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Editor’s Word: We predict you need to be conscious that TP-Hyperlink routers are below investigation by the US authorities over safety issues and could possibly be banned within the US this yr, in response to a number of information stories. The TP-Hyperlink Archer RE605X was beforehand named our greatest general alternative for Wi-Fi extenders. Whereas our analysis of the {hardware} hasn’t modified, out of maximum warning for our readers, we determined to pause it as our prime advice till we study extra. Learn CNET’s reporting for extra data.
Even the latest Wi-Fi routers will wrestle to attach each nook of a multi-story house. When that occurs, you’ve two decisions: Swap out your router for a mesh system or add a Wi-Fi extender to your present router. For as little as $20, a Wi-Fi extender can enhance your web sign to a particular space with out you having to put money into a completely new setup. Set up is so simple as plugging the extender into {an electrical} outlet and connecting it to your Wi-Fi router. If that sounds too good to be true, it form of is.
CNET’s testing has discovered that Wi-Fi extenders is usually a satisfactory resolution should you’re trying to enhance the connection in a single room, however you may possible find yourself upset should you’re hoping to spice up the speeds to a whole ground or wing of your house. For that, you are higher off upgrading to a full-fledged mesh system.
For those who’re trying to carry your Wi-Fi exterior the home, you’ll want to take a look at our explainer on extending Wi-Fi outside, which incorporates Wi-Fi extender and mesh community suggestions.
What’s the finest Wi-Fi extender general?
For those who determine to go the Wi-Fi extender route, our vote for one of the best Wi-Fi extender is the Linksys RE7310. Whereas it is barely dearer than different fashions at $100, it delivered vital velocity boosts in each room I examined and gives full help for Wi-Fi 6 speeds.
For those who’re searching for one thing extra inexpensive, there are many choices for below $50, though not all of them have Wi-Fi 6 help. I’ve spent the previous few years frequently testing them to seek out one of the best of the bunch. After numerous exams, my knowledge recognized the vary extenders that reigned supreme. Let’s get proper to them.
Finest Wi-Fi extenders
Linksys RE7310
Finest general Wi-Fi extender
Within the CNET Good Dwelling, the place now we have a fiber web plan with uploads and downloads of as much as 150Mbps, the RE7310 returned common Wi-Fi 6 downloads all through your entire multistory home of 132Mbps. As for the uploads, Linksys completed with a mean whole-home velocity to my Wi-Fi 6 check gadget of 124Mbps.
The RE7310 completed in a digital tie with the TP-Hyperlink RE605X on Wi-Fi 6 gadgets, however was barely much less spectacular with earlier-gen Wi-Fi 5 gadgets, notably with respect to add speeds. Nonetheless, the efficiency was stable throughout the board, and robust sufficient for me to take video calls within the Good Dwelling’s basement useless zones, one thing I might have struggled with utilizing simply the only router I ran my exams on. It’s kind of bulky-looking, however the RE7310 is one of the best Linksys vary extender I’ve examined but, and it is an particularly nice decide should you can catch it on sale.
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TP-Hyperlink makes a number of the hottest picks within the vary extender class, with a reasonably extensive number of choices to select from at varied value factors. For those who’re shopping for one in 2025, the TP-Hyperlink RE605X needs to be proper on the prime of your record (authorities investigation however). At $64, it is from probably the most inexpensive extender in the marketplace (hold studying for the worth picks), however with a extremely succesful AX1800 design, full help for the most recent Wi-Fi 6 speeds and options, adjustable antennas and a useful, easy-to-use management app with sturdy opinions on each Android and iOS, it is about as well-rounded as vary extenders get.
The efficiency is especially sharp too. In my exams on the CNET Good Dwelling, an RE605X within the basement was capable of prolong the router’s sign from upstairs simply nice, giving my add and obtain speeds a big enhance in each room I examined. All through your entire 5,800-square-foot-home, amongst all of the extenders I examined, the RE605X delivered the quickest common add speeds to each Wi-Fi 5 and Wi-Fi 6 gadgets, the quickest common obtain speeds to Wi-Fi 6 gadgets and the second quickest common obtain speeds to Wi-Fi 5 gadgets.
By default, the extender places out its personal separate community while you first pair it together with your router, and that community will use the identical password as your unique community, and the identical SSID with “-EXT” added to the top. That is higher than extenders that put out an unsecured community by default — and should you use the app to delete that “-EXT” bit, it will routinely sync up together with your unique community and work invisibly to maintain you higher linked, which is good. All of that makes this extender a simple advice.
