Generally speaking, you're often OK with keeping your existing router and making tweaks to your network to get it running better. Nobody likes spending money unnecessarily, and we don't recommend upgrading your network appliances unless it's the only option.

There's always an edge case for any good piece of advice, and I've upgraded my home network enough times to know that not every new piece of hardware makes a difference, and some can actively mask the real problems. Sometimes the only fix is a new router, especially if you've already been using yours for five years or so.

Buying "high-gain" antennas

It only causes more problems

There are a few things wrong with thinking you can improve your Wi-Fi router's performance by adding high-gain antennas. The most important thing to know is that the antennas that came with your router were matched to the needs of the Front-End Module (FEM), which is the part of the router's circuitry that determines how the Wi-Fi signal emits from the antennas. Change the antennas, upset the balanced equations that the manufacturer spent time on.

The wavelengths in the 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 6 GHz bands are also relatively short, making omnidirectional antennas perform best. And with the FCC limiting broadcast power to 30 dBm (1 watt), and other countries having even tighter controls (10 dBm in Japan, 20 dBm in the EU), there's not much point in getting an antenna that claims to support higher power levels.

Upgrading the modem and not the router

Depending on your ISP plan, it's probably your Wi-Fi that's to blame

This one depends on when you last got your network hardware, so it's a little more nuanced than some of the other cheap fixes on this list. While having separate modem and router units is a good idea because you can upgrade one or the other as needed, that doesn't mean you have to upgrade only one at a time. If you've had both for more than five years, the chances are that both need replacing if you are thinking about upgrading your internet plan.

If you're upgrading the modem to take advantage of modern DOCSIS for gigabit cable, consider your router's specs, such as its Wi-Fi speed, how many devices it can support before becoming overloaded, and whether you need faster Ethernet ports. There's no point upgrading the modem if the device handling the routing and Wi-Fi on your home network can't keep up, and you'll want to upgrade both in that case.

Wi-Fi extenders

Just... no.

Wi-Fi extenders are not worth using with modern wireless speeds (if they ever were). Unlike a true mesh network, Wi-Fi extenders are rebroadcasters, meaning they take the data packet from your device and send it on to the router, then do the reverse when you're receiving data. That means they're only ever half the speed of the wireless standard they use, and in practice, they're never anywhere near that speed, especially once a few client devices are connected.

That said, they are cheap, and if you need to connect a device that's too far from your Wi-Fi router, they can work. They just don't work well, and are not up to the task if you're going to be using video conferencing software or streaming movies over that link. Oh, and they can break smart home connectivity, as some smart devices need to be on the same network as the phone you're trying to control them from.

Upgrading your ISP plan

If your hardware can't manage it, you're upgrading the wrong thing

It's all too easy to smash that upgrade button on the ISP page when they tell you faster service is available in your area, but you'll want to think about it for a few minutes depending on the type of connection you already have. If you've already got fiber internet, chances are you can upgrade to the fastest plan your ISP offers without worrying about whether your router can handle it.

But if you're on cable internet, anything over around 300Mbps might mean you need to upgrade your router (if it's a combo unit) or your modem, because every cable modem doesn't support the latest DOCSIS version that enables Gigabit and beyond, and unless your unit is from the last few years, it's likely not going to be able to give you the speeds you're about to upgrade to.

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Using old routers as "free APs"

You're only making your airwaves more cluttered

While I've repurposed old routers into quasi-mesh networks and had fairly good results, it isn't a good idea for most consumer routers. I was only able to do it because OpenWRT has code that turns them into actual mesh nodes, rather than multiple APs fighting for airtime.

But it's not only congestion that multiple APs will bring. Old routers mean outdated Wi-Fi standards, or slow Ethernet ports, low device support, and underpowered CPUs. Not that routers really need a powerful CPU, but the needs of today's networks are significantly higher than those of a decade ago, and your old router will likely struggle.

Buying Cat7 or Cat8 cables

These just don't exist at the consumer level

While it's good to hardwire everything you can, if the cables between your router and devices are damaged, you're not going to see any improvement in speeds by replacing them. Even Cat5 cables are rated for 1GbE speeds as per the 802.3 Ethernet standards, and Cat5e or Cat6 are good for 2.5GbE or 5GbE with the 2016 updates to the standards. Replacing your patch cords won't fix congestion, Wi-Fi issues, or a CPU overload in your router.

And as for any cables you might see labeled Cat7 or Cat8, avoid them. Neither is a consumer-grade standard, and Cat7 was never certified by the TIA/EIA. Cat8 was used in the data center, though the high speeds required in modern data centers mean it will likely have been replaced by fiber in most places. Cat6a is the highest rating you'll need for a home network using copper twisted-pair; any speeds beyond that would require fiber runs.

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Sometimes your router really is the problem

I'll always still try the most affordable fix, because if it doesn't work, I'm only out a little bit of cash and time, and I'll have learned something for the next time I have issues. I've done this enough times to know that most cheap networking fixes really aren't fixes at all, and you're often better off upgrading your aging router or replacing the ISP-provided one.

But home networks are complex things, and what works for one home might not work for another. One prime example is powerline adapters, which might be the only option for some homes with brick or concrete walls, but are highly problematic for other types of buildings. It's important to consider all options when improving your home network, and that could mean a new router is your best bet.