Wi-Fi’s ability to tie our digital lives together wirelessly is great, but the range of even the best Wi-Fi routers can be limited.
Most Wi-Fi routers broadcast two wireless networks, at 2.4GHz and 5GHz frequencies. Some newer models add a third, at 6GHz. The higher the frequency, the more data can be transferred, so the faster your network speed when connected. Hook your laptop up to the 5GHz network to benefit from full internet speed, and make sure any low-priority devices, like the Internet of Things or your mother-in-law’s phone, are connected to the slower 2.4GHz network, and you’re golden.
There's a small problem though. Thanks to the way the electromagnetic waves they use to transfer data propagate through solid objects, higher frequency signals penetrate solid objects less well than lower frequencies, and distance from the router can affect speeds too. So if you wander off down the garden with your phone, you’ll notice the 5GHz (or 6GHz) network slows down and loses connectivity before the 2.4GHz one does, thanks to both distance and having walls in the way.
If you’ve got such a Wi-Fi dead spot in your house, somewhere hemmed in by walls perhaps, or want to work from a garden office that’s not conveniently situated for connecting to the internet, you’ll need a Wi-Fi extender. These gadgets plug into a socket and act as a repeater station, extending the reach of an existing Wi-Fi network.
Positioning is everything for these devices. They need to be close enough to the dead spot that it’s covered by their signal, but also near to the router so that they have good connectivity with it. But whereas your router needs to be somewhere near the point at which the cables enter your house, Wi-Fi extenders can be placed anywhere.
Some can use the strange magic that is powerline networking, where network signals are passed through the wiring of your house, while others rely on wireless connections alone.
Here are some of the best.
Best Wi-Fi extenders at a glance:
- Best for a good, fast all-rounder: TP-Link RE700X - £90, Amazon
- Best for blending into the background: Netgear EAX12 - £80, Amazon
- Best for still being able to use the socket: TP-Link RE365 - £42, Amazon
- Best for powerline: TP-Link AV600 - £45, Amazon
- Best for the cheapest choice: D-Link E15 EAGLE PRO AI AX1500 - £15.75, Amazon
- Best for when money is no object: Netgear EAX80 - £332, Scan
- Best for Wi-Fi 6E: TP-Link AXE5400 - £170, Amazon
- Best for a compact mesh system: Mercusys AX1800 - £200, Amazon
TP-Link RE700X
Best for: a good, fast all-rounder
TP-Link makes a lot of networking products and you’ll see the name come up a lot on this list. They’re generally reliable and pretty reasonably priced, so it’s no wonder they’re popular.
This model is a Wi-Fi 6 booster (Wi-Fi 7 extenders have been announced, but aren’t available at the time of writing) with over 2gbit of capacity on the 5GHz band and a gigabit Ethernet port so you can plug in wired network devices too. You won’t get all of that at once, but it’s able to be shared between multiple devices, meaning you never need to be out of range for an important message.
Buy now £90.00, Amazon
Netgear EAX12
Best for: blending into the background
While some Wi-Fi extenders have flashing lights or noticeable antennas, the EAX 12 is a plain white rectangle that sits unobtrusively in a socket. There are a few lights on the front - for power and various kinds of connectivity - but they’re small and green and unlikely to draw too much attention to themselves.
There's a single gigabit Ethernet port under the unit, allowing you to add Wi-Fi to a previously wired-only device such as a printer, and with Wi-Fi 6 allowing for a combined transfer rate of up to 1.6Gbps and up to 360m2 of coverage, you don’t need a gaudy device to extend your network.
Buy now £80.00, Amazon
TP-Link RE365
Best for: still being able to use the socket
Wireless extenders take up a plug socket when they’re in use, potentially blocking you from using it for something else. This model from TP-Link gets around that limitation by offering a socket of its own, allowing you to plug into it and pass the power through.
