobile devices to Internet-connected smart home gadgets — wireless Internet access has become a necessity like electricity or water.

David Morelo

May 20, 2024

Because we know that the selection of wireless routers can be a bit overwhelming, we’ve picked the best wireless routers for regular home users, gamers, and people on a budget.

TP-Link Archer AX21

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Linksys MR7350 WiFi 6

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Asus ROG Rapture GT-AC5300

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Asus RT-AC88U

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Netgear Nighthawk X10

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NetSpot WiFi Survey Software

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How to Choose the Best WiFi Router?
Best Wireless Router for Home
Best Wireless Router for Gaming
Best WiFi Router for Long Range
Is It Time to Replace My Wireless Router?
Conclusion

How to Choose the Best WiFi Router?

The most important thing is to know what you need. Are you a gamer who plays online competitive games? Do you like to stream high-definition movies and TV shows from the Internet? Or do you just want faster Internet speeds without paying for features you may or may not use?

Once you understand your own needs, it’s time to pick a few models that fit the bill and read WiFi router reviews to discover their pros and cons. Keep in mind that tech reviews are a picky bunch who likes to point out flaws that will go completely unnoticed by the average user. Use your judgment to separate valid critique from frivolous remarks.

After your new WiFi router finally arrives at your doorstep and you set it up, use NetSpot to measure how much have your Internet download and upload speeds improved and how strong the signal has become.

Best Wireless Router for Home

A wireless router for home should be reliable, secure, and easy to configure. For most people, mid-range wireless routers offer the best value as they tend to have all the important features that can be found in high-end wireless routers without the premium price tag.

Before you spend money on a new WiFi router, we highly recommend you run a wireless site survey using NetSpot to determine whether your current WiFi router doesn’t already deliver satisfactory coverage.

NetSpot makes wireless site surveys and analysis a matter of a few simple clicks, and it’s available for free for both Windows and macOS.

NetSpot for Android

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Winner:

TP-Link Archer AX21

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Raiting : 4.8 out of 5

The TP-Link Archer AX21 is a top choice for a home wireless router because it combines impressive features and easy setup. The router can achieve speeds of up to 1.8 Gbps for smooth streaming and downloading, and it uses beamforming technology and high-performance antennas to ensure a wider coverage area.

Setting up the Archer AX21 is simple thanks to the TP-Link Tether app, which also provides convenient access to parental controls. While the router is unlikely to cover a large home with a sufficiently strong signal on its own, you can pair it with OneMesh extenders to effortlessly get whole-home coverage.

Pros and Cons

Fast 1.8 Gbps WiFi performance
Beamforming for wide coverage
Easy setup and management
Versatile parental controls

May require additional OneMesh extenders for very large homes

Runner-Up:

Linksys MR7350 WiFi 6

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Raiting : 4.4 out of 5

The Linksys MR7350 WiFi 6 router is a reliable choice for home users who prioritize speed and performance over additional features. With its Intelligent Mesh technology, the router can cover up to 1,700 sq. ft and handle over 25 devices while achieving speeds up to 1.8 Gbps in real-world tests.

The lack of VPN support, web filtering, and limited USB functionality may be disappointing for some users, but we believe that most regular home users won’t mind. Instead, they will see the MR7350 as a solid option that delivers outstanding value in terms of speed and performance.

Pros and Cons

Fast WiFi 6 performance
Covers up to 1,700 sq. ft and supports 25+ devices
Expandable with Linksys' Velop mesh system
Parental controls and guest mode

Limited feature set compared to similarly priced routers
Sluggish web portal and smartphone app experience

Best Wireless Router for Gaming

If you’re an avid gamer, it makes sense to purchase a wireless router that can keep your ping low and stable even when other people connected to the router are watching high-definition movies over the Internet or are downloading very large files.

