Best Overall

Linksys EA7500 Max-Stream AC1900 Dual-Band Router

  • Excellent value

  • MU-MIMO at a budget price

  • Inconspicuous design

  • Inconsistent download speeds

  • Software is a bit barren

  • Not the fastest model

Linksys’ Max Stream 3x3 802.11ac technology adds to the overall strong performance by supporting three simultaneous data streams for faster speeds on each connected device. And that’s great news when it comes to 4K streaming and lag-free gaming. As an added bonus, the Linksys supports monitoring Wi-Fi performance remotely, as well as establishing guest passwords for short-term users.

“Nobody wants a router so ugly it needs to be hidden, so we appreciate that the Linksys Max-Stream AC1900 is basically inoffensive.” — Bill Thomas, Product Tester

Best Speed

Linksys EA9500 Tri-Band Wireless Router

  • MU-MIMO capable

  • Eight built-in LAN ports

  • Two USB 3.0 ports for file and device sharing

  • Expensive

  • Very large footprint

  • Bulky, laptop-style power pack

Performance on the 2.4 Ghz band can reach up to 1,000 Mbps for increased speed on older wireless 802.11n and 802.11g devices and the dual-band 5 GHz 802.11ac connections can go as high as 4,332 Mbps. Additional hardware strengths include MU-MIMO technology for maintaining the strongest possible connection, and the router also seamlessly works with separately purchased Max-Stream Wi-Fi extenders to create a pseudo-mesh Wi-Fi system for increased signal strength across an entire home.

“The router supports MU-MIMO, which is designed to efficiently handle bandwidth in homes with devices of different speed grades. Each device can connect to the router at its highest speed, without reducing the speeds of other devices.” — Benjamin Zeman, Product Tester

The WRT3200ACM includes tri-band technology that helps it deliver double the bandwidth and performance, rivalling many competing routers. MU-MIMO technology helps to increase signal strength across a home, while the dual-band 5 GHz radios provide a maximum speed of 2.6 Mbps and the 2.4GHz band offers up to 600 Mbps.

Best Security

Linksys WRT3200ACM Tri-Stream Gigabit Wi-Fi Router

  • MU-MIMO capable

  • Open source firmware

  • Very fast 5 GHz throughput speeds

  • Familiar nostalgic look

  • Sluggish 2.4GHz throughput speed

  • Subpar long range performance

  • High price point

Linksys’ WRT routers also pioneered open source technology, and this latest model is no exception; power users can add the OpenWrt or DD-WRT firmware to establish their own VPN connections, turn the router into a secure web server, create and manage their own hotspots, capture and analyze network traffic, and more, and fans of the WRT will love the nostalgic look that this modern router offers.

“Router Settings include Troubleshooting, Connectivity, Wireless, Security, and OpenVPN Server. There’s plenty to explore and we found the router’s stock firmware has everything that the average user would need.” — Benjamin Zeman, Product Tester

Whether it’s 4K video streaming or watching the latest YouTube videos, the Linksys EA8300 Max-Stream router is built to handle demanding video enthusiasts. The quad-core CPU powers three high-speed Wi-Fi radio bands with intelligent band steering that collectively reach maximum speeds of 2.2 Gbps. Increasing the streaming capabilities even more is Linksys’ MU-MIMO+ Airtime technology that provides each device in a house the same simultaneous signal strength for keeping a strong connection no matter what you’re doing online.

Best for Streaming

Linksys EA8300 Max-Stream AC2200 Tri-Band Router

  • MU-MIMO capable

  • Great software

  • Compact design

  • Easy to install

  • Short range

  • AC2200 rating is a little slow

  • Can’t throttle guest access

“It’s marketed towards gamers and 4K streaming video viewers. It certainly does the job, reaching 2.4Gz speeds of around 100Mbps when close to the router and 85Mbps at a distance.” — Benjamin Zeman, Product Tester

If you’re looking to get the best bang for your buck, you’ll want to check out the Linksys EA9300, which offers power to spare at a very reasonable price. Boosted by a bevy of high-performing hardware, the AC4000 adds six tri-band antennas that deliver a powerful signal across a large-sized home. Beamforming technology adds nine high-power amplifiers for maximizing and extending signal strength across both the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands, and the internal 1.8 Ghz quad-core CPU helps dial up the router’s total performance to sustain a maximum overall speed of 4 Gbps, even if you have a large number of devices on your network.

