Wifi 6 Mesh Wireless Router Shootout
It's that time of year again where I do the Wifi shootout and test all of the best wireless routers and tell you which ones are the best. This year's lineup includes the following mesh routers:
Netgear Orbi RBK852
Eero Pro 6
Asus ZenWifi XT8
Amplifi Alien
TP-Link Deco X60
Linksys Velop MX10
Ubiquiti Unifi 6 Lite
These are the fastest mesh wireless systems offered by these manufacturers and even though most of these can be purchased as a 1-pack, the multi-pack systems can handle more devices and work better for large homes or homes with a lot of dead zones.
Testing Methods
Unfortunately since I'm only testing Wifi 6 units, the Nest Wifi which was last year's winner for the Best Overall category won't be featured in this video since it's Wifi 5 but of course you can always compare this year's results to last year's video if you're interested. So if you're not familiar with Wifi 6 also known as Wireless AX, it's the latest wireless standard that offers faster speeds and even better stability over longer distances which you'll see in some of the charts in this video. And considering the cost of Wifi 6 has dropped significantly over the past few months and there aren't really any downsides to it, I recommend staying away from Wifi 5 systems unless you can get em at a really low price.
So if you've never watched any of my Best Wifi videos from previous years my house is about 3400 sq ft and I place all of the routers in the same place and run tests from different spots of the house. I run a total of 70 speedtests on each unit using my own personal speedtest server. This includes both Wifi 6 and a Wifi 5 speedtests and 6 testing locations around the house. 2 of these locations are known trouble spots like the home theater area in my basement and outside in my driveway which has become a bit of a stress test even for the best routers. The devices I'll be using for most of my testing are the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra for Wifi 6 and the Galaxy S9 Plus for Wifi 5. And even though I do have Gigabit internet I've found that using a local speedtest server provides the most consistent results.
One thing that I feel like I have to mention any time I talk about Wifi routers is that you will never see speeds faster than what you're paying for from your ISP. In other words you can buy the fastest router on this list but if you're only paying for 200 mbps iintenet you will never see speeds faster than 200 no matter which router you buy.
Today I’m focusing on mesh wifi systems but I will be doing a separate comparison for the best gaming router which will include units like the Asus Rapture, TP Link AX11000, Nighthawk AX8, and a few others.
I'm going to sort these from the most expensive down the least expensive, then briefly talk about my experience with them, show the test results for each system, then I'll compile all of the results at the end and give you my thoughts.
Netgear Orbi RBK852
The Netgear Orbi RBK852 is a 2-pack Wifi 6 mesh wireless system priced at $699. The Orbi probably has the strangest design with tall and wide units but considering they don't have the typical square shape. They look very similar to the RBK50 which was last years winner for fastest wifi. So the RBK852 is a AX6000 tri-band system that has a total of 9 ethernet ports including a 2.5Gig wan port on the main router which is a nice addition for the tiny portion of the population with a 2 gigabit internet connection. Just like the other systems on the list the ethernet ports can be used for wired backhaul or they can be used to connect your wired devices. The Orbi also has a dedicated wireless backhaul channel that allows you to get even faster speeds from the mesh access point.
As far as the performance, Orbi continues to provide the absolute fastest speeds I've seen. If you thought the Wifi 5 Orbi was fast, the Wifi 6 version is even faster providing an average download speed over 800 mbps on devices in the same room and continues to dominate at pretty much every distance. The Wifi 5 speeds appear to be slightly slower than they were on the rbk50 but it appears that connection from these newer units is way more stable than the older version.
Linksys Velop MX10
Priced at $699 we have the Linksys Velop MX10 which you might have recognized from my Amplifi Alien review earlier this year. This is a 2-pack AX5300 system that comes with 2 identical units. Each unit has a tower design with 5 ethernet ports which means it has the most total ports compared to the other systems. These ports can be used to wire the units together for the fastest connection possible which is known as wired backhaul and the additional ports can also be used to connect wired devices even if the mesh access point is wireless to the main access point. Like most of the other mesh routers at the higher end of the price point spectrum the Velop MX10 has a dedicated wireless backhaul channel which greatly improves the speeds you get from the mesh wireless unit so you get great speeds even if you can't wire them together. In my opinion this is honestly one of the biggest benefits of Wifi 6.
Setup is super easy using the Linksys app which walks you through the entire setup process. The Velop offers some of the most advanced features compared to the other units and allows direct access to advanced features using a web browser for those who prefer it.
