I used to tell people that Wi-Fi 7 routers were a waste of money. CNET’s lab data proved me wrong

That of your house Wi-Fi router is the gateway to the Internet and your devices. It affects every aspect of your online life.

“The router is the heart of your home network,” said Gianmarco Chumbe, a CNET lab engineer who leads router testing. “Just like the heart pumps oxygen and nutrients wherever needed, your router pumps data to all your devices. And just like a bad heart can affect your overall health, a bad router can ruin the Internet experience in your home.”

Most of us know this feeling. According to a new survey from CNET, 86% of Americans experience Wi-Fi drops at some point, and 19% say the drops happen always, daily or frequently.

If you’ve spent any time reviewing routers in the last couple of years, you’ve probably heard a lot about Wi-Fi 7. As always with tech products, there’s a lot of jargon to wade through, and it’s hard to tell what is marketing and what will actually improve your Internet experience. Is Wi-Fi 7 really that much better than the 5, 6, and 6E generations of Wi-Fi routers?

Key takeaways

• Avoid the dual band trap: If a Wi-Fi 7 router says “dual band,” continue shopping. Our lab data proves that only tri-band models deliver the massive performance gains and access to 6GHz needed to justify an upgrade.
• Future-proof your home network: As the average American household’s data consumption skyrockets, investing in a tri-band Wi-Fi 7 router is the most reliable way to preserve your Internet speed for the next decade.
• You no longer need to spend $600 for top-notch speeds: Although high-end models still exist, our testing of over 30 routers reveals that prices have dropped significantly. You can now get a super-fast Wi-Fi 7 router for under $200.
• TP-Link dominates the value category: Thanks to their unbeatable balance between price and raw throughput, TP-Link models completely dominated our lab tests and top rankings.

Speed: Wi-Fi 7 routers are definitely faster

Are Wi-Fi 7 routers faster than previous generations? The short answer is yes. The Wi-Fi 7 routers recorded the highest total throughput scores by far: 3,169 Mbps across all three bands combined, compared to 1,309 Mbps for the Wi-Fi 6E routers.

This wasn’t entirely surprising – the buzz around Wi-Fi 7 has focused on the addition of the 6GHz ultra-wide band – but it was eye-opening to see this reflected so clearly in our test results. Wi-Fi 6E also supports the 6GHz band, but Wi-Fi 7 still has a leg up in terms of speed. Why such a performance gap?

“Wi-Fi 7 introduces several key upgrades that set it apart from tri-band Wi-Fi 6E routers,” David Coleman, director of wireless networking at Extreme Networks, told me in an email. “For example, Wi-Fi 7 supports channels as wide as 320 MHz, double the size of Wi-Fi 6E’s widest channels, meaning it can deliver much higher data rates.”

Think of it as a highway: Wi-Fi 7 routers have twice as many lanes as Wi-Fi 6E routers. They also have a feature called Multi-Link Operation, which allows devices to use multiple bands simultaneously, and 4K-QAM (Quadrature Amplitude Modulation), which translates digital information into symbols for wireless transmission. Coleman told me it can increase transmission efficiency by up to 20% compared to Wi-Fi 6E. You never know how these out-of-the-box features will translate in a real-world environment, but in the case of Wi-Fi 7, it far exceeded my expectations.

In addition to the total throughput scores, Wi-Fi 7 routers also outperformed previous generations by maintaining a strong signal even over long distances. The 15 Wi-Fi 7 routers we tested averaged 515 Mbps at 50 feet across all three bands, well above the 383 Mbps of the Wi-Fi 6 routers we tested. Part of these higher speeds is due to the addition of the 6GHz band, but Wi-Fi 7 routers still outperformed Wi-Fi 6E across the board.

In 2026, we will award Lab Awards to routers that are the best in a given area. When we curate our Best List or Editor’s Choice Awards, we consider price and features. However, to win a CNET Lab Award, we only look at one metric. In this case, the routers that tested the best throughput (speed) and received a Lab Award 2026 are:

• Netgear NightHawk RS700S: Fastest Wi-Fi 7 router
• TP-Link Archer AXE75: Fastest Wi-Fi 6E router
• TP-Link DECO X55 Pro: Fastest Wi-Fi 6 router
• Netgear Orbi 970: Fastest Mesh Router

To see how we ranked routers based on price, features, and performance, check out CNET’s lists of best wifi routers, best Wi-Fi 7 routers And best mesh routers.

Jitter and packet loss were not affected as much by the Wi-Fi standard

The Wi-Fi 7 routers did not perform significantly better in our secondary metrics, jitter and packet loss. Generally, we look for a jitter score of less than 1 millisecond when evaluating Wi-Fi routers. There were a few exceptions — the Netgear Nighthawk RS100 achieved a frequency of 2.83 ms on the 5 GHz band — but almost all of the routers we tested came back comfortably below that threshold.

