Wi-Fi Site Surveys, Analysis, Troubleshooting runs on a MacBook (macOS 11+) or any laptop (Windows 7/8/10/11) with a standard 802.11be/ax/ac/n/g/a/b wireless network adapter. Read more about the 802.11be support here.
Top 10 Ways to Boost Your Wi-Fi Signal
Learn 10 effective ways to boost your Wi-Fi network and instantly improve its performance and reach.
Would you like your Teams calls to always be crystal clear and your downloads blazingly fast? Then you need to learn how to boost Wi-Fi signals, and the 10 methods described below are here to help you do just that. So, grab yourself a cup of your favorite beverage — you're about to become a Wi-Fi optimization pro.
Reliable and fast internet has become a cornerstone of modern life, facilitating work, education, and entertainment. When your Wi-Fi struggles to keep up, it can disrupt daily activities and cause unnecessary frustration. Thankfully, there are proven methods to address these issues and strengthen your wireless connection. This article will outline the top 10 ways to boost your Wi-Fi signal and achieve smoother, more consistent connectivity.
1. Check Your Wired Internet Connection
Start by testing your internet speed over a wired connection. Plug your device into the router using an Ethernet cable and use tools like Speedtest to check download and upload speeds. If speeds are below what your ISP promises, contact their support or consider upgrading your plan or modem.
If the wired connection is fine but Wi-Fi is slow, the issue is likely with your wireless setup.
2. Optimize Your Router’s Placement
The location of a router affects WiFi quality much more than it might seem at first glance. Here are a few simple and obvious rules that are nevertheless often ignored when installing access points:
Try to place the router roughly in the center of your room (don't push it into a far corner).
Don't place it too low (on the floor) or hide it in a closet to avoid ruining the decor.
Clutter, thick walls, metal shelves, and other electronics around the router all degrade the signal, even if the device itself is in good condition.
To assess the effectiveness of your current network, NetSpot’s Survey mode allows you to build a WiFi heatmap of signal strength across the entire area. This gives you a visual overview of where coverage is adequate and where the signal drops below acceptable thresholds.
If you're planning a new network deployment or considering relocating an access point, NetSpot's planning mode provides predictive modeling. You can test various access point placement options on a floor plan, taking into account wall materials and signal attenuation, and select the best option.
You can also experiment with access point models and even antenna configurations and angles. This helps you determine the most effective solution before making any physical changes.
With NetSpot, optimizing your router’s placement becomes not just easier but highly effective, making it a must-have tool for achieving top-tier Wi-Fi performance.
3. Update Your Router’s Firmware
Manufacturers release firmware updates to boost router performance, tighten security, and add new features. Keeping firmware current ensures a safer and more efficient Wi-Fi network. To update, access your router’s admin interface and check for available updates. Some newer models even support automatic updates.
With older hardware, things are usually less automated. You may have to download the correct firmware file from the manufacturer’s website, then upload it manually through the web interface. Here it’s important not to skip any steps in the vendor’s instructions: interrupting the process or flashing the wrong file can leave the router unusable.
If support for a device has ended and there are no new firmware updates available, this is a good reason to consider purchasing new equipment with Wi-Fi 6 or even Wi-Fi 6E support.
The new standards provide significantly higher speeds and stable operation with a large number of devices, while technologies like MU-MIMO and OFDMA significantly improve network performance and responsiveness.
4. Adjust Wi-Fi channels to avoid congestion
If multiple WiFi networks are active near you, they can interfere with each other — especially in apartment buildings and offices. This can cause slow speeds and unstable connections. The most common problem is that routers automatically select the same channels, creating congestion.
To understand which frequencies neighboring networks are using, you can use Inspector Mode in the NetSpot. It scans the surrounding WiFi space and displays all nearby networks, their signal strength, and, most importantly, occupied channels. This allows you to immediately see which channels are congested and where you can "move" to relieve congestion.
Armed with this information, you can switch your router to a less congested channel for improved performance. In the 2.4 GHz band, choosing channels 1, 6, or 11 is typically best because they don’t overlap with each other. Meanwhile, modern routers featuring dual- or tri-band capabilities can tap into the 5 GHz or 6 GHz frequencies, which usually have fewer competing devices — resulting in faster speeds and reduced interference.
5. Secure Your Network
An open Wi-Fi network not only allows unauthorized users to take up bandwidth, slowing down your connection, but also puts your network at risk of security vulnerabilities. It's essential to use a robust password that includes a mix of uppercase and lowercase letters, special characters, and numbers.
Additionally, enabling WPA3 encryption — the latest and most secure Wi-Fi encryption standard — adds a robust layer of protection against unauthorized access.
Regularly monitoring connected devices through your router’s admin interface ensures that only authorized users are accessing your network. If your router supports device management features, you can set up access control lists (ACLs) or enable device-specific restrictions for added security.
For older routers that don’t support WPA3, upgrading to a modern router with enhanced security features is recommended for better protection and performance.
6. Upgrade Your Router’s Antennas
If your router has external antennas, replacing them with more powerful ones — for example, directional or high-gain ones — can significantly improve signal strength and coverage in poor reception areas. But before you buy anything, it's a good idea to simulate the results first.