Best Value

Linksys EA9300 Max-Stream AC4000 Router

  • Easy to set up

  • Solid Wi-Fi performance

  • MU-MIMO and beamforming

  • Limited parental controls

  • Lacks built-in malware protection

If your needs are fairly simple and you don’t want to spend a lot of money, spring for the Linksys EA6350. Working off 802.11n the EA6350 can get a max speed of 300 Mbps on its 2.4GHz band, but that goes up to 867 Mbps when using the 5 GHz band with an 802.11ac connection, and there are also four Gigabit Ethernet ports so you can hardwire in when you need maximum speeds.

Best for Simplicity

Linksys EA6350 AC1200+ Dual-Band Wi-Fi Router

  • Affordable

  • Fast 5 GHz performance

  • Easy to set up

  • Large

  • Non-removable antennas

Streaming videos, online gaming, and web surfing are handled with aplomb by the EA6350. Adjustable (but non-removable) antennas mean you can direct signal strength to any area of a home and beamforming technology identifies online devices and sends extra signal strength for faster overall network performance and increased range.

For the ultimate in signal strength and range, look to the Linksys WHW0302 Velop Tri-band Mesh Wi-Fi system, which can cover 4,000 square feet of space. The rise in popularity of mesh routers has increased the expectation that Wi-Fi can easily reach around corners or through walls and the Velop does exactly that with performance to spare. The tri-band Wi-Fi system works with both the 2.4 GHz and 5 Ghz bands to make 4K video streaming, online gaming, and video chatting stress-free.

Best Range

Linksys WHW0302 Velop AC4400 Intelligent Mesh Wi-Fi System

  • Excellent coverage

  • Good performance

  • Sleek design

  • Expensive

  • Lacks USB ports

  • Lacks some common features

If your networking needs are simple and you want something cheap and cheerful, it’s hard to find a more affordable router than Linksys’ E2500. Although it’s a dual-band router that supports both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz frequencies, it only supports the older 802.11n standard, but the higher frequency can still help to keep your smartphones and computers off the more congested 2.4 GHz frequency range, and it still provides a maximum throughput of 600 Mbps — 300 Mbps on each band.

Best Budget

Linksys E2500 N600 Dual-Band Wireless-N Router

  • Very inexpensive

  • Easy to set up

  • Minimalist design

  • Limited range

  • Older Wi-Fi specs

Linksys bundles a Cisco Connect software CD to help you get the router set up quickly, but you can actually just skip the CD set up entirely and go for the more traditional web interface, which is especially great if you want to tweak some of the more advanced settings.

The minimalist design packs the antennas inside so you won’t get the kind of range you need for larger homes, but it’s still a great little router for smaller homes, apartments, condos, or even to set up at the cottage. It also provides a really affordable way to add an extra Wi-Fi access point in another area of your home, provide you’re willing to run an Ethernet cable to it, or use a Powerline adapter. 

If you have the money to spend and want to invest in a WI-Fi system for the future, Linksys’ MX 10 Velop is the most advanced and bleeding-edge router that the company makes right now, combining mesh networking technology with the newest Wi-Fi standards. The MX10 is built upon Linksys’ popular Velop mesh Wi-Fi platform, mixing in support for the 802.11ax Wi-Fi 6 protocol, not only offering speeds of up to 5.3 Gbps, but also offering much better performance on congested networks, and better battery life on modern smartphones. 

