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The NETGEAR Nighthawk RS300 is a tri-band Wi-Fi 7 router with 2.4GHz, 5GHz, and 6GHz bands. It has a WAN port rated for 2.5Gbps, two 2.5Gbps LAN ports, and two 1Gbps LAN ports. You can configure the router using the web user interface or with NETGEAR's Nighthawk mobile app.
Note: We've removed the Wi-Fi coverage tests, as we're exploring better ways to convey the results that'll be more helpful to users.
Our Verdict
The NETGEAR RS300 is a great router for apartments, condos, and smaller homes. It has excellent speeds and coverage across a single floor and is suitable for downloading large files quickly and handling multiple devices streaming 4k HDR content at the same time. It also has excellent wired networking with multiple 2.5Gbps ports.
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Excellent top speeds.
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Wi-Fi 7 support.
The NETGEAR RS300 is a very good router for use in a multi-level home. It delivers excellent top speeds and decent range, making it suitable for multiple users streaming high-bandwidth 4k content simultaneously or for quickly downloading large files. While its 6GHz band has great range, the 5GHz band slows down when you're very far from the router. Unlike most similar routers, it lacks mesh expandability, so you can't add more access points to create a mesh network for better range.
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Excellent top speeds.
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Wi-Fi 7 support.
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Decent overall range.
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5GHz band slows down at longer distances.
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Lacks mesh expandability.
The NETGEAR RS300 has excellent top speeds suitable for a multi-gigabit internet connection. It also supports Dynamic Frequency Selection (DFS), so it can use less congested DFS-only channels to give you better speeds in noisy wireless environments.
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Excellent top speeds.
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Wi-Fi 7 support.
The NETGEAR RS300 has decent range. The 6GHz band delivers excellent speeds at long distances, but the 5GHz band slows down at longer distances. Also, unlike most similar routers, it doesn't have mesh expandability, so you're unable to add more access points to create a mesh network for better range.
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Wi-Fi 7 support.
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Decent overall range.
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5GHz band slows down at longer distances.
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Lacks mesh expandability.
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Updated Feb 20, 2025:
We've added the ASUS ROG RAPTURE GT-BE98 Pro as an alternative with a better network port selection in the Network Ports section.
- Updated Dec 06, 2024: Review published.
- Updated Dec 02, 2024: Early access published.
- Updated Nov 28, 2024: Our testers have started testing this product.
- Updated Nov 21, 2024: The product has arrived in our lab, and our testers will start evaluating it soon.
- Updated Nov 15, 2024: We've purchased the product and are waiting for it to arrive in our lab.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
This router doesn't have any variants. See a photo of our unit's label.
Compared To Other Routers
The NETGEAR RS300 is a mid-range Wi-Fi 7 router with 2.4GHZ, 5GHz, and 6GHz bands. It delivers excellent top speeds and decent overall range. It doesn't perform quite as well as other Wi-Fi 7 routers that we've tested like the TP-Link Archer BE550 or the ASUS RT-BE96U. It also notably lacks any sort of mesh networking or expandability, which is unusual among routers in its price range.
For more recommendations, check out the best long-range Wi-Fi routers, the best Wi-Fi routers, or the best routers for streaming.
The eero Pro 6 and the NETGEAR Nighthawk RS300 are tri-band Wi-Fi routers. The NETGEAR is a Wi-Fi 7 router with a 2.4GHz band, a 5GHz band, and a 6GHz band, whereas the eero is a Wi-Fi 6 router with a 2.4GHz and two 5GHz bands. The NETGEAR delivers faster top speeds and has much better wired connectivity that supports multi-gigabit connections. The eero is an expandable mesh router with slightly better range performance. The eero is better if you have a larger house and an internet connection of less than 1Gbps. However, the NETGEAR is better if you have a smaller house or an internet connection faster than 1Gbps.
The TP-Link Archer BE550 and the NETGEAR Nighthawk RS300 are standalone Wi-Fi 7 routers. They have similarly excellent top speeds, but the TP-Link has more 2.5Gbps networking ports, better range, and supports EasyMesh, which allows you to add other compatible access points to create a mesh network, making it better suited for larger homes.
The ASUS RT-BE96U is a better router than the NETGEAR Nighthawk RS300. They're both Wi-Fi 7 capable, but the ASUS is faster, has better range and more wired networking ports, and supports AiMesh for mesh expandability. The NETGEAR is physically smaller, however.
The TP-Link Archer AXE75 and NETGEAR Nighthawk RS300 are standalone tri-band routers. While both have access to the 2.4GHz, the 5GHz, and the 6GHz bands, the NETGEAR model is Wi-Fi 7 capable, resulting in faster speeds than the Wi-Fi 6E TP-Link model. Overall, the NETGEAR is the better choice for both large and small environments, as it performs better over short and long ranges, offering much faster speeds that are well-suited for a multi-gigabit internet connection.
