Wireless internet wifi range extender

Best Wi-Fi extenders 2023: get faster internet across more of your home

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With more people than ever spending at least a day or two working from home, the importance of having a reliable home network is crucial. That’s where having one of the best Wi-Fi extenders comes into play.

Wi-Fi extenders are particularly good in large homes, as even the best Wi-Fi routers don’t have the range to deliver strong wireless internet through multiple rooms or up multiple floors.

Range of signal and strength is arguably more important than out-and-out speed for most users and applications. For example, it makes no difference whatsoever if you run a video meeting off a 300Mbps down connection or a 30Mbps one, whereas it does definitely make a difference to that video meeting if your computer only has a weak Wi-Fi signal, as this will cause video quality to degrade and even disconnections.

Wi-Fi extenders are also handy for gamers who want to play from more than one part of the house: because you can be sure of a fast connection anywhere, there’s no danger of one room bringing your performance down.

Whether you’re looking to stream content in 4K from your Netflix account or simply catch up on some work emails while you have your morning coffee, T3 has tried and tested the very best Wi-Fi extenders on the market today to find the best ones for every kind of property and every kind of person.

Wi-Fi extenders are designed to be simple to set up and use, and you rarely need to worry about calibrating them or tweaking obscure system settings: it’s usually just a case of connecting them to your Wi-Fi network and letting them get on with it.

It’s important to note that a Wi-Fi extender isn’t the same as a mesh network: it’s a way of boosting your router’s signal. The best mesh networks are very fast, clever and powerful things, but they’re also more involved to set up and a lot more expensive.

Let’s discover how to make your Wi-Fi signal go much further.

The best Wi-Fi extenders you can buy today in 2023

Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.

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The 8 Best Wi-Fi Range Extenders of 2023

Jesse Hollington is a tech writer with 10+ years’ experience. He has written for iLounge, Forbes, Yahoo, The Independent, and iDropNews, among others.

If you’re having a problem getting Wi-Fi in every room of your house, our experts say you should buy the Netgear Nighthawk X4 EX7300. It has the coverage, speed, and compatibility most people need, with a straightforward app-based setup process.

Range extenders work by connecting wirelessly to the router you already have in an area where your Wi-Fi signal is strong and rebroadcasting that signal to parts of your house where the signal is weak or nonexistent.

Best Overall

Netgear Nighthawk X4 AC2200 Wi-Fi Mesh Extender (EX7300)

If you’re happy with the overall performance of your router and just want better Wi-Fi coverage, the Netgear Nighthawk X4 will get the job done. This is our favorite Wi-Fi extender because it provides excellent performance and coverage for a decent price, and it isn’t too difficult to set up.

This extender has a range of up to 2,000 square feet, which makes it great for extending a network to a different floor or the distant corners of a large home. It’s also able to handle a lot of devices at once. The AC2200 part of the name means it can deliver 2.2Gbps of bandwidth at once (we’ve got an explanation of what that actually means here), which is enough to stream Netflix in 4K, video chat on FaceTime, and maintain a competitive edge in online games, on several devices all at once. Realistically, your internet connection won’t be this fast, but if you pay extra for a super fast connection, it’s worth bearing in mind this unit will support it.

It’s designed to plug directly into a wall socket, and it supports WPS push-button setup, which makes it really easy to set up and use. It doesn’t have an outlet pass-through, so it does take up one outlet, but it leaves the other free.

If you have any devices that don’t have Wi-Fi, this extender has you covered there as well. The Nighthawk X4 includes an Ethernet port that allows you to use a network cable to connect a smart TV, game console, or anything else requiring a wired connection.

_{Wireless Spec: Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac) | Security: WPA2 | Standard/Speed: AC2200 | Bands: Dual-band | MU-MIMO: Yes | Beamforming: No | Wired Ports: 1}

The Nighthawk X4 worked as advertised, delivering strong speeds, improving upon the signal available from the router in the further corners of my house, and even holding a 5GHz signal pretty well when a fair distance away from the extender. Even though I paired it with a TP-Link router, the Nighthawk X4 maintained the same network names as my router uses. My smartphone and laptop automatically switched to the stronger signal when plugged in. Online gaming was also smooth across the board with the Nighthawk X4. — Andrew Hayward, Product Tester

Best Value

Netgear EX3700 AC750 Wi-Fi Range Extender

If you’re on a budget, the Netgear EX3700 is worth a look. It doesn’t have the range or speed offered by many of the other extenders on this list, but it’s a great option if you just need a little extra range to connect a handful of wireless devices.