As far as performance the Velop provides good Wifi 6 speeds but just like the Wifi 5 version of the Velop I ran into some minor stability issues. Even though the speeds were great when testing in the same room as the router, I found that the speeds were kind of all over the place. Sometimes I'd get 200mbps up or down and sometimes I'd get 700mbps or more. Unfortunately in my torture test, which is out in my driveway, the Velop had the slowest Wifi 6 speeds out of all the units. Not only that but I also had a lot of trouble getting my phone to connect to the wifi 6 band on the router. I could see the Wifi 6 logo before connecting to the router but whenever I would connect it would revert to Wifi 5. After rebooting the router a few times I was eventually able to connect to Wifi 6 but it was definitely a bit of a struggle.
As you can see from the chart, the Velop is certainly capable of some fast speeds and it looks like it's more stable than the older Velop system but unfortunately there are a few bugs still left to work out.
Amplifi Alien
Next is the Amplifi Alien which I did a full review on earlier this year. If you're not familiar with the Amplifi brand it's made by Ubiquiti which is a company that makes some great enterprise and prosumer level wireless devices including the Unifi access point that I'll be talking about later. So priced at $699 the 2-pack version of the Amplifi Alien comes with a main router that has a nice touchscreen and a similar mesh access point. Both units have 4 ethernet ports on the back and the main router has the wan port hidden on the bottom and they do support a wired backhaul. The touchscreen looks nice and shows helpful info and even allows you to run a speed test.
Aside from the Alien being one of the best looking routers the Alien allows you to create multiple custom SSIDs including wireless-ax specific SSIDs which is helpful if you want to assign specific devices to a certain wireless band. This is probably the biggest benefit to this system over the others.
When it comes to performance the Alien is among the top performers and has very consistent speeds. I've been using this system since the beginning of the year with over 75 wireless devices and if you're a Ubiquiti fan I'd argue that this is a better alternative to products in the Unifi line if you're looking for the best speeds and don't need the advanced features of the Unifi access points.
Eero Pro 6
Next up on the list is the Eero Pro 6. So the priced at $600 the Eero Pro 6 is a 3-pack system. Notice the price is lower than the previously mentioned systems and that's because the Eero is an AX4200 system which means it won't have speeds quite as fast as the other systems but offers a nice balance in the middle. Even though this is the fastest system that Eero offers at the moment, I've found that AX4200 is becoming more popular and both Linksys and Orbi have just recently released lowered priced AX4200 systems making them a better buy for people who want a nice balance between speed and cost.
Each of the Eero units are identical offering 2 Ethernet ports and a USB-C power jack. The Eero comes with the smallest and least conspicuous units even though they're noticeably bigger than the older Eero routers. Uust like the other systems the Eero has a very simple setup process and has a nice and elegant app with a very easy to use interface.
When it comes to performance the Eero Pro 6 offers great speed and consistent performance. Last year I mentioned that Eero had the most stable and consistent connection and the Pro 6 is no exception. It wasn't necessarily the fastest in all of the tests but the speeds were stable and to my surprise the Eero was the ONLY system that gave me usable Wifi 5 speeds out in my driveway which says a lot. My only gripe with the Eero is that they don't make a faster version and each access point only has 2 ethernet ports which can be limiting especially for power users.
Asus ZenWifi XT8
Next is the Asus Zenwifi XT8. Priced around $450 the XT8 is a two pack AX6600 system making it potentially the best bang for your buck when it comes to speed vs cost. Not only is it priced great considering it's a tri-band system with a dedicated backhaul channel but each unit has 4 Ethernet ports and even a 2.5 gbps WAN port just like the Orbi making it the most featured packed system for the money.
The XT8 comes in black or white and sits somewhere in the middle of all the other units when it comes to size. Not only does is have 4 ethernet ports on each unit but it also has a USB port that allows you to connect a hard drive and to share files between your connected devices.
Setup was fairly easy just like the other systems even though I did have the switch on the back flipped in the off position for the first 5 minutes during setup making think something was wrong. (so don't do that lol) But the app is nice and provides a lot of advanced network features.
When it comes to performance the XT8 was solid. I did notice that I got noticeably better speeds when standing to the side of the units as opposed to standing in front of them. I suppose this is due to the way the antennas are aimed. It's not necessarily a problem but it is something I noticed from some of these units even though it was more noticeable with the Asus. Overall the speeds were about on par with the more expensive units even though it did fall slightly short in some tests. Overall I think the XT8 provides amazing value considering the specs and performance considering it's nearly half the price of the other high end systems.
TP-Link Deco X60
The last of the mesh wireless systems I tested was the TP-LINK Deco X60. So priced around $330 the X60 is the least expensive system on this list. To be fair it's an AX3000 system so I didn't go in expecting the speeds to be comparable to the higher end systems but at the time of this video the X60 is the fastest Wifi 6 mesh system that TP-link offers. TP-Link has recently announced the X90 which would have been a better fit for this comparison but unfortunately it doesn't come out to until January 2021 but the X60 is still a formidable contender so it's still worthy of being compared here.
