Wifi channels in mhz

WiFi Channel Width – 20 Mhz vs 40 mhz vs 80 Mhz Explained.

Numbers! Bank balance, High score – the higher they are, the better! And what about WiFi channel width with internet speed?

What if I told you, you could double your WiFi speed by changing your channel width? After all, 40 MHz is a bigger number than 20 MHz. And by that logic, is improving WiFi speed as simple as that, or does it come at a cost?

It’s not uncommon — many people don’t understand why 20 MHz vs 40MHz and even 80 MHz is necessary. But it’s true: WiFi channel width plays an essential role in determining network quality and speed.

Wi-Fi Channel Width: What Exactly Is It?

First things first, you can definitely increase (if not double) your Wi-Fi speed by changing the channel width from 20 MHz to 40 MHz. But (there’s always a but), it can increase the odds of interference from other wireless devices. To understand this, you need to know how Wi-Fi channel width works.

How does Wi-Fi Channel Width work?

To draw a similar analogy, think of your Wi-Fi signal like water . If the wave is wider, it will transfer more energy to the surrounding area; at the same time, it won’t be able to go very far. For that, you would need a more concentrated wave contained in a narrower channel.

Similarly, a wider wave would catch more interfering objects on its sides.

Now, translate that analogy to wireless networking. A wider channel width will result in a better bandwidth closer to the router. The further you go from the router, the more chances of interference and cluttery signals. A wider signal would have a harder time penetrating through the walls as well.

How Is WiFi Channel Width Different Than No. Of Channels In 2.4 & 5 GHz Frequency Bands?

The number of channels and the channel width is easily confusable. When someone refers to the number of channels, those are indeed the number of channels available for data transfer. For instance, in the 2.4 GHz frequency band, there are 11 channels available in the US or 13 in Europe.

However, when someone refers to the channel width, it is the amount of bandwidth allocated to a specific channel. The channel width is the data rate (typically known as WiFi speed) achievable in a channel.

The channel widths vary depending on the WiFi standard. For example, in the (wireless networking standards) 802.11n and 802.11ac, the standard channel widths are 20, 40, 80, and 160 MHz. 40 MHz can carry twice as much data as 20 MHz while being more susceptible to interference. 80 MHz can have twice as 40 MHz, and so on.

In short, the no. of channels refers to the number of data transfer channels available, while the channel width is related to the amount of bandwidth (bits per second) assigned for a specific channel.

Now you have come to know what is WiFi channel width. Next, I will break down each type of WiFi channel width to better understand which suits your needs.

How To Choose The Ideal Wi-Fi Channel Width For Any Situation?

• Maximum throughput (or the maximum internet speed)
• Maximum range and
• Minimum interference

To make sure you get the best of all worlds, you need to set the channel width correctly. Here’s how you can do that and choose the ideal channel width for any situation.

i. 20 MHz

When you are in a 2.4 GHz band, it is recommended to use a 20 MHz channel width. The reason is that there are several overlapping channels in this band, and only 3 out of 11 don’t overlap. Therefore, it is better to sometimes compromise high speeds and go with the minimum interference with better-supported bandwidth .

For example, the tiniest of stutters in video streaming can ruin the user experience. Most people prefer waiting a few minutes while the video buffers (which gives you prep time for snacks) rather than facing these stutters mid-stream.

20 MHz WiFi Channel Width is preferred in the following situations where:

• The wireless environment is congested because a 20 MHz channel provides a smaller bandwidth than wider channels – meaning fewer chances of interference with other devices,
• A large number of clients need to be supported.

A 20 MHz channel can serve more clients than a wider-width channel like 40 and 80 MHz.

ii. 40 MHz

40 MHz is the most balanced channel width because it offers more throughput than 20 MHz without facing too much interference, as is the case with 80 MHz.

40 MHz is also best utilized in a 5 GHz frequency band because of fewer overlapping channels – 24 out of 45 don’t overlap. Additionally, 5 GHz is a relatively new technology and is far less crowded than 2.4 GHz, meaning even lesser chances of interference.

You should use a 40 MHz WiFi channel width when:

• The wireless environment is less congested (typically in a 5 GHz frequency band),
• You need to support high-bandwidth applications such as large file transfers.

If you’re wondering why you shouldn’t use 40 MHz in the 2.4 GHz frequency band, answered in the FAQ section below.

iii. 80 MHz

80 MHz is only advised for usage if you live in a secluded area, and interference is not a problem . You can maximize speed quality in this channel, but there’s a high chance of interference with only four or five non-overlapping channels.

Besides, you need to be very close to the router (within 15 feet) to utilize 80 MHz at its full potential. If you need high-speed internet, and you’re going to be so close to the router anyways, you’d be better off with hardwiring it. Click here to learn more about hardwiring internet.