NetSpot's Planning mode is a great help here. It allows you not only to select the optimal equipment but also to test different antenna types before installation.
You can specify parameters for an omnidirectional antenna, which radiates the signal in all directions, or a directional antenna, which concentrates the signal in a specific area, useful, for example, for a hallway or an elongated room.
NetSpot allows you to select not only the antenna type but also the specific model and its specifications.
Furthermore, you can set the antenna tilt angle to accurately calculate how coverage will change.
By simulating different options, you can decide whether changing antennas will actually improve the situation and help you decide what steps to take next.
7. Upgrade Your Equipment
Every few years the bar for “good enough” WiFi goes up. A router that handled streaming and a couple of laptops just fine five years ago can easily turn into a bottleneck today. Higher-resolution video, cloud backups, smart home devices, and constant video meetings all pile on top of each other.
Instead of just running “a bit slower,” older hardware starts to cap your throughput, cuts down usable coverage at the edges of your home or office, and struggles as soon as several devices are active at the same time.
Upgrading to a router that supports newer standards like WiFi 6 or WiFi 6E usually gives a very noticeable improvement in real-world use: higher data rates, better handling of multiple clients, and more efficient use of the available spectrum. In larger apartments, multi-room houses, or small offices, one single router often isn’t enough at all — in those cases, a properly designed mesh WiFi system is usually a better option than endlessly adding cheap repeaters.
Not sure what model or how many APs you actually need? NetSpot’s Planning Mode takes the guesswork out.
It allows you to virtually test different types of equipment and placement scenarios, factoring in your space’s unique obstacles and requirements. This feature is especially helpful if you haven’t yet decided on the specific hardware to purchase.
By simulating several scenarios in Planning Mode before you buy anything, you get a realistic picture of where extra access points are really needed and where they’re not going to make much difference. This helps you avoid overspending on unnecessary hardware, but also protects you from ending up with an underpowered setup that you’ll have to upgrade again in a few months.
8. Monitor Network Traffic
Keeping an eye on your network traffic is one of the most effective ways to maintain stable and fast WiFi. When too many devices compete for bandwidth — or when unknown sources interfere with the signal — your connection can slow down or become unstable.
NetSpot's Inspector mode lets you see what's really going on inside your network. It displays all nearby Wi-Fi networks (including hidden ones), their channels, and signal strength in real time. This allows you to quickly and accurately identify devices consuming large amounts of bandwidth or sources of interference.
By digging into this data, you can figure out which devices or apps are eating up the most bandwidth — and take action. That might mean limiting access for certain devices, switching them to a less congested band, or reconfiguring QoS settings on your router to prioritize important traffic(more on this below).
9. Tweak Quality of Service (QoS) Settings
Many modern routers come with Quality of Service (QoS) features that let you prioritize specific types of network traffic. When the uplink fills, queues grow and latency jumps. QoS lets the router decide whose packets go first.
Put real-time traffic — voice and video — ahead of bulk tasks such as cloud backups or game downloads.
Open the router’s admin page and look for QoS, Smart Queue Management (SQM), or Bandwidth Control. Measure your actual WAN speeds, then set QoS limits to roughly 90–95% of those values so the router — not the ISP — controls the queue. If the firmware offers FQ-CoDel or CAKE, enable it.
Create simple rules: mark your video-call apps or work laptop as High, leave most devices at Normal, and set large file transfers to Low. QoS won’t create extra bandwidth, but it keeps calls and conferences stable when the network is under load.
10. Maintain Your Network
WiFi, like any technology, requires regular attention. Run a quick speed check every week from the same spot and device so your results are comparable. For example, the NetSpot Android app offers a quick and easy way to measure download speeds, helping you identify issues that need attention.
Security deserves equal attention. Take a look at your connected devices list once in a while and make sure nothing unfamiliar has joined your network. Keep firmware current, and use WPA3 (or WPA2-AES if legacy gear forces it). It’s also smart to verify that your encryption and authentication settings match current standards. If you share access, rotate the password on a schedule and consider a separate guest SSID to keep untrusted devices off your main LAN.
If your internet starts to feel sluggish, dig a bit deeper into your network traffic. Identifying which devices or apps are eating up bandwidth helps you spot bottlenecks and decide whether a configuration tweak or even a hardware upgrade is needed.
Regular testing isn't just a "just in case" thing. It's a way to keep your network running and prevent problems proactively.
Conclusion
Improving your WiFi doesn't always require a complete overhaul — in many cases, a few smart changes can lead to noticeable results.
But don't relax. Your WiFi network isn't static.
Even seemingly small changes can have significant consequences. Therefore, a habit of periodic monitoring will help you keep your WiFi stable, fast, and ready for any workload.
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Wi-Fi Site Surveys, Analysis, Troubleshooting runs on a MacBook (macOS 11+) or any laptop (Windows 7/8/10/11) with a standard 802.11be/ax/ac/n/g/a/b wireless network adapter. Read more about the 802.11be support here.