Where to Put Your WiFi Router for the Best Signal

Moving your router a few feet is the cheapest WiFi upgrade there is. Here is how to find the best spot.

The short version

• Central: as close to the middle of your home as the cable allows.
• High: on a shelf or wall, 4–6 feet up, not on the floor.
• In the open: not in a cabinet, closet or behind the TV.
• Away from microwaves, cordless phone bases, mirrors, fish tanks and metal.

Multi-story homes

Put the router on the middle floor if you can, or high on the ground floor. For three floors or a large footprint, use one mesh node per floor.

Test before and after

1. Run the walk test and mark the rooms you care about.
2. Move the router and wait a minute for it to restart.
3. Walk the same route again and compare scores.

Cannot move the router?

Run a longer Ethernet cable from the modem to a central spot, add a mesh node halfway to the weak area, or use a powerline adapter.