Best Wi-Fi Routers 2025: High-Speed, Low Cost Choices for Wi-Fi 6E and 7

Best Wi-Fi Routers 2025

Wi-Fi Routers

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Your Wi-Fi router is at the heart of your daily computing experience. You can have the best CPU and the best graphics card on the market, but most workloads, from gaming to productivity, use an internet connection. So, if your router is less than ideal, you will leave real-world performance and usability on the table for any device not connected via Ethernet. Even if your internet connection is 300 Mbps and your router claims to be capable of 1,200 Mbps, you may not get full speed.

Fortunately, you don’t need to spend a lot of money to purchase a router that’s more than adequate for even a mid-sized home. Below, we’ll list the best Wi-Fi 6E, and 7 routers based on our testing, and some of these cost less than $100.

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TP-Link Archer AXE75
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Wi-Fi 7 routers have quickly taken over the networking space, but there's still room for older Wi-Fi 6E routers. TP-Link's Archer AXE75 Wi-Fi 6E gaming router is currently available for just $119.99, which is $100 cheaper than its tri-band Archer BE9700 Wi-Fi 7 router.

Quick List

Best Wi-Fi Routers You Can Buy Today

Best Wi-Fi Router for Most People

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Best for Wi-Fi Router for Most People

Specifications

Wi-Fi Standard: Wi-Fi 7
Bands: 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz
Ports: 3x Gigabit Ethernet ports, 1x 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet ports, 1x 2.5 Gigabit WAN port, USB 3.0 port
Size: 9.3 x 13.5 x 3.9 inches

Reasons to buy

+
Sub-$100 price tag
+
Strong 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz performance at close range
+
Two 2.5 Gbps ports

Reasons to avoid

-
Lacks 6 GHz band
-
Performance at 25 feet was lacking

For the past few years, Wi-Fi 6 routers have been the sweet spot for value for price-sensitive consumers — it’s easy to find them for around $100 or less. However, TP-Link is turning that notion upside down with its Archer BE3600, which is a Wi-Fi 7 router with a price tag of $99.

Before we get ahead of ourselves, we should tamper your expectations by mentioning that that is a dual-band Wi-Fi 7 router, meaning that it lacks the speedy 6 GHz band. This is what allows TP-Link to hit sub-$100 pricing for the Archer BE3600. However, you do still get support for Multi-Link Operation (MLO) and 4K-QAM.

Once you get past the lack of the 6 GHz band, 5 GHz performance is quite strong for this budget router. Our review unit was able to surpass 1 Gbps on the 5 GHz band, and it even topped 200 Mbps on the 2.4 GHz band at 6-foot and 25-foot distances.

Besides the respectable wireless performance, the Archer BE3600 also comes equipped with a pretty stout (for its price) assortment of ports on the back. You’ll find one 2.5 Gbps port for WAN and one 2.5 Gbps port for LAN, plus three 1 Gbps LAN. There’s even a single USB 3.0 port for sharing your external storage wirelessly over a network.

Read: TP-Link Archer BE3600 Wi-Fi 7 Router Review

Best Wi-Fi 6E Router

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Best Wi-Fi 6E Router

Specifications

Wi-Fi Standard: Wi-Fi 6E
Bands: 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, 6 GHz
Ports: 1x 2.5 Gigabits port for WAN/LAN, 1x Gigabit port for WAN/LAN, 3x Gigabit port for LAN, 1x USB 3.0
Size: 13.3 x 8.8 x 7.8 inches

Reasons to buy

+
Excellent 6-GHz Performance
+
Attractive light show
+
Good web-based UI

Reasons to avoid

-
5 and 2.4-GHz performance could be better 

If you’re willing to spend closer to $200, the MSI RadiX AXE6600 is a fantastic choice. This Wi-Fi 6E router delivers really strong throughput on the 6-GHz band, which is exclusive to 6E (and Wi-Fi 7) routers. On our iPerf network tests, the RadiX AXE6600 achieved speeds of up to 532 Mbps, nearly 200 Mbps ahead of its nearest competitor. Those numbers shrank a bit at far distances, but you can’t get much faster when you have a solid connection.

At 5 GHz, the RadiX was also strong at near connections, hitting a rate of 486 Mbps, the best we tested. But those numbers dropped a bit when we moved farther away or introduced a lot more network traffic. The router’s 2.4-GHz performance was mediocre, but if you’re looking for high speeds, you’d use the 5 or 6-GHz band for your device.

The RadiX AXE6600 also has a great web control panel, filled with great information about your router, even the CPU and memory consumption, two things we rarely even look at on a router. MSI’s router also has a plethora of RGB lights, but to customize them, you’ll need to use the MSI Center software on your PC.

