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Best Wi-Fi 7 Routers Tested and Reviewed 2026

Get the best and latest router for your home network

Best overall

ASUS RT-BE96U

ASUS RT-BE96U

Max internet speed
9,400Mbps

Best for budgets

TP-Link Archer BE230

TP-Link Archer BE230

Max internet speed
2,350Mbps

TP-Link Archer GE400 router

Best for gaming

TP-Link Archer GE400

TP-Link Archer GE400

Max internet speed
2,350Mbps

Best for speed

NETGEAR Nighthawk RS700S

NETGEAR Nighthawk RS700S

Max internet speed
9,400Mbps

ASUS ZenWiFi BQ16 Pro product shot

Best mesh system

ASUS ZenWiFi BQ16 Pro

ASUS ZenWiFi BQ16 Pro

Max internet speed
9,400Mbps

Best Wi-Fi 7 routers in a nutshell

If you want lots of features in a Wi-Fi 7 router or mesh system, you generally pay top dollar. Our current top pick, the ASUS RT-BE96U, isn’t cheap, but you get a lot of bang for the buck. It doesn’t require subscriptions to get the most out of it (like with NETGEAR and TP-Link), plus it has a three-year warranty. It’s a good investment if you’re willing to pay the price, but if you’re shopping for more speed or a whole mesh system, we list our picks for those too.

Best overall

Pros

Free security tools

Free parental controls

Cons

Proprietary mesh tech

High price tag

What we like about it

The RT-BE96U has some of the fastest speeds we’ve tested to date. Plus, it has more features than we can count, like free security, free parental controls, and built-in VPN tools.

What we wish it did better

Now that EasyMesh is used in a lot of networking products, it’s disappointing to see that ASUS took the proprietary AiMesh route instead.

Why we recommend it

The RT-BE96U is expensive, but it’s worth every penny thanks to the awesome speeds and treasure trove of features you get. It’s our new favorite router.

Specifications

Wi-Fi specs

  • Standard: Wi-Fi 7
  • Max throughput: 18,000Mbps
  • Antennas: 8
  • Streams: 12
  • Bands: 3

Wired specs

  • WAN ports (1Gbps): 1
  • WAN ports (10Gbps): 1
  • LAN ports (1Gbps): 3
  • LAN ports (10Gbps): 1
  • USB 3.2 ports: 1
  • USB 2.0 ports: 1

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Best for budgets

(4.5/5)

Pros

Built-in VPN tools

EasyMesh support

Cons

Subscription-locked features

No 6 GHz band

What we like about it

The Archer BE230 has good speeds for the money, based on our tests. It’s loaded with features, too, like VPN tools and multiple Wi-Fi networks.

What we wish it did better

We’re not big fans of subscriptions, like paying for premium parental controls, especially when we know other manufacturers offer similar services for free.

Why we recommend it

Get the Archer BE230 if you’re on a tight budget and not ready to use the 6 GHz band. The improved speeds and awesome callouts make this affordable router a great pick.

Specifications

Wi-Fi specs

  • Standard: Wi-Fi 7
  • Max throughput: 3,600Mbps
  • Antennas: 4
  • Streams: 4
  • Bands: 2

Wired specs

  • WAN ports (2.5Gbps): 1
  • LAN Ports (2.5Gbps): 1
  • LAN ports (1Gbps): 3
  • USB 3.2 ports: 1

Best for gaming

Archer GE400 featured image
(4/5)

Pros

Great 5 GHz speeds and range

Built-in VPN tools

Cons

No 6 GHz band

No 10Gbps port

What we like about it

You get a lot of speed for your buck, based on our testing. Plus, it includes a lot of features, a few of which target gamers.

What we wish it did better

Placing premium security and parental control features behind a paywall keeps your up-front costs low, but we’d like to have more free ones.

Why we recommend it

The Archer GE400 is a great router for gamers on a budget. There’s plenty of speed here for gaming, even without the 6 GHz band. The customizable RGB strip is cool to have too.

Specifications

Wi-Fi specs

  • Standard: Wi-Fi 7
  • Max throughput: 6,500Mbps
  • Antennas: 6
  • Streams: 6
  • Bands: 2

Wired specs

  • WAN ports (2.5Gbps): 1
  • LAN ports (2.5Gbps): 1
  • LAN ports (1Gbps): 3
  • USB 3.2 ports: 1

Best for speed

(4.6/5)

NETGEAR Nighthawk RS700S

Read Our Full Review

$599.99 on Amazon*

Pros

10Gbps Ethernet ports

Built-in VPN server

Cons

Subscription-locked features

High price

What we like about it

The Nighthawk RS700S is superfast, hands down, hitting 3,600Mbps+ speeds at close range using a single Wi-Fi 7 device. Other notable callouts include the 10Gbps ports, OpenVPN server, and media streaming.

What we wish it did better

We’re not big fans of paying for extra services after shelling out a lot of money for a router. We like to see routers sold at this price packed with free security and parental controls, which you don’t get here.

Why we recommend it

Get the Nighthawk RS700S if you have a Wi-Fi 6E or Wi-Fi 7 device. You’ll see improved speeds from better interference management, not to mention the superfast wireless speeds you get from Wi-Fi 7.

