What the bands are

A Wi-Fi band is the range of radio frequencies your router uses to reach a device. Home routers commonly offer 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz and 6 GHz, sometimes all from the same box.

2.4 GHz gives the most coverage. It gets through walls and floors better than the others, and it is the slowest. Intel puts a typical over-the-air maximum at up to about 100 Mbps.

5 GHz covers less of the home and is faster. Intel puts the over-the-air maximum at up to about 1 Gbps.

6 GHz covers the least and is the fastest. Intel puts the over-the-air maximum at up to about 2 Gbps. It was introduced with Wi-Fi 6E. Only Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7 devices can use it, so older devices never join and do not slow it down. Netgear notes that 6 GHz has almost twice as many channels as 5 GHz.

In 2020 the US FCC opened 1200 MHz in the 6 GHz band for unlicensed use. The Wi-Fi Alliance called this nearly a tripling of Wi-Fi spectrum. The EU, the UK, Japan, South Korea and others opened access too.

Those Intel figures are over-the-air ceilings. The speed you see also depends on walls, other devices and your ISP plan. A faster band does not raise what your provider delivers to the house. When you compare rooms, or Wi-Fi with a cable, our guide to speed test results explains download, upload, ping and jitter.

Range vs speed

Range and speed pull against each other. 2.4 GHz travels farthest and gets through walls and floors more easily. 5 GHz covers less and is faster. 6 GHz covers the least and is the fastest.

Intel notes that the range advantage of 2.4 GHz is often small in practice. Many homes get good coverage on 5 GHz and 6 GHz. Where the signal is already strong, moving to 2.4 GHz adds little reach and gives up speed. Keep 2.4 GHz for the edge of the home, a basement, or a room behind several walls.

Walls and floors weaken every band, and they weaken 5 GHz and 6 GHz sooner. Near the router, 6 GHz can be the strong choice. Farther away, through a floor or a solid wall, 5 GHz or 2.4 GHz often holds up better.

Congestion

2.4 GHz is the congested band. Many household devices use it, neighbours use it, and microwaves share those frequencies. A running microwave can make nearby Wi-Fi worse while it runs. With many radios waiting their turn, the speed you feel often sits under Intel's figure of up to about 100 Mbps.

5 GHz is less crowded, so it suits most daily use when the signal is healthy. Neighbours use it too, especially in apartments, but there is more room than on 2.4 GHz.

6 GHz misses most of that crowd. Only Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7 devices can connect, so older gear cannot pile on and slow the band down. Netgear says 6 GHz has almost twice as many channels as 5 GHz, which gives those newer devices more space.

Test the band your device joined, from the room you use, when the house is quiet and again when other people are streaming. The speed test records download, upload, ping and jitter for that spot.

What Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7 need

Wi-Fi 6E is Wi-Fi 6 extended into 6 GHz. The router and the device both need support. A new router will not move an older laptop onto 6 GHz. That laptop stays on 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz.

Wi-Fi 7 can use 6 GHz as well. It adds MLO (multi-link operation), which Netgear describes as combining bands in one connection. A device can use more than one band at the same time when the router and the device both support Wi-Fi 7.

Wi-Fi 6 on its own does not include 6 GHz. Look for Wi-Fi 6E or Wi-Fi 7 on the router and on each device you want on that band.

Which devices on which band

Put Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7 devices on 6 GHz when the signal is strong. Recent phones and laptops are the usual match.

Use 5 GHz for other devices that still have a healthy signal. Phones and computers without 6 GHz, streaming sticks, consoles and TVs on the same floor all fit. Intel's over-the-air figure here is up to about 1 Gbps.

Keep 2.4 GHz for reach, and for gadgets that only speak 2.4 GHz. Smart plugs, sensors, older printers and cameras at the far side of the house are the usual examples.

A phone or laptop you carry around can change bands as you move. Use 6 GHz or 5 GHz near the router, and 2.4 GHz where the higher bands fade. Separate network names make it obvious which one you joined.

Quick tips

  • See whether the router uses one network name or a name per band. Separate names show which band a device joined.
  • Test beside the router, then from the slow room, and on Ethernet if you have a cable. The gap between the cable and Wi-Fi is what a band change can affect.
  • If 5 GHz or 6 GHz already covers the rooms you use, prefer them. Intel notes that the 2.4 GHz range advantage is often small in practice.
  • When you buy, match the standard on both ends. Wi-Fi 6E or Wi-Fi 7 on the router and the device is what unlocks 6 GHz. Wi-Fi 7 on both is what lets MLO combine bands in one connection.