Read: MSI RadiX AXE6600 Wi-Fi 6E Review

Best Wi-Fi 7 Router

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Best Wi-Fi 7 Router

Specifications

Wi-Fi Standard: Wi-Fi 7
Bands: 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, 6 GHz
Ports: 1x 10Gbps for WAN/LAN, 1x RJ45 10/100/1000Mbps for WAN/LAN,3 x 10/100/1000Mbps for LAN, 1x 10Gbps for LAN, 1x USB 3.2 Gen1, 1x USB 2.0
Size: 13.8 x 13.8 x 8.56 inches

Reasons to buy

+
Fastest 6 GHz performance I’ve seen yet
+
Adequate ports, including two 10 GbE ports
+
Support for smartphone tethering
+
Wireless Time Machine backups for Mac users

Reasons to avoid

-
Wi-Fi 7 devices still aren’t mainstream… yet
-
Still expensive at $700

If you want lightning-fast speeds that can handle your growing number of Wi-Fi 7 devices, look no further than the Asus RT-BE96U. In our wireless testing, we measured throughput of over 3 Gbps, putting it even ahead of the more expensive ASUS ROG Rapture GT-BE98 Pro Wi-Fi 7 router.

Although it doesn't have as many high-speed ports as the ROG Rapture GT-BE98 Pro, you still get two 10 Gbps ports (one for LAN, one for WAN) and four 1 Gbps ports. You also get a USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 port, which can be used to tether to a smartphone. That's right, you can connect to your smartphone and use its cellular connectivity to provide internet access to your entire home in case of a service outage by your cable or fiber provider.

Asus provides a full suite of software features to help you get the most performance (and functionality) out of the router, including comprehensive parental controls, advanced guest network configurations, adaptive QoS, and remote access to the drives plugged into the USB ports.

All of this performance and features don’t come cheap, with an MSRP of $700, but that's still $100 cheaper than the ROG Rapture GT-BE98 Pro.

Read: Asus RT-BE96U Wi-Fi 7 Review

Best Wi-Fi 7 Mesh Router

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Best Wi-Fi 7 Mesh Router

Specifications

Wi-Fi Standard: Wi-Fi 7
Bands: 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, 6 GHz
Ports: 1x 10 Gigabit Ethernet ports, 1x 10 Gigabit WAN port, 3x 1 Gigabit Ethernet port, USB 3.0 port (per node)
Size: 8.4 x 2.8 x 6.7 inches

Reasons to buy

+
Fastest Wi-Fi 7 router we’ve tested
+
Supports robust MLO wireless backhaul or 10 Gbps wired backhaul
+
Dual WAN support
+
Comprehensive wired/wireless network settings and software portfolio

Reasons to avoid

-
High price
-
2.5 GbE LAN ports should be included at this price

The Asus ZenWiFi BQ16 Pro is the overachiever in the Wi-Fi 7 router world, thanks to strong performance across the board, especially on the 6 GHz band. You, of course, get access to the full Wi-Fi 7 spec, including MLO, 4K-QAM, and support for 320 MHz channeling.

We observed over 3.5 Gbps in throughput on the 6 GHz band at 6-foot distances, which dropped to around 1.9 Gbps at 25 feet. Those are the fastest wireless speeds we’ve seen yet from a wireless router. Even 5 GHz performance saw speeds reach over 1.6 Gbps.

You get a router and one satellite in the box, both featuring one 10 Gbps WAN, one 10 Gbps LAN, and three 1 Gbps LAN. We would have liked to have seen those 1 Gbps LAN ports upgraded to 2.5 or 5 Gbps, given the $1,100+ price tag of the mesh system. With that said, Asus packed the ZenWiFi BQ16 Pro with a wealth of features, including Dual WAN capabilities, MLO aggregation for the wireless backhaul, wired backhaul support, and even cellular internet support via a connected smartphone via the USB 3.0 port. Throw in Asus’ comprehensive AsusWRT 5.0 software platform and you have a winning combination for a fast, full coverage Wi-Fi 7 mesh network.

With a street price of over $1,100, the ZenWiFi BQ16 Pro is aimed at enthusiasts who want the most out of their wireless network, and you won’t be disappointed.

Read: Asus ZenWiFi BQ16 Pro Wi-Fi 7 Mesh Router Review

Best Wi-Fi 7 Mesh Value

TP-Link Deco BE63 mesh router

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Best Wi-Fi 7 Mesh Value

Specifications

Wi-Fi Standard: Wi-Fi 7
Bands: 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, 6 GHz
Ports: 4x 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet ports, 1x USB 3.0 port (per node)
Size: 4.23 × 4.23 × 6.93 inches

Reasons to buy

+
Value pricing
+
Strong 6 GHz and 5 GHz performance
+
Four 2.5 GbE ports and one USB 3.0 port on each node

Reasons to avoid

-
2.4 GHz performance lags behind the competition
-
App-centric setup and maintenance may not be preferable for some

TP-Link’s Deco BE63 is a value-priced Wi-Fi 7 mesh router that should provide more than enough performance for most general consumers. For just $299 for a two-pack, and with ongoing discounts that can bring the price down to as low as $240, you’d be remiss to leave the BE63 off your radar.

We tested a BE63 two-pack, but you can also purchase a three-pack if you need additional coverage. The two-pack covers 5,800 square feet, while the three-pack boosts that coverage to 7,600 square feet. Each BE63 node comes with four 2.5 GbE ports and a USB 3.0 port for storage. You can also control 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 6 GHz bands (across primary, IoT, and guest networks), access a comprehensive set of parental controls, and integrate a VPN via an easy-to-use smartphone and tablet app.