You should only use 80 MHz WiFi channel width when:

• There are minimal chances of interference (like walls and solid objects), and the wireless environment is uncongested,
• You need high-speed internet for high-bandwidth applications,
• You have a network that supports 80 MHz channel width in the first place.

iv. Auto

Some Wi-Fi routers have built-in settings that enable automatic detection of channel size. The router will automatically select a channel width depending on the network condition.

There are typically two such settings, and you should enable them if you aren’t tech-savvy and aren’t looking to optimize every tiny detail. The router will do that for you efficiently in most cases.

a) 20/40 MHz (auto):

This mode is also known as Dynamic Channel Width and is particularly useful in environments where the number of network devices connected changes frequently.

This mode is recommended for use in public places such as coffee shops, airports, subway stations, hotels, etc.

The device will use a 20 MHz channel width when there’s a lot of congestion and automatically switch to a 40 MHz channel width when the wireless environment is less congested, providing the best possible performance for the clients.

The best part is you won’t have to manually change the channel width each time the wireless network environment changes.

b) 20/40/80 MHz (auto):

The 20/40/80 MHz (auto) mode is just an extension of the previous mode. This mode takes it one step further and selects 80 MHz mode when the wireless environment is relatively free and less congested.

You might have noticed this on your university campus and experienced faster internet speeds during holidays or even at night when most students have gone home.

However, one thing to note is that 80 MHz is not allowed in most regulatory domains in 2.4 GHz frequency bands. It is only available in the 5 GHz bands. You will have excellent speed if you’re using a 5 GHz Wi-Fi network.

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WiFi channels explained: What is WiFi channel width?

Does your WiFi signal keep dropping, or are you continually fighting with slow network speeds? If either of these situations sounds familiar, there’s a high probability your wireless network is experiencing interference.

The good news is you’re not alone: 30% of smart device owners report they too experience wireless connectivity issues, many of whom also cite turning to WiFi extenders and mesh networks to ease their troubles. But before you seek out a Black Friday deal to upgrade your WiFi network, consider adjusting the WiFi channel width settings on your router first.

Recap: What are WiFi channels?

Before we discuss WiFi channel width, let’s recap what WiFi channels are. Essentially, WiFi channels are smaller bands within WiFi frequency bands that are used by your wireless network to send and receive data. Depending on which frequency band your router is using, you have a certain number of WiFi channels to choose from:

• 11 WiFi channels are in the 2.4 GHz frequency band
• 45 WiFi channels are in the 5 GHz frequency band

The key takeaway here is that some WiFi channels are better to use than others because of interference, specifically Co-Channel interference and Adjacent-Channel interference. In the former, devices are competing for time to talk on the same channel. In the latter, devices from overlapping channels are trying to talk over each other. You can avoid such interference by choosing to use a non-overlapping, uncrowded WiFi channel.

Additionally, there are reasons to use one frequency band over the other; learn more about these reasons here!

What is WiFi channel width?

WiFi channels are each allotted a 20 MHz segment in the frequency band they’re in, and can also be bonded together to form wider segments. The width of a WiFi channel dictates how much data can pass through and at what speed, where the wider channels are usually associated with more data transferred at faster speeds— at least, when they aren’t impacted by interference.

Choosing a WiFi channel width

Interference is more common in certain frequency bands and on certain WiFi channels than others. Depending on the likelihood of interference, there are recommended WiFi channel width settings for routers and access points, as described by Apple for achieving optimal WiFi performance with iOS devices. However, the same recommendations apply to boosting WiFi performance with any connected device. Here’s a summary:

Set 2.4 GHz WiFi channel width to 20 MHz

It is typically advised to use the narrower 20 MHz WiFi channel width when in the 2.4 GHz band. The main reason is because there are several overlapping channels in this band— in fact, 8 out of the 11 channels overlap. As we know, overlapping WiFi channels are one of the main causes of network interference. So, if you were to choose a wider channel width that bonds multiple overlapping channels in this band, it is more likely than not that you will experience a weaker wireless performance than the expected faster speeds.

Set 5 GHz WiFi channel width to 20, 40, or 80 MHz

Wider WiFi channel widths— including 40 MHz and 80 MHz— are best used in the 5 GHz frequency band. In this band, there are not only significantly more WiFi channels, but also less overlapping channels (24 out of 45 do not overlap). As such, the 5 GHz band is known for being less crowded and is more equipped to support wide WiFi channel widths, in addition to the narrow 20 MHz width.

When adjusting WiFi channel width settings for this band, the key is to enable support for all channel widths rather than for a single wide channel width. Doing so will ensure no client devices are prevented from connecting (e.g., a device may only support 40 MHz channels, and if you enable a 80 MHz-only mode, it won’t be able to connect).

Minim automates WiFi channel settings to ensure the best WiFi channel and WiFi channel width are selected for the given frequency band. ISPs are also able to remotely adjust WiFi channel settings for a customer if need be. Check out a sneak peek of these features here.

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