The X60 version I have with me today is the 2pack AX3000 system which comes with 3 identical units. The units have a short cylinder shape and they're the 2nd smallest units on the list. Just like the Eero, the X60 only comes with 2 ethernet ports on each unit so if you have a lot of wired devices you need to be mindful of this.
Even though the setup process is fairly easy and straightforward, I did find that it's best to connect only one unit at a time and then add the mesh units later instead of powering them all up at once. Once I did that the setup was a breeze and the Deco app works pretty well.
Although the X60 is the least expensive option on this list I think it performed well compared to systems that are more than double the price. Now to be fair the speeds were slightly slower in almost all tests but I found that it did well considering the cost.
Ubiquiti Unifi 6 Lite
Last but not least is the Ubiquiti Unifi 6 Lite. You can’t do a Wifi comparison without hearing a bunch of tech guys chime in about Unifi devices. I'll admit that I'm an avid fan of Ubiquiti Unifi devices as my home network consists of Ubiquiti switches and routers so it's only fitting that I include the Wifi 6 Lite in my testing. If you're not familiar with Ubiquiti Unfi access points these are flying saucer style access points that are made to be wall or ceiling mounted and even though a lot of people use them in homes they're made to be used in high density areas like restaurants, malls, or other businesses looking for an enterprise solution. Priced at $99 the Unifi 6 Lite is the least expensive option on this list if you're interested in getting into Wifi 6 but it should be noted that it requires another device such as a Ubiquiti cloud key or a workstation with the Ubiquiti software to manage it as well as PoE power.. It's also recommend only for technical people since the setup is a lot more involved that the other systems on this list.
As far as performance the Unifi 6 Lite provided pretty good performance for both Wifi 6 and Wifi 5. It did fall behind some of the high end units like Orbi and even Ubiquiti's own Alien but for $100 I think it's a no-brainer if you already have a ubiquiti setup. Not only did it provide stable and consistent speeds but it offers a lot more advanced features than every other option on this list.
Combined Results
Alright so now that you saw how each of the systems performed individually, let's see how they compare. These charts will show how each of the systems compared at each testing location. The first thing you'll notice is that the Netgear Orbi was the fastest system in almost every single test. Another thing you might notice is that the Linksys Velop has pretty low upload speeds on some of these tests. I ran dozens and dozens of speed tests on the Velop and even tried a few external tests but the speeds were very inconsistent. Another thing I found interesting was that the Eero Pro 6 was literally the only system that gave me usable speeds in the torture test out in my driveway. I thought this might be an anomaly but it consistently gave me about 40mbps down and 20mbps up every time I ran the test. This is pretty interesting considering it's the only AX4200 system I've tested, making me wonder if that's the sweet spot. The last interesting thing I notice was that the Asus XT8 generally had the fastest Wifi 5 download speeds compared to everything else. I'm not sure why this is but it is worth mentioning.
The winner for best overall system is definitely the Netgear Orbi. Not only did it consistently provide the fastest speeds but it was one of the most stable and provided a great signal across my entire house. Yes it's $700, but to be honest you could buy just one of these routers and it would work great in most houses.
Best Value - Asus ZenWifi XT8
The winner for Best Value goes to the Asus ZenWifi XT8. Priced at $450 compared to the other comparable units being priced at $700 I think the XT8 gives you the most value for your money. Not only were the speeds right up there with the really expensive units but as I said earlier it also provided the fastest Wifi 5 speeds which is important considering most of the devices in your home are gonna be Wifi 5.
Best Coverage - Eero Pro 6
Finally the winner for best signal strength and most consistent goes to the Eero Pro 6. This is only fitting especially since the Eero was the most stable system in last year's video. I can't stress how impressed I was when I saw that the Eero gave me the best Wifi 5 speeds in my driveway when every other system on this list were almost completely useless. If you have a large area to cover and you're looking for a safe bet and don't necessarily need blazing speeds then the Eero Pro 6 is a great choice.
Final Thoughts
One thing that I want to mention that I mention every year is that even though these are mesh wireless systems that come with more than one router most houses don't need more than one. Believe it or not you might actually end up with slower speeds if you use more than one unit especially if they're not wired together. What I recommend is to either buy a 1-pack and test it out or buy a 2 pack, run tests with just 1 and if you find that you have a bad dead zone then you can add the 2nd unit to cover the dead zone.
Buy the Netgear Orbi Wifi 6 on Amazon: https://amzn.to/2WW2Gmc
Buy the Eero Pro 6 on Amazon: https://amzn.to/2WYDnjt
Buy the Asus ZenWifi AX on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3n2uPCS
Buy the TP-Link Deco X60 on Amazon: https://amzn.to/2JxxxCu
Buy the Amplifi Alien on Amazon: https://amzn.to/2KHtiVK
Buy the Linksys Velop MX10 on Amazon: https://amzn.to/2JCoyjA
