How to Get More Wireless Range from Your Router

Last Updated on December 10, 2022 by Ellen Christian

Finding out how to get more wireless range from your router is something my daughter has been pestering me about a lot lately.  Check out these tips.

How to Get More Wireless Range from Your Router

I recently purchased my daughter a new laptop. Her old one would have cost more to repair than it was worth.  She loves her new laptop except for one thing.  For some reason, the router in my office (our living room) doesn’t reach her bedroom any longer. She has to sit out in the hallway outside her room to get WiFi coverage for her laptop. This obviously doesn’t make her very happy. While I love having her downstairs in the living room more often, she would rather watch movies or play video games upstairs in her room.  I can understand that. I may be a Mom now but at one point, I was a teenager too. 

Originally, I was certain that learning how to get more wireless range from your router would be complicated and difficult to do.  I had visions of running wires or installing new routers.  I was intimidated and put it off as long as I could.  Thankfully, there are ways to get more wireless range from your router that have nothing to do with remodeling your whole home.

With a fully connected household and we love technology. There are a lot of devices that depend on my wireless range from my Roku TV to my office printer to the kids’ laptops and gaming systems. Without a strong signal with good reach, none of these devices work properly, and that makes for some unhappy people. Thankfully, there are a few things that you can do to get more range.

• Update your device firmware. When was the last time you checked to see if there were updates that were needed for your router? Are you set up to receive updates automatically? Do you need to visit the website to download the updates yourself? Check to see that things like your firmware are up to date.
• Consider the location of your router. While you may not want an ugly router box sitting on your cabinet, hiding it away in the corner of a room or inside a cabinet may prevent the signal from being as strong as it could be. If your router is hard wired, placement is not an issue. However, if your router is wireless, consider placing it away from walls or other things that obstruct the signal strength.
• Signal strength. We had previously had a 2.4GHz frequency, and we realized that this just wasn’t right for our home, so we updated to a 5GHz instead. We have already seen an improvement. The 5GHz frequency isn’t used as much, so it’s likely to be a better choice for many.
• Update your router. Older technology doesn’t work as well as newer technology. When I upgraded my cell phone to a newer version, I noticed a huge improvement. This will often be the same case with your router. If your router is quite a few years old, it may be time to purchase a newer model.
• Check your antenna. Not all of the newer models of routers use an antenna, but if you have a model that still uses an antenna, you may want to try replacing it. You can also purchase an extra external antenna to help get more wireless range from your router.
• Add a range extender. If your home is rather large, or you want wireless range out in the backyard or the patio, you may need to purchase a wireless range extender. This extender will take the signal from one place and then extend it to a further distance. These are often called Wireless Repeaters.

Once we took a look these variables, we realized that for us, we needed a new wireless router that would use the 5GHz frequency. Now that we’ve replaced it, we have no problems receiving the wireless signal throughout our entire home. This makes everyone happier and more productive.

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Ellen Christian

Ellen is a busy mom of a 24-year-old son and 29-year-old daughter. She owns six blogs and is addicted to social media. She believes that it doesn’t have to be difficult to lead a healthy life. She shares simple healthy living tips to show busy women how to lead fulfilling lives. If you’d like to work together, email info@confessionsofanover-workedmom.com to chat.