Winner:

Asus ROG Rapture GT-AC5300

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Raiting : 4.5 out of 5

It’s impossible to read wireless router reviews and not come across the Asus ROG Rapture GT-AC5300 and its eight eye-catching and, admittedly, frightening antennas. This high-end gaming router represents the pinnacle of wireless technology. Just the fact that it features a PC-grade CPU shows that Asus went all-in in its effort to create the best wireless router for gaming.

As if the hardware of the Asus ROG Rapture GT-AC5300 wasn’t enough to satisfy the needs of amateur and professional gamers alike, this beastly WiFi router also has several noteworthy gaming-specific features that put it in a league of its own. Perhaps the most impressive piece of gaming technology is called Game Boost.

With this technology, the router analyzes network traffic and prioritizes gaming packets, giving games a second level of acceleration for the best possible performance. The Asus ROG Rapture GT-AC5300 also includes built-in support for the Gamers Private Network, which provides you with a better online gaming experience, reduced latency, lower ping, and far fewer lost packets.

Pros and Cons

Impressive performance
Outstanding range
Built-in lifetime protection against online threats
Eight Gigabit LAN ports

Expensive
Bulky

Runner-Up:

Asus RT-AC88U

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Raiting : 4.2 out of 5

Asus sells many gaming routers, most of which have been nominated as best WiFi routers 2024 by prestigious tech magazines, but we believe the Asus RT-AC88U offers the best bang for your buck. It features NitroQAM technology, which delivers a combined 3167 Mbps wireless speed and ensures that everyone on your network can enjoy smooth streaming and low-latency online gaming.

It also boasts Adaptive QoS (Quality of Service) for activity prioritization. The router’s four antennas support state-of-the-art beamforming technology for maximum coverage and the strongest signal possible. These and other features make the Asus RT-AC88U the best WiFi router 2024 for 99 percent of gamers.

Pros and Cons

High-speed WiFi performance
Comprehensive security features
Eight Gigabit LAN ports
Seamless integration with Asus's AiMesh
Intuitive and user-friendly web interface

Premium price point
Inconveniently placed USB 3.0 ports

Best WiFi Router for Long Range

The number of available long-range routers has exploded in the recent years. This growth has been fueled mainly by the rise of online gaming and high-definition video streaming. But virtually everyone can benefit from owning the best long-range router on the market, and we know which router that is.

Best for 4K Streaming:

Netgear Nighthawk X10

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Raiting : 4.3 out of 5

With a name like Nighthawk, it’s not hard to make a good first impression, and the Netgear Nighthawk X10 certainly doesn’t disappoint even when you get to know it better. This router is perfect for streaming fanatics because it comes with an integrated Plex media server, allowing users to enjoy movies, TV shows, music, videos, and photos from anywhere, across devices.

The Nighthawk X10 is powered by a fast quad-core processor that can provide network performance up to 7.2 Gbps and easily handle both 4K streaming and virtual reality gaming. The Nighthawk X10 is the first home router with a 10 Gigabit fiber port for fast NAS access. It also supports 60GHz 802.11ad WiFi, which is a future-proof WiFi standard that offers both impressive speeds and an excellent transmission range.

The router is by no means cheap, but it represents the cutting edge of home networking, and it’s guaranteed to perform exceptionally well under all circumstances.

Pros and Cons

Superb 5 GHz performance
60 GHz 802.11ad support
Lots of geeky features for techies
Built-in Plex server
Port aggregation

Expensive
Bulky

Is It Time to Replace My Wireless Router?

If you want to be absolutely sure that it’s time to replace your WiFi router, we recommend a WiFi analysis and surveillance app like NetSpot. Before you spend money on a new router, you want to first check whether your existing router doesn’t perform poorly because of interference caused by nearby wireless networks and other electronic devices.

NetSpot — WiFi analysis and surveillance app

NetSpot can quickly discover all nearby wireless networks and display all the information you need to determine whether they might be causing issues. That means examining on which channels the networks transmit and ensuring that your own wireless router transmits on a channel with as little traffic as possible.