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TP-Hyperlink RE220
The perfect finances Wi-Fi extender
The TP-Hyperlink RE220 was the least costly vary extender throughout my first run of at-home exams, however that did not cease it from outperforming every little thing else I examined at each flip. As Wi-Fi extenders go, it is quick, it is dependable, it really works with nearly each Wi-Fi router on the market, and it is easy to make use of. And, as of penning this, it prices even lower than I paid for it initially — right down to $15 on Amazon.
Plug it in and press the WPS button to pair it with your house community, and it will start broadcasting its personal networks on the two.4GHz and 5GHz bands. Each provided regular Wi-Fi speeds all through my house, together with common obtain speeds on the 5GHz band of a minimum of 75Mbps in each room entry level I examined, together with sturdy add speeds. The RE220 by no means as soon as dropped my connection, and its speeds have been constant throughout a number of days of exams throughout each daytime and night hours.
It is a bit of lengthy within the tooth at this level, and it will not wow you with Wi-Fi 6 speeds, however the sturdy ease of use and the regular, reliable degree of efficiency it gives imply it is nonetheless an absolute steal. It isn’t as quick as the highest fashions I’ve examined within the years since, and I have never had an opportunity to retest it on the CNET Good Dwelling simply but — however it’s nonetheless an incredible alternative if you wish to enhance the sign from the Wi-Fi router to a again room that sits past the router’s attain, however you’d wish to pay as little as attainable to get the job accomplished.
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D-Hyperlink DAP-X1870
Await a sale for this Wi-Fi extender
One other sturdy mannequin from my exams, the D-Hyperlink DAP-X1870 is a superb performer that does an incredible job of making a single, unified community as quickly as you pair it together with your router. That retains issues straightforward, however at a retail value round $85, it feels a bit too costly right here in 2025.
I might most likely keep on with the $15 TP-Hyperlink RE220 if I have been simply searching for one of the best worth decide. I am going to hold an eye fixed out for some other good gross sales and replace this publish as I spot them.
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TP-Hyperlink RE505X
Strong Wi-Fi 6 extender efficiency for the worth
Final yr’s prime decide, the RE505X is only a barely much less highly effective model of the RE605X that prices a bit much less. I wasn’t capable of retest it on the CNET Good Dwelling but, however I am going to replace this publish once I get the prospect. For now, I feel performance-minded customers can be glad they spent up for the higher add speeds of the RE605X or the Linksys RE7310, and value-minded customers will possible be higher served with the inexpensive TP-Hyperlink RE220.
That leaves the RE505X as a little bit of a center baby at this level, however it was an especially succesful and constant performer in my earlier exams. At $57, it is one of many cheaper Wi-Fi 6 extenders you may discover.
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What’s a Wi-Fi vary extender?
Additionally referred to as a Wi-Fi sign booster, a spread or Wi-Fi extender is a compact, plug-in gadget that’s easy and hassle-free to implement. Wi-Fi extenders use built-in Wi-Fi radios and antennas to pair wirelessly together with your router; no Ethernet cable required. Simply plug one close to the sting of your router’s wi-fi vary and pair it with the community, and it will begin rebroadcasting the sign farther out for considerably quicker web speeds all through your house.
Ought to I purchase a Wi-Fi extender?
Wi-Fi extenders are nice choices when you’ve a single room that you just wish to give a velocity enhance, like an workplace or a room with a good TV. Wi-Fi extenders are typically inexpensive than upgrading to a full-fledged mesh router with its personal mesh Wi-Fi programs and range-extending satellite tv for pc gadgets. Plus, they’re typically a cinch to arrange, they will work it doesn’t matter what model of router you are utilizing, and you’ll sometimes use the identical SSID and password as your unique router. That creates a single, seamless connection that will provide you with one of the best Wi-Fi vary obtainable together with your present setup — all with out you needing to consider it an excessive amount of.
Nevertheless, sign boosters cannot prolong your Wi-Fi sign to a whole ground or facet of the home like a mesh router can. An extender is just pretty much as good because the router it is linked to, which suggests you will not see big enhancements in case your router is failing, outdated or within the improper spot.
I spent weeks testing these vary extenders on the CNET Good Dwelling.
How CNET exams Wi-Fi extenders and sign boosters
In 2022, I used to be capable of resume exams on the CNET Good Dwelling, a 5,800-square-foot multistory house within the outskirts of Louisville, Kentucky, that served as a dwelling lab for our product exams. It is a significantly better surroundings for testing wi-fi gadgets at vary than my considerably cramped, shotgun-style home — and with extra floor to cowl, it provided a a lot greater problem for these extenders.