The ideal scenario for this extender is expanding a spotty wireless network into a guest room or home office where you expect to connect only a few devices at a time. It can provide a maximum of 1,000 square feet of coverage, and it can handle about enough bandwidth to stream in 4K, video chat, and download big files on a couple devices at once without a lot of slow down.

If you have smart home devices that have trouble connecting to your network, this extender can help with that as well. Smart home devices require a connection to your network, but they don’t use up a lot of bandwidth.

This extender has a small size to go along with its low price, and it’s designed to be plugged directly into a power socket. It leaves the top outlet free for your other electronics, but it does use up the bottom one as it doesn’t have a pass-through. It does include a single Ethernet port though, which makes it a great option for your home office if you have a computer that doesn’t support Wi-Fi.

_{Wireless Spec: Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac) | Security: WPA2 | Standard/Speed: AC750 | Bands: Dual-band | MU-MIMO: No | Beamforming: No | Wired Ports: 1}

The browser-based setup procedure is simple and efficient. When putting the EX3700 through its paces, we simultaneously connected several devices to the same network: a Google Nexus 6 phone, iPhone X, iPad Pro, Nintendo Switch, and PlayStation 4. After setting up the extender in the bedroom, we experienced a strong and reliable wireless signal. Plugging in with the Ethernet port is the best option for devices like TVs and game consoles, though we didn’t have a problem using them on Wi-Fi either. At 10 feet to around 80 feet away from the router in our 2,100 square foot home, the signal rarely, if ever, wavered. There were a few drops here and there, but they only happened when large amounts of data were passing through. Beyond 80 feet, signal strength degraded. This is a pretty mediocre range as far as an extender goes. — Brittany Vincent, Product Tester

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The 10 Best WiFi Range Extenders for Better Internet Signal

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Internet access has transformed our lives. It makes it easier to meet new people, stay in touch with old friends and stay up to date with news, entertainment and everything else. And none of that works if you can’t get a WiFi signal in your bedroom. That is why we have picked the Best WiFi Range Extenders for you

As great as the wireless internet is, it doesn’t travel through walls very well. In fact, it can be so bad that parts of the house don’t even get reception at all.

I experienced this once while visiting a friend in Montana. God only knows why, but his wireless router was placed upstairs in some corner of the house, completely removed from the bedroom, office and living area. The internet connection was so bad; my friend had to turn on his cell phone data so that we could download a file.

If you’re fighting a battle against poor internet connection, there are solutions. One of the options is to invest in a wireless range extender. It really helps in bringing your WiFi to a place that might not otherwise get a signal, such as a garage, workshop or detached apartment.

It can also help break through the natural barriers of your home. If your bedroom is barricaded away from your modem and router, installing a range extender upstairs is a simple and affordable way to circumvent this handicap.

If you want the best range extenders on the market, NETGEAR is the way to go. Check out the specs for the NETGEAR AC1200 WiFi Range Extender.

Not all range extenders are made equal, however. We’ve reviewed countless WiFi extenders, and are happy to present the best of the bunch for you here.

Things to Consider

Before you buy a WiFi range extender, there are a lot of things you need to know to make the right purchase and get the most out of your money. You need to do your homework first. If you’re not acquainted with the speed of your wireless service and the maximum wireless speed of your router, you’re not going to be able to make an educated purchase.

But what exactly do you need to look for? If you keep the following things under consideration, you’re much more likely to be satisfied with your purchase.

1. WiFi Compatibility

The first thing you need to know is whether the extender in question is compatible with the internet protocol your wireless internet is running on. There are some different protocols, such as 802.11N and 802.11AC. If your extender doesn’t match your router, you’re out of luck.

2. Internet Speed

As I mentioned above, you need to make sure your speeds are compatible as well. If your router is rated for 1200 Mbps and your extender is only good for 750 Mbps, then you’re not going to get the full range of your extender. The reverse is also true. Buying an AC750 extender with a 300 Mbps router is pointless.

3. Security Standards

If you want to maximize your security against hostile online attacks, make sure your extender meets the latest internet security standards. WPA2-PSK (AES) is the current standard for internet security.

4. Ease of Use

Some WiFi extenders can be set up and activated literally at the push of a button. Others require you to install software on a computer or remotely through a connected app. If you’re not internet-savvy, that can be a real hassle. If you do go that route, try to find someone who is better-versed in computers than you are.

5. Price

If you want the best, you’re going to have to pay for the best. That said, never pay for more than you need. If the extender is faster than your router or paid internet service can provide, you’re wasting your money.

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