The 4 Best Wi-Fi Routers For Large Homes - Summer 2024

If you live in a very large house or find that a standalone router leaves dead zones with a slow connection in certain parts of your home, a mesh Wi-Fi system will likely help. The best Wi-Fi router for large homes we've tested is the eero Pro 6E. It's a tri-band Wi-Fi 6E router with a sleek design and a conveniently small footprint, so it won't clash with the decor in your living space. Performance-wise, it has great range, and since it's designed to be easily expandable, you can buy additional units for an even better range. It also delivers impressive speeds that can take advantage of a gigabit internet connection no matter where you are in your home, making it a great pick if you're downloading lots of large files in an office far from where your internet cable comes into your house.

With eero routers, ease of use is the name of the game. Using the eero app, getting your mesh network up and running is incredibly straightforward. You can configure and monitor your network, see how many devices are connected, and even manage smart home devices since it has a built-in Zigbee hub and supports Thread and Matter. That said, you must use the app to manage your network since eero doesn't have a web interface. The app is also limited in what settings you can change and has many features included on most other routers, like parental controls, historical data, content blocking, and 'advanced security' behind an annoying monthly paywall.

If you don't want to get a mesh system right away, the TP-Link Archer BE550 is the best standalone router for large homes we've tested. It's a tri-band Wi-Fi 7 router with 2.4GHz, 5GHz, and 6GHz bands. If you have newer devices compatible with Wi-Fi 6E or Wi-Fi 7, you'll benefit from its blazing-fast 6GHz band. It delivers speeds suitable for multiple people simultaneously downloading large files like game updates very quickly. Even if you live in a multi-level home, you can take full advantage of a gigabit (or higher) internet connection. It also has an excellent port selection, with all five Ethernet ports rated for 2.5 Gbps, so your high-bandwidth wired devices like gaming PCs and NAS can reach their full speeds. If your home has obstacles like concrete masonry walls that leave you with dead zones, don't worry. This router is compatible with TP-Link's EasyMesh functionality, allowing you to create a mesh network with other compatible routers or range extenders for better coverage.

Wi-Fi 7 is a very new standard that makes some serious performance promises, but remember that since it's so new, it'll likely be a while before you upgrade all your other devices to support it. The Wi-Fi Alliance's website has a product finder where you can see if your devices are Wi-Fi 7 certified. With that in mind, this router's biggest downside is its range performance on the 5GHz band. While it still delivers speeds suitable for most high-bandwidth uses like fast downloads at 100 feet away, a mesh solution like the eero Pro 6E, our pick for large homes, would be a better option.

The TP-Link Deco X5000 is the best router for large home use we've tested at a mid-range price point. It's a dual-band Wi-Fi 6 system with surprisingly small access points, making it easy to place discretely in your living space. It offers impressive range and speed, providing strong coverage throughout multi-story homes with speeds reaching up to 800 Mbps, making it great for a house full of devices simultaneously streaming content or taking video calls. Its compatibility with other TP-Link Deco models allows for easy expansion if needed.

Setting up this router using the Deco app is straightforward, which makes managing and monitoring your network simple. The app lets you see connected devices and configure settings, ensuring a user-friendly experience. However, the system has only two networking ports, so you may need an external switch for multiple wired devices. Also, it's only Wi-Fi 6, so your devices capable of Wi-Fi 6E or higher can't take advantage of a 6GHz band, which can have significant performance benefits, especially if you live in a congested wireless environment.

Finding a suitable router or mesh system for a large home on a budget is tricky since delivering a good range ideal for a big space requires more powerful hardware. This is why the TP-Link Archer AX55 is a little more expensive than what we'd typically consider "budget." Still, it's a great dual-band Wi-Fi 6 router with a conventional design and a small footprint that won't take up too much space wherever you decide to place it. This router really shines in its range and speed performance. At close range, it can saturate an internet connection up to 750 Mbps and maintain consistently fast speeds up to nearly 100 feet away. With speeds like that, it has no problem handling high-speed downloads and multiple users browsing and watching 4k content simultaneously.

While its range is impressive, it's still just a standalone router. If your home is especially large and you can't place the router centrally because of where your internet cable enters the house, don't worry—it's compatible with both OneMesh and EasyMesh, meaning you can create a mesh network with compatible routers and range extenders. Its biggest drawback is that since it's Wi-Fi 6, it doesn't have a 6GHz band, so if you have cutting-edge Wi-Fi 6E or 7 devices, they can't reach their top speeds.