That is the management graph, exhibiting you the common speeds in every room I examined with no vary extenders in play in any respect. By itself, a single, entry-level Wi-Fi 6 router within the laundry room was capable of ship respectable speeds on the principle ground of the house (the primary 4 rooms on this chart), however speeds plummeted within the basement (the final 4 rooms), particularly the add speeds.
The CNET Good Dwelling has a fiber web reference to matching add and obtain speeds of as much as 150Mbps. That is a far cry from the gigabit connections increasingly of us have entry to (to not point out the brand new, blazing-fast multi-gig web plans rising in some components of the nation). Nevertheless, it is according to the Federal Communication’s broadband definition, which makes it an incredible place to check how house networking merchandise will work for the common client.
For my functions, I began by establishing a router within the Good Dwelling’s laundry room, the place the modem is ready up. I went with the Netgear R6700AX, a superbly respectable mannequin I reviewed final yr. It provided dependable efficiency however restricted vary once I examined it — and that is precisely what I needed for these vary extender exams.
I ran all of this yr’s vary extender exams with a Netgear R6700AX router working the community. It is a low-power, budget-price Wi-Fi 6 mannequin that provided constant efficiency once I first examined it out, making it a really perfect management router for these exams.
Positive sufficient, the router was capable of ship sturdy speeds on the house’s fundamental ground, however as quickly as I headed right down to the basement degree, speeds began to fall. That features single-digit add speeds within the bourbon room and the mud room. (Sure, the Good Dwelling has a bourbon room that the earlier house owners used to age their very own barrels. We haven’t any barrels of our personal, however it smells superb in there. Kentucky, of us!)
Working the vary check
With my management speeds established, it was time to begin including within the vary boosters and seeing which of them improved issues one of the best. Pairing each with the router required me solely to plug it in close by and press the WPS button on each gadgets — after that, I relocated them downstairs to the basement rec room, which was the farthest level from the router that also had a good sign and speeds. Everytime you’re utilizing a Wi-Fi vary extender, that is sometimes one of the best place to place it: simply shy of the sting of your router’s vary, the place it would nonetheless obtain a robust sufficient sign to place out a robust sign of its personal. The easiest way to seek out that spot? Seize your cellphone or laptop computer and run some velocity exams.
Ultimately, I ran a minimum of 96 velocity exams for every extender, two rounds of 24 exams to seek out its common speeds to a Wi-Fi 5 consumer gadget (an iPad Air 2 from 2015) and one other two rounds of 24 exams to verify its speeds to a Wi-Fi 6 consumer gadget (a 2021 Lenovo ThinkPad laptop computer). In every case, I began the primary spherical of exams with a recent connection within the laundry room, closest to the router, after which began the second spherical of exams with a recent connection within the mud room, farthest from the router. With every check, I logged the consumer gadget’s obtain velocity, its add velocity and the latency of the connection.
Other than my velocity exams, I made positive to stream video on every extender’s community, and I made a number of video calls whereas linked via each. I additionally frolicked taking part in with every extender’s settings. You should not count on a lot, however most will a minimum of make it straightforward to vary the extension community’s title or password. Some embrace app controls with further options too.
It is also price ensuring that your vary extender contains a minimum of one Ethernet port (nearly all of them do). For those who can straight join your wired gadget (like a wise TV), you then’ll take pleasure in speeds which might be as quick as attainable.
Wi-Fi extender check outcomes
Able to see how the vary extenders did when it comes to add and obtain speeds? Let’s have a look.
These graphs present you the common obtain speeds by room (left) and common add speeds by room (proper) for a Wi-Fi 6 laptop computer linked to every extender. All 5 fashions I examined have been capable of ship noticeable enhancements to the connection, however some did a greater job than others.
On the left, this primary set of graphs reveals you the common obtain speeds by room for every extender I examined. On the precise, you are trying on the common add speeds. All of those speeds are to my Wi-Fi 6 check gadget, a Lenovo ThinkPad laptop computer from 2021.
So what jumps out? First, all 5 of those extenders did a good job of boosting speeds in these final 4 rooms, down within the basement. With all of them, I had a quicker connection all through the home than I had once I linked via the router alone. The D-Hyperlink EaglePro AI struggled a bit with add speeds within the basement, however nonetheless saved issues above a minimal of 20Mbps or so.
That was with a Wi-Fi 6 gadget, although. How did the efficiency look with an older Wi-Fi 5 gadget from a number of years in the past?
Once more, that is common obtain speeds by room on the left, common add speeds on the precise — this time, to an older Wi-Fi 5 gadget.