The NETGEAR Nighthawk RS300 is a better router than the NETGEAR Nighthawk RAX50. It's Wi-Fi 7 capable, is faster, has more networking ports, and is physically smaller. While the RAX50 has better 5GHz range, the RS300 has better 6GHz range.
The ASUS ROG Rapture GT-BE98 Pro is a better Wi-Fi 7 router than the NETGEAR Nighthawk RS300. It delivers superior speed and range performance, offers more and faster network ports for wired networking, and also offers mesh network expandability. However, the ASUS is a large unit with an aggressive style; the NETGEAR is physically smaller and can be wall-mounted by purchasing an additional bracket.
Test Results
The 1Gbps LAN ports (1 and 2) can be combined into a single 2Gbps link using link aggregation. If you want a Wi-Fi 7 router router with higher bandwidth network ports, check out the ASUS ROG Rapture GT-BE98 Pro.
This router has two mounting points on the bottom. NETGEAR sells a first-party bracket on their website.
This is a standalone router without mesh capabilities, so the mesh satellite position line on this graph isn't applicable.
This is a standalone router without mesh capabilities, so the mesh satellite position line on this graph isn't applicable.
Wi-Fi 7 has faster speeds, has lower latency, and supports more simultaneous connections than previous generations of Wi-Fi. However, you need devices supporting Wi-Fi 7 to benefit from these features.
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Comments
NETGEAR Nighthawk RS300: Main Discussion
Let us know why you want us to review the product here, or encourage others to vote for this product.
- 21010
go to settings and go “External device manager” then “input signal plus” and turn it on for the hdmi port you are using.
- 21010
Something in the connection chain is limited to HDMI 1.4. What graphics card does your laptop have? Are you connected directly to the TV, or through something else, like a receiver?
- 21010
Your laptop doesn’t support 4k @60hz on the onboard hdmi, you’ll need one of this https://www.lindy.co.uk/usb-c4/usb-converters-c213/usb-3-1-type-c-to-hdmi-converter-with-hdr-p12067
My configuration is one Legion Y520, i7 7700HQ with 1050ti 4 GB VRAM. I’m using the laptop connected to TV through that Lindy converter, otherwise I am limited to 30Hz
Edited 4 years ago: missed some info - 21010
Your laptop doesn’t support 4k @60hz on the onboard hdmi, you’ll need one of this https://www.lindy.co.uk/usb-c4/usb-converters-c213/usb-3-1-type-c-to-hdmi-converter-with-hdr-p12067 My configuration is one Legion Y520, i7 7700HQ with 1050ti 4 GB VRAM. I’m using the laptop connected to TV through that Lindy converter, otherwise I am limited to 30Hz
The 1050 should be able to do 4k @ 60Hz, as it supports HDMI 2.0b. One thing I didn’t think of though, you might have to override the color depth and set it to 8 bit before selecting the refresh rate. HDMI 2.0 can only do 4k @ 60Hz at 8 bit with RGB or YCbCr444.
- 21010
The 1050 should be able to do 4k @ 60Hz, as it supports HDMI 2.0b. One thing I didn’t think of though, you might have to override the color depth and set it to 8 bit before selecting the refresh rate. HDMI 2.0 can only do 4k @ 60Hz at 8 bit with RGB or YCbCr444.
Yes, it’s able to do 4k @ 60Hz, but through USB-C (Displayport Alternate Mode) or DP/MiniDP. On my laptop specification, I have physically implemented an HDMI 1.4 port. https://psref.lenovo.com/syspool/Sys/PDF/Lenovo_Laptops/Lenovo_Legion_Y520_15/Lenovo_Legion_Y520_15_Spec.PDF
So that’s why I need that adapter.
- 21010
Yes, it’s able to do 4k @ 60Hz, but through USB-C (Displayport Alternate Mode) or DP/MiniDP. On my laptop specification, I have physically implemented an HDMI 1.4 port. https://psref.lenovo.com/syspool/Sys/PDF/Lenovo_Laptops/Lenovo_Legion_Y520_15/Lenovo_Legion_Y520_15_Spec.PDF So that’s why I need that adapter.
Ahhh, you’re right, that’s a good point! Computers that have dual GPUs with NVIDIA Optimus might have lower bandwidth HDMI ports. OP, this could very well be the same issue.
- 21010
The 1050 should be able to do 4k @ 60Hz, as it supports HDMI 2.0b. One thing I didn’t think of though, you might have to override the color depth and set it to 8 bit before selecting the refresh rate. HDMI 2.0 can only do 4k @ 60Hz at 8 bit with RGB or YCbCr444.
It was already set to 8bit actually. Could it be the TV itself not supporting 4K at 60?
- 21010
Does your laptop have dual graphics processors? Many laptops use one GPU for rendering, and one for the actual output, so although the NVIDIA GPU could support 4k @ 60Hz, the HDMI port itself might not.
Yes; it has an Intel HD Graphics along with the nVidia. So the issue is the port itself? If so what options do I have, if any?