Specifications

Wi-Fi specs

  • Standard: Wi-Fi 7
  • Max throughput: 19,000Mbps
  • Antennas: 8
  • Streams: 12
  • Bands: 3

Wired specs

  • WAN ports (10Gbps): 1
  • LAN ports (10Gbps): 1
  • LAN ports (1Gbps): 4
  • USB 3.2 ports: 1

Best mesh system

ASUS ZenWiFi BQ16 Pro product shot
(4.9/5)

Pros

Multi-internet compatibility

4G LTE/5G internet support

Cons

High price

Proprietary mesh tech

What we like about it

This system has the fastest speeds for a mesh system we’ve tested to date, even in our backhaul tests. It also includes free security, free parental controls, VPN tools, and loads more.

What we wish it did better

While you can load the web UI in a mobile web browser, we wish the app also included every setting for a one-interface-to-control-it-all experience.

Why we recommend it

Most mesh systems struggle to hit the same powerful speeds as a standard router, but the ZenWiFi BQ16 Pro packs the biggest punch we’ve seen to date. Plus, every feature is included in the price, unlike competing systems.

Specifications

Wi-Fi specs

  • Standard: Wi-Fi 7
  • Max throughput: 30,000Mbps
  • Antennas: 12 each
  • Streams: 16 each
  • Bands: 4

Wired specs

  • WAN/LAN ports (10Gbps): 1
  • WAN/LAN ports (1Gbps): 1
  • LAN ports (1Gbps): 3
  • USB 3.2 ports: 1

Compare Wi-Fi 7 router benchmarks

Overall, the ASUS RT-BE96U is your best bet if you’re looking for lots of features and speed without having to shell out extra cash for subscription-locked features.

The TP-Link routers in our roundup don’t have 6 GHz radios, so their entries are blank in the 6 GHz chart below.

6 GHz

Best Wi-Fi 7 Routers 6 GHz benchmarks

5 GHz

Best Wi-Fi 7 routers 5 GHz benchmarks

2.4 GHz

Best Wi-Fi 7 routers 2.4 GHz benchmarks

Compare Wi-Fi 7 router specifications

Four out of the five tested routers listed below support mesh networking. TP-Link moved to the open-source EasyMesh specification, meaning you can add any EasyMesh-compatible router or mesh node to your home network. Meanwhile, ASUS insists on using its proprietary mesh tech for the best whole-home Wi-Fi experience out of ASUS products.

Also, you don’t need subscriptions to get everything an ASUS Wi-Fi 7 router or mesh system offers, whereas you need subscriptions for the TP-Link and NETGEAR models to get all the security and parental control features.

ASUS RT-BE96UTP-Link Archer BE230TP-Link Archer GE400NETGEAR Nighthawk RS700SASUS ZenWiFi BQ16 Pro
Max throughput:
18,000Mbps
Max throughput:
3,600Mbps
Max throughput:
6,500Mbps
Max throughput:
19,000Mbps
Max throughput:
19,000Mbps
Radios:
3
Radios:
2
Radios:
2
Radios:
3
Radios:
4
Streams:
12
Streams:
4
Streams:
6
Streams:
12
Streams:
16
Internet port:
10GbE
Internet port:
2.5GbE
Internet port:
2.5GbE
Internet port:
10GbE
Internet port:
10GbE
LAN ports:
4
LAN ports:
4
LAN ports:
4
LAN ports:
5
LAN ports:
4
USB ports:
2
USB ports:
1
USB ports:
1
USB ports:
1
USB ports:
1
VPN server:
Included
VPN server:
Included
VPN server:
Included
VPN server:
Included
VPN server:
Included
VPN client:
Included
VPN client:
Included
VPN client:
Included
VPN client:
No
VPN client:
Included
Media server:
Included
Media server:
No
Media server:
No
Media server:
Included
Media server:
Included
Parental controls:
Included
Parental controls:
Free, Premium
Parental controls:
Free, Premium
Parental controls:
Premium only
Parental controls:
Included
Security:
Included
Security:
Free, Premium
Security:
Free, Premium
Security:
Premium
Security:
Included
Mesh type:
AiMesh
Mesh type:
EasyMesh
Mesh type:
EasyMesh
Mesh type:
No Mesh
Mesh type:
AiMesh
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Compatible internet providers

We selected the providers below based on their fastest plans. Note that any provider with an internet plan of 9,400Mbps (9.4Gbps) and slower work with routers with a 10 Gigabit Ethernet port for internet. Routers with a 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet port for internet are not recommended for internet plans faster than 2,300Mbps (2.3Gbps).

Disclaimers

Author -

Kevin Parrish has more than a decade of experience working as a writer, editor, and product tester. He began writing about computer hardware and soon branched out to other devices and services such as networking equipment, phones and tablets, game consoles, and other internet-connected devices. His work has appeared in Tom’s Hardware, Tom's Guide, Maximum PC, Digital Trends, Android Authority, How-To Geek, Lifewire, and others. At HighSpeedInternet.com, he focuses on network equipment testing and review.

Editor - Jessica Brooksby

Jessica loves bringing her passion for the written word and her love of tech into one space at HighSpeedInternet.com. She works with the team’s writers to revise strong, user-focused content so every reader can find the tech that works for them. Jessica has a bachelor’s degree in English from Utah Valley University and seven years of creative and editorial experience. Outside of work, she spends her time gaming, reading, painting, and buying an excessive amount of Legend of Zelda merchandise.