Issues get attention-grabbing right here — you may see a larger gulf between obtain and add efficiency, in addition to some extra distinct weak spots and useless zones all through the home. Every of the 5 extenders struggled to maintain uploads speedy within the upstairs dinette, for example. With Wi-Fi 6, we barely noticed any points there in any respect, save for the Netgear Nighthawk X4S.
In the meantime, within the basement, our prime picks from TP-Hyperlink and Linksys (in addition to the high-performing Asus RP-AX56) have been every capable of hold obtain speeds above 100Mbps, which is nice. Uploads have been one other story, as all the extenders struggled. None of them failed to ship a usable add connection outright, although the D-Hyperlink EaglePro AI got here shut with single-digit add speeds within the basement’s farthest reaches.
The TP-Hyperlink RE605X makes it straightforward to tweak settings through TP-Hyperlink’s Tether app on an Android or iOS gadget. Once more, the options make for slender pickings, however you may verify sign energy or activate Excessive-Velocity Mode, which dedicates the two.4GHz band for visitors from the router to the vary extender, leaving the 5GHz free in your regular Wi-Fi community visitors. That mode really wasn’t as quick as sharing the 5GHz band like regular once I examined it out, as a result of these incoming 2.4GHz speeds are restricted, however it nonetheless is likely to be a helpful choice in some conditions.
One other key takeaway from these exams is that Wi-Fi 6 delivers a few of its most noticeable velocity boosts on the add facet of issues. For those who’re trying to make a number of video calls, add a number of giant recordsdata to the online or the rest requiring sturdy add efficiency, then upgrading to Wi-Fi 6 {hardware} needs to be excessive in your record of priorities (assuming you have not already made the bounce).
Reasonably priced Wi-Fi booster picks
For my first batch of vary extender exams just a few years again, I examined 4 bargain-priced fashions to see which one provided probably the most bang for the buck. It was the beginning of the pandemic and folks have been scrambling to bolster their house networks — I needed to make certain we may level them to , budget-friendly decide that might do one of the best job as a sign booster providing an additional room’s price of protection in a pinch.
Ultimately, the aforementioned TP-Hyperlink RE220 was the runaway winner. At the moment obtainable for $15, it stays a stable worth decide.
I’ve separated these fashions from the opposite six as a result of the check setup was completely different in my preliminary exams and it would not be honest to make direct comparisons with these outcomes. You’ve got already learn in regards to the TP-Hyperlink RE220, however listed here are my takeaways from the others I examined:
With two adjustable exterior antennas, the D-Hyperlink DAP-1620 is fairly highly effective for a budget-priced vary extender, however it wasn’t as constant as our prime decide.
D-Hyperlink DAP-1620: This was the one vary extender that ever managed to hit triple digits throughout my exams, with a mean velocity of 104Mbps in my bed room throughout night hours. Setup was simply so simple as what I skilled with TP-Hyperlink, too. I used to be capable of stream HD video, browse the online and make video calls on the extender’s community with none challenge.
Community speeds have been inconsistent although — and far slower in daytime hours, with an even bigger dropoff than I noticed with TP-Hyperlink. The gadget additionally dropped my connection at one level throughout my velocity exams. On prime of that, the app was too finicky for my tastes, refusing to let me log in and tweak settings with the provided gadget password, one thing that finally compelled me to reset the gadget. That is an excessive amount of problem for me to suggest outright, however should you can seize it on sale for lower than $30, it could possibly be a good various to the TP-Hyperlink RE220.
The Netgear EX3700 wasn’t highly effective sufficient for the worth.
Netgear EX3700: It is a dated-looking gadget and it wasn’t a robust performer in my exams. The two.4GHz band was capable of maintain workable speeds between 30 and 40Mbps all through most of my house, which was sturdy sufficient to stream video with minimal buffering, or to carry a fast video name with a slight delay. However the 5GHz band was surprisingly weak, typically dropping into single digits with solely a single wall separating my PC or linked gadget from the vary extender.
I wasn’t a fan of the online interface, because it appeared extra curious about getting me to register for the guarantee (and choose in to advertising emails) than in really providing me any kind of management over the connection. WPS button-based setup allows you to skip all of that, which is useful, and a few shops now have it listed for lower than $30, besides, that is one you may safely cross by.
Most plug-in vary extenders solely supply primary options at finest, however the TP-Hyperlink Tether app features a sign energy tester and a Excessive-Velocity Mode within the app.
Backside line
Earlier than investing in a Wi-Fi extender, consider the Wi-Fi issues you are making an attempt to repair. Are you making an attempt to enhance web entry in a single room or prolong the web to a whole ground? Wi-Fi extenders aren’t as efficient as mesh Wi-Fi programs in enhancing sign all through the home, however they nonetheless supply spectacular velocity boosts in rooms that want them. Our prime decide was the Linksys RE7310w, with the TP-Hyperlink RE605X coming in as an in depth second. If you wish to keep inside a finances, our prime competitively priced decide is the TP-Hyperlink RE220.