It’s a Wi-Fi 5 extender that can provide up to 867 Mbps on the 5 GHz band (Wi-Fi revisions are backwards compatible, so if you’re using a Wi-Fi 6 or even Wi-Fi 7 router, a Wi-Fi 5 extender will still work with it) and looks rather good with its flip-up turquoise antenna.
Buy now £42.00, Amazon
TP-Link AV600
Best for: powerline
Powerline networking sounds like something that shouldn’t work, essentially turning the wiring in your house into a giant Ethernet network. But work it does, though you won’t get the same kinds of speed you would from a proper wired network, and it’s certainly good enough to pipe the internet into a hard-to-reach spot. As long as it has a power socket to feed it, of course.
This kit comes with the source node that you connect to an Ethernet port on the back of your router, and one other that you place wherever you need it, as long as it’s on the same ring main as the source (this isn’t an issue in most houses). It will produce a wireless connection of up to 300 Mbps.
Buy now £45.00, Amazon
D-Link E15 EAGLE PRO AI AX1500
Best for: the cheapest choice
A Wi-Fi 6 extender at a very low price, this distinctive bunny-eared extender has a single Ethernet port, takes up a plug socket, and can extend your Wi-Fi coverage by up to 230m2. With a maximum combined transfer rate of 1,500Mbps, it’s going to be able to comfortably deal with the average internet connection speed in the UK, which is around 70Mbps.
It uses a few AI tricks to optimise itself, so you shouldn’t need to fiddle with it through its app, and at this price having a few scattered around a larger house will help get Wi-Fi signal where it needs to be.
Buy now £15.75, Amazon
Netgear EAX80
Best for: money no object
Large and very expensive, this Netgear extender is halfway to being a mesh node, and indeed is compatible with the Orbi mesh protocol. In practice, however, it operates purely as an extender, but offers the kind of wired connectivity you’d expect from a more complex node, with four gigabit Ethernet ports, a USB port and some clever Wi-Fi tricks too, including Wi-Fi 6 MUMIMO and beamforming antennas.
All this comes together to create a Wi-Fi extender that can transfer more data, more quickly than just about anything outside a full mesh system, but the high price may make you think twice.
Buy now £332.00, Scan
TP-Link AXE5400
Best for: Wi-Fi 6E
Wi-Fi 6E takes Wi-Fi 6 and extends it into a new frequency band - 6GHz. This means a 6E device can connect over three different networks, which can all get rather complicated. Many 6E routers combine their networks into one, allowing the devices to fight it out among themselves as to which frequency they use, and this is one of the few Wi-Fi extenders that opens up the higher 6GHz band.
There's a remarkable 5.4Gbps of combined speed available, and if you’re a gamer or someone who relies on fast download speeds, this could be one of the best ways to improve your connectivity.
Buy now £170.00, Amazon
Mercusys AX1800
Best for: a compact mesh system
Not really an extender that adds on to your existing router as a complete mesh system, including three nodes. One of these will take the place of your existing router, while the others can be placed in the parts of your house that would benefit most from an improved Wi-Fi signal.
This Wi-Fi 6 system allows you to automatically switch between nodes as you move around the house or garden, keeping you connected to the strongest available signal, and you can blanket 550m2 in its coverage. Combine this with an app for easy setup and management, and three gigabit Ethernet ports on each node, and you’ve got a home-filling Wi-Fi system for a very decent price.
Buy now £200.00, Amazon
Verdict
Getting one of the best Wi-Fi extenders is the best way to deal with nagging Wi-Fi problems such as low connectivity in certain parts of your home. Wireless networking can be temperamental, and things such as electromagnetic interference from your fridge, or a wall being just slightly too thick, can impact your enjoyment of gaming, streaming, or online newspapers.
An extender such as the TP-Link RE700X simply plugs into a socket and connects to your existing Wi-Fi network, then extends its coverage to places it couldn’t previously reach, meaning you can work from home, or just enjoy yourself, without needing to sit right next to the router.
