Best Wi-fi 6 routers tested

Strong, fast Wi-fi throughout the house has been the holy grail of home computing for years. Could a new Wi-fi 6 router be the answer to your prayers?

Wi-fi 6 is the consumer-friendly name for the latest 802.11ax wireless standard. It’s up to twice as fast as the previous 802.11ac system (now rebranded as Wi-fi 5) and it’s been designed to share bandwidth better when multiple devices want internet access at the same time.

To get the full benefit, the devices you wirelessly connect to these routers also need to use Wi-fi 6. Most laptops, tablets and phones produced in the last year or so will have this built in.

However, older Wi-fi 5 devices can still benefit from some of the updated technology that’s built into the Wi-fi 6 routers we review here. We tested each router in a real house – a maisonette with a total floor area of 90m2. Each router was placed in the same location, in the study at the front of the house on the first floor. The living room is directly below and the furthest test position is in a bathroom at the back of the house.

We measured performance on both Wi-fi 6 and Wi-fi 5, so we could see exactly which routers are fastest on both networks. Our results are quoted in Mbps, but note that this is the speed of files transferred over the network, not your internet speed. Internet speed will still be governed by your broadband connection.

These routers won’t replace the device your ISP provides to bring the internet into your home, but can be connected to it via Ethernet and used to supply your house with a vastly improved Wi-fi network. If you opt for one of these models, it’s a good idea to switch off your old Wi-fi network to avoid clashes.

It’s worth noting that Ethernet cables, even longer ones, are relatively cheap so we’d recommend taking this opportunity to position your new router more centrally in your house, particularly if your existing device is tucked away in a corner.

£300 from Netgear www.snipca.com/37674 £175 from Amazon www.snipca.com/37675