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The internet is fine next to the router and useless in the back bedroom. It is one of the most common complaints there is, and paying for a faster internet plan almost never fixes it. The problem is how the signal travels through the building.
First, find out where the problem is
Stand next to the router and run a speed test on your phone. Then run it again in the trouble spot.
- Slow in both places: the problem is your internet connection or the router itself. Restart the router, and if it stays slow, call your provider.
- Fast near the router and slow elsewhere: it is a Wi-Fi coverage problem, and the rest of this article applies.
Move the router
This is free, and it fixes more problems than anything else. Wi-Fi spreads outward from the router like light from a lamp, and the same things block it.
- Put it as close to the middle of the home or office as the cable allows.
- Put it high up, on a shelf rather than on the floor.
- Keep it out in the open. A router inside a cabinet, behind a television or in a basement corner loses much of its range.
- Keep it away from large metal objects, mirrors, fish tanks and microwave ovens.
- Brick, concrete, plaster over metal mesh, and tiled bathrooms block far more signal than ordinary interior walls.
Understand the two bands
Most routers broadcast on two bands, and newer ones add a third.
- 2.4 GHz reaches further and gets through walls better, but it is slower and more crowded.
- 5 GHz is much faster, with a shorter range.
- 6 GHz, on the newest routers, is faster still, with the shortest range of all.
A device far from the router may work better on 2.4 GHz. A device nearby should be on 5 GHz. Many routers choose for you automatically, which is normally the best setting to leave on.
Check the age of the router
A router more than five or six years old is likely to be the weak link, particularly when many devices are connected at once. If your internet provider supplied it years ago, ask whether a newer model is available.
Extenders and mesh systems
If moving the router is not enough, you need more than one source of signal.
- A plug-in range extender is cheap, but it repeats the signal it receives, which can cut speeds in half. It often creates a second network name that your devices cling to when they should not. It can help in one room. It is rarely a good answer for a whole building.
- A mesh system replaces the router with two or three units that work together under a single network name. Your devices move between them without you noticing. For most homes and small offices with dead spots, this is the right fix.
- A wired connection between the units is the best option of all. If a network cable can be run to the far end of the building, a mesh unit or access point at the end of it will deliver nearly full speed.
Where to put the second unit
A common mistake is to put the extender or mesh unit in the dead spot itself. It has no good signal to work with there. Put it about halfway between the router and the dead spot, where the signal is still strong.
Plug in what does not move
Desktop computers, printers, televisions and game consoles work better on a network cable, and every device you take off the Wi-Fi leaves more capacity for the ones that need it.
Do not forget security
While you are in the router's settings, make sure the Wi-Fi uses WPA2 or WPA3 security with a strong password, and change the router's own administrator password from the default. A guest network for visitors and smart home gadgets keeps them apart from your computers.