While the 2.4 GHz performance of the BE63 was slightly lower compared to its competitors, its 5 GHz and 6 GHz performance ranked near the top of the class. We achieved nearly 2,000 Mbps download speeds at close range, both with uncongested and congested traffic on the BE63.

Overall, the BE63 is an excellent bargain among tri-band Wi-Fi 7 routers, especially considering its sub-$300 pricing.

Read: TP-Link Deco BE63 Wi-Fi 7 Mesh Router Review

What to Look for in a Wi-Fi Router

  • Wi-Fi 6, 6E or 7? If you can spend the extra money (usually in the $200+ range), you get an additional band, 6 GHz, with a Wi-Fi 6E router and some added throughput. However, the best value for the money lies at Wi-Fi 6, where you can get a really good router for less than $100. Wi-Fi 7 is significantly faster but it’s bleeding edge and costs at least $500, and most devices don’t support it yet.

  • Control panel software? The traditional way to set up a router is using a web-based interface from a computer. Many routers can be controlled via smartphone apps, but we recommend avoiding any model that can only be set up via an app. That limits your ability to configure the router when your phone is not around and could force you to reset the router if you lose or wipe your phone.

  • Mesh or not Mesh? Some routers are part of a mesh system that allows you to place one or more “satellites” in locations around your home in order to boost far connectivity. However, mesh networking devices cost more and the satellites can introduce latency into the network when you connect to them. So if you don’t have a huge home or connectivity issues on different floors, we recommend sticking with a single router.

How We Test Wi-Fi Routers

How We Test Wi-Fi Routers

To see how each router performs in the real world, we go through the setup process and test out its control panel software and any mobile apps you can use to control it. We then use benchmarks to determine both throughput and latency.

To measure throughput speeds, we use iPerf3, a tool that transfers packets on the local network between a server PC, which we connect to the router via Ethernet, and a client device that we use wirelessly. We use a local server rather than hitting one on the Internet, because we don’t want to be limited by the bandwidth of our Internet connection, which can vary even from one moment to the next.

Perhaps because we are dealing with both a client and a server or because there’s a lot of hype when it comes to router speeds, the throughput numbers we get on iPerf3 are always much lower than the theoretical maximums that vendors advertise. For example, while Wi-Fi 6E boasts theoretical speeds of 9.6 Gpbs, we never saw one go above 1,000 Mbps. And, in most cases, we got 500 Mbps or lower. On Wi-Fi 6 connections, we saw speeds in the 250 to 400 Mbps range and, on 2.4-GHz channels, those numbers were usually in the 50 to 150 Mbps range.

With iPerf3, we test all devices at both a near (5 feet or so) and far (25 feet or so) distance from the router. We also test under both uncongested (only device using the network) and congested (other devices sapping bandwidth) conditions. We benchmark on every band that the router supports (2.4 GHz, 5 GHz and 6 GHz). Note that 6 GHz is only supported by Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7.

If you’re gaming, latency may actually be more important than throughput, because you’re not usually transferring a ton of data when you play. What you are doing is sending your movements to the server and getting a response back so that process has to be quick. We measure latency by pinging our local server under all the same conditions that we use for throughput (near, fear, congested and uncongested).

Latency is measured in milliseconds and can go anywhere from 2 milliseconds up to 20+ milliseconds. Lower is better.

Brandon Hill

Brandon Hill is a senior editor at Tom's Hardware. He has written about PC and Mac tech since the late 1990s with bylines at AnandTech, DailyTech, and Hot Hardware. When he is not consuming copious amounts of tech news, he can be found enjoying the NC mountains or the beach with his wife and two sons.

  • AloofBrit
    Worth mentioning that 6E isn't supported in Windows 10
    Reply
  • BG3D
    Is the R6700AXS AX3200 made by Netgear or D-Link? You listed both under the same router.
    Reply
  • WrongRookie
    Imo Tom's hardware should review Asus RTAX3000 or the Asus RTAX53U as they have better value than the RT-AX1800S.

    Even the RT-AX82U works too
    Reply
  • das_stig
    Seriously still peddling underpowered overpriced rubbish.

    Finally migrated to my ex-corp Dell 3420 running Proxmox+OPNsense+Adguard, 2x10GB NIC, 10GB switch and still a 3rd of the price of anything the likes of Asus can come up with and my old RT-AX86U is now an AP and will be replaced at some point by a wifi 7 AP when they become available at acceptable prices.
    Reply
  • Avro Arrow
    I use an old TP-Link TD-W8961ND. I think I got it for $50CAD a few years ago. It just uses Wireless-N which is perfectly fine for my old craptop and my phone. My desktop is hard-wired so I don't really worry much about it. :giggle:
    Reply
  • gman68
    At this rate, we will be seeing routers with 16 antennae in the next product cycle. Seriously, some of these things look like upside-down cyber-crabs.
    Reply
  • philged
    Also worth mentioning that all of the controversy surrounding TP-Link and their connection to China along with the potential ban of their equipment means that it's hard to recommend any TP-Link product at this point.
    Reply