Packet loss was a slightly different story. We generally look for packet loss scores below 1%, but no Wi-Fi standard achieves this level overall on 5 GHz. Since packet loss is a very important metric for applications such as online gaming, it may be worth manually switching to 2.4 or 6 GHz, if available, for these activities.

Most dual-band Wi-Fi 7 routers aren’t worth it

Router manufacturers are savvy marketers, and they know that for many of us, our router research ends once we see the Wi-Fi standard. In an effort to capitalize on the Wi-Fi 7 hype, several brands have begun releasing “dual-band” Wi-Fi 7 routers. This means it’s missing the most important aspect of Wi-Fi 7: access to the 6GHz ultra-wide band.

The two cheapest Wi-Fi 7 routers we tested – this one from TP-Link Decoration BE5000 And Deco BE3600 – both cost $100 right now, but it’s called “dual-band” in the router world, meaning it will only let you access the 2.4 and 5 GHz bands.

I won’t go so far as to say that dual-band Wi-Fi 7 routers are entirely a marketing gimmick – they generally always include nifty Wi-Fi 7 features like MLO modulation and 4K-QAM – but it’s a bit like buying a new gaming console and using your old controllers. You’ll still get some benefits, but if you’re already investing, isn’t it worth it to get the full suite of upgrades?

This point jumped out at me when I plotted each router’s total throughput score along with its current selling price in the table below. The upper right quadrant is made up entirely of tri-band Wi-Fi 7 routers, meaning it can use all three bands, including the 6GHz band.

THE Netgear NightHawk RS700S (upper right quadrant in green) particularly stood out here with a total throughput score of 4,346 Mbps: 92 Mbps on 2.4 GHz, 1,586 Mbps on 5 GHz, and a mind-blowing 2,668 Mbps on 6 GHz. In addition to the fastest Wi-Fi 7 router we tested, Netgear also had the fastest mesh system. It is Orbi970 (upper right quadrant in green) is technically a quad-band router, as it uses four separate bands simultaneously by adding a dedicated 5 GHz band to allow the main router and its satellites to communicate.

In the graph above, you can see the gray and purple colored dots grouped together. These are dual-band Wi-Fi 7 routers and Wi-Fi 6 routers. Dual-band Wi-Fi 7 routers are virtually indistinguishable from Wi-Fi 6, and in a few cases dual-band Wi-Fi 7 was actually more expensive and had worse speed scores.

As a group, dual-band Wi-Fi 7 routers performed worse than Wi-Fi 6E (yellow) routers. With Wi-Fi 6E, you’ll have access to the 6GHz band, but it doesn’t include Wi-Fi 7’s other valuable features like MLO and 4K-QAM. I’d much rather pay $127 for the fastest Wi-Fi 6E router in our tests, like the TP-Link Archer AXE75rather than shelling out for a dual-band router just because it has a Wi-Fi 7 label on the box. Even the fastest Wi-Fi 6 router, the TP-Link Deco X55 Prooutperformed all but two dual-band Wi-Fi 7 routers at a fraction of the price.

Routers aren’t just about raw throughput, but dual-band Wi-Fi 7 routers also didn’t stand out in our tests for jitter, packet loss, or signal strength. Bottom line: If you see “dual band” next to Wi-Fi 7 in a router’s description, our testing data reveals that it’s not a good buy.

Wi-Fi 7 routers are more expensive. Are they worth it?

When Wi-Fi 7 routers first hit the market a few years ago, they cost around $1,000. Prices have come down a lot since then, with a handful available for under $100, although most are dual-band routers.

But overall, you’ll still pay extra for Wi-Fi 7. Of the 34 routers we tested last year, Wi-Fi 7 routers had an average cost of $293, compared to $124 for Wi-Fi 6E, $178 for Wi-Fi 6, and $53 for Wi-Fi 5. Some high-end Wi-Fi 7 deals skew these numbers, but there are still not a lot of truly “budget” Wi-Fi. 7 routers available.

To find out how much you’re really getting for your money, we divided each router’s price by its speed score to give us a “price per Mbps” measure. (We have been using this equation for years at CNET to compare Internet plans.) The results show that there is still significant value in all Wi-Fi standards.

CNET’s pick for the best overall Wi-Fi router, the TP-Link Archer BE550tops the rankings in terms of price and value. At $200, it’s not exactly cheap, but it delivered a combined throughput of 3,269 Mbps across all three bands during from our tests: 127 Mbps on 2.4 GHz, 1,259 Mbps on 5 GHz and 1,882 Mbps on 6 GHz. This was significantly faster than several routers costing more than twice as much.