Wi-Fi vary extender FAQs
How efficient are Wi-Fi vary extenders?
Plug-in vary extenders like these may help enhance your speeds while you’re connecting removed from the router, however they will solely achieve this a lot. The precise velocity enhance will depend upon a large number of various elements, together with the structure of your house, the kind of router you are utilizing, the kind of gadget you are making an attempt to attach with and your web plan’s speeds.
If your house’s web connection gives prime speeds of 100Mbps or greater, then a good, well-placed vary extender ought to be capable of enhance your obtain speeds in a useless zone or while you’re in vary by a minimum of 50Mbps, if not 100Mbps. That is sufficient to browse the online or stream video on-line. Add boosts are sometimes a bit of decrease, however ought to nonetheless be sufficient to make sure you can make a video name or add a file to the cloud.
Do Wi-Fi extenders decelerate your Wi-Fi?
Most vary extenders will put out their very own separate community — often the title of your unique community with “_EXT” added to the top or one thing like that. Having a separate community like that below the identical roof as your fundamental community may probably trigger a small quantity of interference, however I have never seen any noticeable slowdowns on my fundamental community throughout any of those exams. And, usually, you may rename the extender’s community and password to match your fundamental community, at which level you may have a single, seamless community that routinely passes your connection backwards and forwards as you progress all through your house.
That mentioned, hold an eye fixed out for consumer gadgets (telephones, laptops and so forth) that routinely connect with whichever community gives one of the best sign on the time. For those who’ve used a tool like that on each your fundamental community and the extender’s community, then it is attainable that your gadget will bounce from one to the opposite with out you realizing it. For example, in case your laptop computer is in your fundamental community and you progress a bit nearer to the extender than the router, then your laptop computer may lose its connection and bounce over to the vary extender’s community for the stronger sign energy, regardless that the speeds on that extender community is likely to be slower.
What is the distinction between a Wi-Fi sign booster and community extender?
There isn’t a purposeful distinction between a Wi-Fi sign booster and a community extender. Producers use completely different phrases to explain the identical merchandise, and all of those gadgets work the identical means — by re-broadcasting your router’s sign via a wired connection (your energy outlet). A Wi-Fi repeater is barely completely different. It connects to your router wirelessly and re-broadcasts the sign in one other room.
Is a Wi-Fi extender higher than a mesh router?
Normally, no. For those who’re dwelling in a bigger house or should you want speeds which might be reliably quicker than 100Mbps at vary, then it is most likely price it to go forward and improve to a mesh router with its personal range-extending satellite tv for pc gadgets. You’ve got bought extra choices than ever nowadays, and nearly all of them would possible outperform a stand-alone router paired with a plug-in vary extender like those examined right here.
Wi-Fi extenders are higher fitted to conditions the place you have simply bought a single room or possibly two the place you want speeds to be barely greater. They will not work miracles, however in a scenario like that, they will get the job accomplished.
The place ought to I put my Wi-Fi extender?
The perfect strategy is to plug the extender in someplace near the useless zone you are making an attempt to repair, however not inside that useless zone. That is since you want the extender to have a good connection together with your router to be able to put out a worthwhile sign of its personal.
To seek out a great place, seize your cellphone or laptop computer, connect with your house community and run some web velocity exams in varied spots which might be adjoining to the useless zone in query. As soon as you have discovered a spot close to the useless zone that also hits usable add and obtain speeds (ideally a minimum of 50% of no matter you are capable of hit up near the router), you then’re most likely in location.
How do I arrange my Wi-Fi extender?
Establishing a Wi-Fi extender is about as painless because it will get. Most fashions help Wi-Fi Protected Setup, or WPS, which is a common protocol that wi-fi networking gadgets can use to attach with one another. Simply plug the extender in, watch for it besides up, press the extender’s WPS button after which press the WPS button in your router inside 2 minutes. Voila, linked.
What’s one of the best finances Wi-Fi extender below $100?
Most Wi-Fi extenders value nicely below $100, and our runner-up decide, the TP-Hyperlink RE605X, is priced just under that at some retailers. For those who’re searching for an ultra-affordable mannequin, the TP-Hyperlink RE220 prices below $20 and outperformed nearly each different extender in our preliminary exams. It is a bit of outdated at this level — you will not get Wi-Fi 6 help, for instance — however it nonetheless will get the job accomplished for a really low funding.
