Wi-Fi routers worth exploring
The pandemic has triggered a huge surge in home internet use, with millions of Americans working remotely from home in addition to their kids spending all day indoors. All that made it more important than ever to have a dependable router running your home network.
Fortunately, routers have come a long way in the past few years, with a number of impressive advancements and features worth investing in.
For starters, there’s a new and improved version of the Wi-Fi standard called 802.11ax — or Wi-Fi 6 — that boasts faster, more efficient home network performance. On top of that, a growing number of mesh router options is well worth considering, too, particularly since many of them are far less expensive than the router combo systems that came before them.
All that means you’ve got a lot to think about if you’re currently in the market for an upgrade. That’s where we come in. Whether you’re interested in gaming routers, mesh systems, Wi-Fi 6 routers or if you just want something decent that won’t break the bank, CNET is here to simplify things and point you in the right direction so you can find the best Wi-Fi router to manage your needs.
BEST BUDGET ROUTER: TP-LINK ARCHER AX21
Available for $100 (or less if you catch a sale), the TP-Link Archer AX21 is an entry-level, dual-band Wi-Fi 6 router that supports top speeds of up to 1,201 Mbps (1.2 Gbps) on its 5 GHz band.
It’s nothing fancy, but it offered near flawless performance for small- to medium-size homes in our tests, and it’s a cinch to set up and use, thanks to TP-Link’s Tether app.
Best of all, when tested against other similar routers from names like Asus and Netgear, the AX21 held its own with faster download speeds, better range and low latency. Add in a functional bandsteering mode that automatically steers you between the 2.4 and 5 GHz bands within a single network, plus guest network controls and even a quality of service engine for prioritizing traffic to the most important devices on your network, and you’re looking at a decent home networking upgrade that’s as simple and affordable as it gets.
It isn’t powerful enough to max out speeds on a gigabit network, but it can still hit consistent close-range speeds near 700 Mbps or so, which is more than enough for most households.
BEST MID-RANGE ROUTER: LINKSYS HYDRA PRO 6 (MR5500)
If you’ve already got a budget router running your network and you’re ready to upgrade to something more powerful, then the Linksys Hydra Pro 6 belongs high on your list.
With a dual-band, AX5400 build, full support for Wi-Fi 6 and 160 MHz channel support for moving data more efficiently, it was an excellent performer in our speed tests, even managing to outperform flashier picks like the also-great Asus RT-AX86U.
At $350, the Hydra Pro 6 is a touch pricey as dual-band routers go, but the steady, consistent performance makes it a standout. Try and catch it on sale if you can, but if you just want a reliable, no-frills router that can keep up with gigabit speeds, look no further.
BEST MESH ROUTER: TP-LINK DECO W7200
For the best performance from your mesh router, you’ll want to prioritize getting one with support for Wi-Fi 6, plus a tri-band design that includes three separate bands of traffic: the usual 2.4 and 5 GHz bands, plus an additional 5 GHz band the system can use as a dedicated wireless backhaul for transmissions between the router and its satellites.
Most mesh routers like that cost at least $300 or even $400, but the TP-Link Deco W7200 gets you there for just $229.
That’s the best deal we’ve seen for a tri-band mesh router with support for Wi-Fi 6 — and sure enough, it’s an excellent performer as well. In fact, the only system that managed to outperform it outright in our at-home speed tests is the AX6000 version of Netgear Orbi, which costs more than three times as much.
On top of that, TP-Link’s setup process is about as easy as it gets, with satellite extenders that automatically join the mesh as soon as you plug them in.
That makes the Deco W7200 an outstanding value, and the first mesh router we’d point most people toward if they’re in need of something new.