Best Splurge

Linksys MX10 Velop Whole Home Wi-Fi 6 System

  • Cutting-edge Wi-Fi 6 mesh technology

  • Extensive coverage for up to 100+ devices

  • Ultra-fast Wi-Fi speeds

  • Very expensive

  • Requires Wi-Fi 6 devices for maximum performance

  • No 2.5 Gbps or 10 Gbps Ethernet ports

As a mesh router, the MX10 Velop also offers some of the best coverage you’ll find for larger homes, with over 6,000 square feet of coverage, depending on your placement of the two units. Since it’s a modular system, however, you can easily add more Velop units, expanding your coverage by an additional 3,000 square feet with each one, and there’s enough bandwidth here to handle over 100 Wi-Fi devices, so it can handle all of your Internet-of-Things smart home devices, and there are four Gigabit Ethernet ports and an ultra-fast USB 3.0 port for shared storage devices too. 

Although Wi-Fi 6 is still relatively new right now, and chances are you don’t have a lot of devices that support it yet, if you’re going to spend a fair bit of money on a new router right now, it’s worth staying ahead of the curve and investing in the technology that’s coming.

What to Look for in a Linksys Router

Compatibility

As wireless standards change fairly frequently, a router more than a few years old is likely out of date. Even if your devices aren’t yet using 802.11ac standards, we recommend a router that supports it as a means of future-proofing, and if you want to go the very leading edge, you may even want to consider an 802.11ax Wi-Fi 6 router.

  • Can a better router increase your internet speed?
  • While no wireless router can give you more speed than your internet plan offers, the best wireless routers will help you take full advantage of the broadband connection that you have by removing bottlenecks often caused by poor Wi-Fi coverage and too many devices sharing your Wi-Fi. Features like powerful multi-core CPUs, beamforming antennas, and dual-band or tri-band Wi-Fi provide extended range while also ensuring that every connected device in your home gets its fair share of your bandwidth.
  • How often should you replace your router?
  • It’s a good rule of thumb to upgrade your router about every three to four years to make sure that you’re staying abreast of the latest technologies. While Wi-Fi standards are fully backward-compatible, newer features are much more capable at keeping up with the increasing demands of modern internet services and the number of devices you have in your home.
  • Do routers lose performance over time?
  • Just like any other electronic device, even the best wireless routers can fail over time, especially if you’re putting more stress on them by adding more devices and spending more time streaming and downloading large files. The most common cause of router failures is excessive heat, since many users tuck their router away in a corner or a closet and don’t pay much attention to it; to keep your router in good condition, be sure to put it in a cool and well-ventilated area and clean it once in a while to prevent dust from building up around the cooling vents.

While no wireless router can give you more speed than your internet plan offers, the best wireless routers will help you take full advantage of the broadband connection that you have by removing bottlenecks often caused by poor Wi-Fi coverage and too many devices sharing your Wi-Fi. Features like powerful multi-core CPUs, beamforming antennas, and dual-band or tri-band Wi-Fi provide extended range while also ensuring that every connected device in your home gets its fair share of your bandwidth. 

It’s a good rule of thumb to upgrade your router about every three to four years to make sure that you’re staying abreast of the latest technologies. While Wi-Fi standards are fully backward-compatible, newer features are much more capable at keeping up with the increasing demands of modern internet services and the number of devices you have in your home.

Just like any other electronic device, even the best wireless routers can fail over time, especially if you’re putting more stress on them by adding more devices and spending more time streaming and downloading large files. The most common cause of router failures is excessive heat, since many users tuck their router away in a corner or a closet and don’t pay much attention to it; to keep your router in good condition, be sure to put it in a cool and well-ventilated area and clean it once in a while to prevent dust from building up around the cooling vents.

Single-, dual-, or tri-band

In a large home, a single-band router probably won’t cut it. A dual-band device, with a 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz band, provides a faster signal and prevents overcrowding. If you want to take it up a notch, look for a tri-band router, which adds an additional 5 GHz band for even faster speeds and less congestion.

Range

The ability of your router to deliver a strong signal to all corners of your home is important, but its positioning will likely make just as much of an impact. Higher-end routers will offer up better range, but a Wi-Fi extender can also work wonders if dead spots are an issue.