When it comes down to it, Wi-Fi routers are basically computers with hardware and software specialized for networking. But the software used by the router can make a huge difference in terms of the features available and the general behavior of the router, so it’s no surprise some people want to customize it. The difficulty of installing your own firmware on a router has always varied, with some companies like Linksys gaining a lot of goodwill a few years ago by making custom firmware installation fairly painless.

Installing custom firmware on a router has become a lot less common in recent years, and if you’ve been thinking about upgrading to Wi-Fi 6, you may have noticed that there aren’t a whole lot of options left. Still, some routers come pre-installed with software like OpenWRT that lets you do pretty much whatever you please. GL.iNet, for example, makes a wide range of OpenWRT routers, even including speeds up to AX6000.

Router software has changed a lot

One reason for the decline in custom firmware is that, while installing custom software was once almost required for a decent experience, router software has gotten a lot better. Some brands went all-in on ease-of-use and the app experience, like Eero, Google Wifi, Netgear Orbi and TP-Link Deco. These routers give the end user very few options, but make it quick and easy to set up a router using an app.

A lot of the features that people previously would have to get from custom software are also making their way into official releases. One of these is mesh support. Asus was among the first to kick things off with AiMesh, allowing most of its routers to work together in a mesh. In fact, the AsusWRT firmware is based on Tomato, another custom firmware of the past. Other companies like TP-Link offered mesh expansion via its OneMesh extenders. Today, we’re seeing a lot more EasyMesh support between brands. TP-Link, for example, has started adding EasyMesh support to some of its Archer routers while Netgear jumped the gun a bit with EasyMesh on its Nighthawk mesh routers.

Virtual Private Network (VPN) support was another reason a lot of people wanted to use custom software. Like mesh support, VPN server and client support has been making its way to more and more routers. Some even allow you to choose which devices should use the VPN, and which ones should bypass it. As running a VPN on your router can be quite a heavy load, this is a service that benefits a lot from the CPUs in newer routers.

What about the open source drivers?

The firmware on your router is responsible for allowing the hardware and software to work together properly, but in order to work right, it needs drivers. These drivers are typically provided by the chipset makers, such as Qualcomm, Intel, MediaTek, and Broadcom. Unfortunately, as noted on OpenWRT’s Wiki, Broadcom doesn’t release open-source drivers for its chipsets, and love it or hate it, a lot of the best Wi-Fi routers use Broadcom.

DD-WRT, a once-popular custom firmware, did have an agreement with Broadcom to use its drivers, but the supported device list hasn’t been updated in a while, and there’s a distinct lack of Wi-Fi 6 and newer options.

OpenWRT does have some Wi-Fi 6 routers on its list, such as the Asus RT-AX59X and Netgear RAX120, but not too many. Luckily, those routers are very good, but if you want to use OpenWRT with your own router, your options are limited. If your router's chipset isn’t listed in its specs, you can check a database like Wireless CAT. You can also grab a router with OpenWRT pre-installed from a vendor like Flash Routers.

What custom firmware options are still around?

If you have an Asus router, and you’re mostly just looking for a few extra features, Asuswrt-Merlin is based on the official AsusWRT software but adds some extra features, such as being able to install applications and, the VPN Director for finer VPN controls. Merlin only supports a limited number of routers, 18 at the time of writing, but since it's based on the official AsusWRT software, there are some fairly modern hardware options available, such as the Asus RT-AX88U Pro.

While OpenWRT has its weaknesses when it comes to supported routers, it’s still very much in active development and available to download. If you really want OpenWRT, there’s no doubt you could find a router that works for your needs.

Furthermore, if you want to take your network customization even further, you can build your own router using PC hardware and software like PFSense. There are several options for software when you put together your own system, so you'll want to do a bit of research before committing to one. You can get a pre-built PFSense router, but since many of us enjoy building PCs, it could be a fun project for some of you. For most people, an off-the-shelf router will be more than adequate, but if you want to get fully involved in the process, you can build a PC and then turn it into your own custom router.

Do you really need custom firmware?

While it’s fun to install custom firmware and discover the ins and outs of our hardware, the vast majority of people can get what they need done using the built-in software, if they get the right router. Many mesh routers, for example, have done away with more advanced settings and features in favor of simplicity and paid subscriptions. If you want something you can sink your teeth into, your best bet is going with something from Asus, a Netgear Nighthawk, TP-Link Archer, or an OpenWRT router like the AX6000 GL.iNet Flint 2.

For most people, however, app-based setup is the way to go. Setting up a new router has never been easier, and moving a lot of the setup process to an app has made it a lot more accessible to novice users. Modern routers are also powerful enough to keep up with gigabit and higher internet connections. Diving into dozens of settings in a web browser is great if you’re a tech enthusiast, but if you want something that’s set up and working reliably in just a few minutes, an app really is the way to go.