Also, NetSpot can create an easy-to-understand visual map of your wireless network, highlighting where the signal is the weakest and where it is the strongest. You may discover that your router actually provides a decent coverage apart from one or two areas. In that case, you could simply move the router elsewhere and use NetSpot to check whether the coverage has improved.

If NetSpot reveals that your router is really holding you back from enjoying your Internet connection to its full potential, it’s time to look for a replacement.

Conclusion

Choosing the best wireless router for your needs is crucial to enjoying fast and reliable internet connectivity across all your devices. Once you’ve chosen your new router, consider using tools like NetSpot to set it up properly so that it can deliver the best performance and coverage possible. That way, your money will be well-spent, and you’ll be able to fully reap the benefits of your investment.

SO, WE RECOMMEND

NetSpot

WiFi analyzer app runs on a MacBook (macOS 11+) or any laptop (Windows 7/8/10/11) with a standard 802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax wireless network adapter.

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957 User reviews

What people say about us

If your office is suffering wireless issues, or if you regularly troubleshoot Wi-Fi problems, NetSpot deserves a look

Eric Eckel

TechRepublic

NetSpot lets you build a heatmap of your wireless network so you can find out where your Wi-Fi signal is strong and the areas where it's weak.

Matt Elliot

CNET

With NetSpot Pro, you’ll never miss a beat, post, or important email even when your Internet is acting up.

Jeffery Battersby

BoingBoing

If your office is suffering wireless issues, or if you regularly troubleshoot Wi-Fi problems, NetSpot deserves a look

Eric Eckel

TechRepublic

NetSpot lets you build a heatmap of your wireless network so you can find out where your Wi-Fi signal is strong and the areas where it's weak.

Matt Elliot

CNET

With NetSpot Pro, you’ll never miss a beat, post, or important email even when your Internet is acting up.

Jeffery Battersby

BoingBoing

FAQ

What is the best router for everything?

There’s no such thing as the best router for everything because different users have varying needs and preferences. What might be perfect for one person could be lacking for another. That’s why you should always consider factors such as the size of your home and your budget when choosing a router.

Which router is the best for home use?

Some of the best routers for home use include the TP-Link Archer AX21 and the Linksys MR7350 WiFi 6 because they deliver fantastic features and performance without costing too much money.

What is the best router for online gaming?

The best routers for online gaming are the Asus RT-AC88U, the Asus ROG Rapture GT-AC5300, or the Asus ROG Rapture GT-AX11000. They all feature PC-grade CPUs and plenty of advanced features to meet the complex needs of today’s gamers.

Which WiFi router is faster?

To determine which WiFi router is faster, it’s essential to compare their specifications, features, and supported standards. Some key factors to consider include the router’s maximum data transfer rate (measured in Mbps or Gbps), the supported Wi-Fi standard (such as WiFi 5 or WiFi 6).

How to make sure that it’s time to replace your WiFi router?

You need to make sure your current WiFi router really needs a replacement before spending money on a new one. Use a WiFi analysis tool like NetSpot to quickly discover all surrounding wireless networks and see whether the issue might be caused by them crowding the same wireless channel as your router is using.

Also look around to see whether there are any physical obstacles near the router that might be just obstructing the signal from getting to where you need it. Some interference might be caused by nearby wireless networks and other electronic devices as well. If everything seems great otherwise, then it may be time to really upgrade your wireless equipment to achieve a better wireless coverage.

How to Choose the Best WiFi Router?

To choose the most suitable wireless router for your needs, you have to identify the latter ones. Do you need WiFi coverage to be strong enough for online gaming? Are you going to stream HD movies? Or do you just need a decent WiFi for work and occasional browsing?

Once you have some favorites, make sure to read reviews. Take the opinions with a grain of salt of course and only take note of reasonable ones. Make sure the place you are buying from has a friendly return policy in case you realize you need a slightly different product.

How to check your WiFi signal?

You can check how your WiFi signal distributes over your space with visual heat maps in NetSpot. With a color-coded heatmap it will be very easy to see where the wireless signal is strong enough and where it is weak and needs an extra boost.