Where To Place A WiFi Router — Domain Name Sanity Blog

Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.. Some links in this guide are affiliate links. We may get paid if you buy something or take an action after clicking one of these links, at no additional cost to you. It's how we fund the work that it takes for us to create and maintain these guides. [toc heading_levels="3"] When I was a kid, we used to live in a two-story apartment. We had a good ISP (internet service provider) and a decent WiFi router. Yet, if I wanted to work on my bedroom desk, I had to keep the door wide open and edge my desk towards it. So much for uninterrupted work, or any privacy for that matter. It was inevitable that someone passes by and asks why I’m watching YouTube videos when I should be studying. Ugh. We’ve all been there. The router that refuses to broadcast the wireless signal to our nook. The dwindling connection. The horror of it all. Well, as it turns out, it’s not always the router's fault. In fact, most of the time, the problem is poor positioning of the WiFi router. We’re here to make sure you never suffer from a poor connection. So in this article, we’ll go over the best location to put a WiFi router, and make sure that your home is left without dead zones. We’ll share some tips on how you can find the best position for your WiFi router depending on the size and setup of your house or apartment, so you won’t have to deal with the wireless connection dropping unexpectedly ever again.

5 Tips On Where to Place Your Wifi Router for Best Signal

1. Choose a Central Location for Your WiFi Router

A certain Jason Cole did the math, so you don’t have to. With some PhD-grade physics know-how, he figured out that placing your WiFi router in a hidden corner won’t help you get a good signal throughout your home. Instead, you should put your router in a central location, so that the signal is broadcast evenly throughout the rooms in your home. Makes sense, right? WiFi signals work by traveling from the router throughout your apartment or house in approximately one ten-millionth of a second. However, solid objects, like walls, can weaken the signal - and we’ll get to that in more detail in a moment - but the point is that the further rooms are from the router, the weaker the signal is. At the same time, the more walls there are between a router and a device trying to connect to the network, the more signal will be absorbed by solid objects. These small obstacles are what leaves you with a flailing internet connection, which is why your router should be placed in a central location of your home. Another good idea is placing the router within sight of the spot from which you use the internet most frequently - like a living room or a study. This reduces the space and objects standing between you and a smooth internet connection. [caption id="attachment_1460" align="aligncenter" width="1024"]

Position your router near the place where you most frequently use the internet[/caption] Q: Can I put my WiFi router in a closet? A: You shouldn’t put your WiFi router in a closet since, as we mentioned, solid objects absorb the signal. You should also avoid putting your router between a big TV and a wall. Rather, try placing your router in an open and clear space, so that the signal can be broadcast obstacle-free.

2. Avoid Metal Objects, Concrete Walls, and Bricks Walls

Metal objects dissipate electromagnetic energy. Plus, devices like microwaves can interfere with your 2.4GHz band, as they use the same frequency. These interruptions can cause issues with your internet connection, so you’ll want to keep your router out of the kitchen. Another signal-absorbent lot are concrete and brick walls. While all solid materials will reflect some of the broadband signal, some do more so than others. And concrete and brick walls fall in the “more so than others” category. This means that you should avoid placing your WiFi router in a room that’s enclosed with brick or concrete walls. In fact, floors and ceilings are usually more signal transmissive than walls. Q: Where should a wireless router be placed in a two story house? A: If you have a two story house or apartment, you should place the WiFi router either on the first floor’s ceiling or the floor of the second floor. If your home has three floors, try to place the router in the middle of the second floor, so that it’s in a central position to broadcast the signal to all floors.

3. Place Your Router in a High Spot

The radio waves that WiFi routers emit are broadcast from the source - the router itself. Therefore, in order to get the best signal from your router, you should place it in a high location in your home, where it’s more or less free of solid objects and interferences. Since you can’t exactly hang the router mid-air, the best place for it would be putting it on a high surface, like a desk or a high shelf. Alternatively, if applicable, you can mount your router higher up on a wall or on a ceiling.

4. Adjust the Antennas in Accordance with Your Home

Those antennas sticking out of your router aren’t just for show - they broadcast the wireless signal. If you live in a single-story home, you should position the antennas sideways, so that they can broadcast the signal horizontally. If you live in a multi-story home, you should position the antennas upwards, so that the signal is broadcast vertically, and reaches the upstairs floors. As most routers come with more than one antenna, you can also adjust one antenna vertically and the other one horizontally, so that you have multi-directional wireless coverage.

5. Pro Tip: Use an App

The same Jason Cole that calculated the best location for a wifi router, has also created an app that can help you find the best location for a WiFi router in your home. The app takes the rooms, floors, and setup of your dwelling into consideration before giving you advice on the best location for your router. Domain Name Sanity is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.