If there’s one takeaway from analyzing price per Mbps, it’s that it’s time to ditch Wi-Fi 6 routers. If you buy new devices during the life of the router, Wi-Fi 6 won’t be able to unlock its full potential. Although cheaper, the drop in performance is significant enough that the savings are no longer worth it.

There are a few exceptions. TP-Link X55 Pro Deco And Archer AX21 are both great value choices – the AX21 happens to be the router I use myself – but you’re much more likely to overpay than with Wi-Fi 6E or 7.

You’ll need Wi-Fi 7 devices for Wi-Fi 7 speeds

One of the main things to consider before purchasing a Wi-Fi 7 router is whether you have the necessary devices to take advantage of it. Only Wi-Fi 7 compatible devices will be able to use these sophisticated features like MLO, 4K-QAM and, most importantly, the 6 GHz frequency.

If you bought a new device in the last year, there’s a good chance it’s Wi-Fi 7 compatible. The latest Google Pixel 8 And Series 9 both have Wi-Fi 7, just like the last one Microsoft Surface Laptops.

In other cases, the Wi-Fi 7 question has a fuzzier answer. THE iPhone16 And 17 series are technically Wi-Fi 7 devices, but only support a maximum of 160 MHz channels – not the ultra-wide 320 MHz that has dramatically increased speeds over Wi-Fi 6E.

The essentials

Most people probably don’t need to spend more than $200 on a standalone Wi-Fi router — the good news is that our testing data shows that it’s not necessary. THE TP-Link Archer BE550 costs $200 and has the best price per Mbps score of any router. Another TP-Link, the Archer AX75was the fastest Wi-Fi 6E router overall and currently sells for $113.

Cost aside, Wi-Fi 7 is the future. (Wi-Fi 8 is coming, but not until 2028.) Wi-Fi 7 routers have been around for over two years and until now my advice was to not upgrade to one yet. With a price of $600, the Netgear NightHawk RS700S worked surprisingly well in our tests, but most people don’t have the number of devices that would require this kind of power for this price.

I’m starting to reconsider. Two things happened that changed my mind: The price of Wi-Fi 7 routers has dropped significantly, and we’re consuming more bandwidth than ever. A recent report from broadband analytics firm OpenVault found that the average U.S. household used 767 GB per month during the final quarter of 2025, up 69 GB from the previous year.

“It’s just mind-boggling, because that was the average usage 12 to 15 years ago,” OpenVault CEO Mark Trudeau told me of the 69GB jump. “It won’t be long before we cross the terabyte threshold.”

Wi-Fi 6 routers are not ready for this future. I wonder if Wi-Fi 6E routers are as well. After spending months with our CNET Labs test data, Wi-Fi 7 is the only standard that I’m confident will meet your Internet needs a decade from now. (Just stay away from dual bands.) And with good tri-band Wi-Fi 7 routers available for under $200, it makes sense to spend a little more to future-proof your network.

How we measured router performance

We’ve tested more than 30 Wi-Fi routers in the CNET Labs over the past year, and all of them went through the same evaluation process. You can find out more at how we test Wi-Fi routersbut here are the key metrics we focus on:

• Speed: This is the most important data we collect on routers. Throughput measures the actual amount of data a router can transmit over a given period of time. It’s usually measured in megabits per second, or Mbps – the same unit you’ll see when you buy internet packages. Looking at throughput removes the ISP from the equation and sheds light on exactly how much traffic a router can handle simultaneously. Throughput measurements are taken at three different distances from the router: 7 feet, 25 feet, and 50 feet.
• Jitter: Jitter measures variations in latency, or the time it takes for data to arrive at its destination. When you are in a video conference and there is a delay in the audio or someone’s video freezes, jitter is the reason.
• Packet loss: This metric measures the percentage of packets that failed to reach their destination. Think of it like sending a package. Jitter tells us the variations in the time it takes for the package to arrive; Package loss tells us how often the package has not arrived.
• Signal strength: This test shows how well each Wi-Fi router broadcasts its signal while handling interference from walls and other electronic devices in your home. We recorded targets at 61 locations around CNET’s 15,000-square-foot test facility and carried a laptop to measure the signal at each one.
• Wi-Fi bands: Our CNET Labs engineers performed each of the measurements above on each Wi-Fi band available on each router, for Wi-Fi 5 and 6 routers, which were limited to the 2.4 and 5 GHz bands. On the new Wi-Fi 6E and 7 routers, we also measured every data point on the 6 GHz band.