It is more important than ever to have a reliable Wi-Fi network at your home that can handle the increased amount of various connected devices. And having a good wireless router at home is a necessity.
When choosing a new router, you should consider the number of clients, the type of devices that will connect to it, and the size of your coverage area.
One of the best brands in the industry is NETGEAR, and today we are focusing on their routers. Here are 6 of the best Netgear routers for most home users in 2024.
Best Overall: Netgear Orbi (RBK50)
Netgear Orbi (RBK50) Specs:
Frequency: Tri-band 2.4GHz (400 Mbps) + 5GHz (866 Mbps) + 5GHz (1733 Mbps) – AC3000 | Wireless standards: 802.11ac | Connectivity: 4x LAN | Features: NETGEAR Armor™, Circle with Disney, Works with Alexa and Google Assistant
Dead spots, unreliable connections, and slow speeds are common problems in-home Wi-Fi networks. If you have a large home, you know that problem. The popular solution was to install range extenders to cover all your home with a stronger Wi-Fi signal – you get improved range, but at the expense of speed.
Now, we have a better solution. Wi-Fi Mesh networking technology and Netgear Orbi is one of the best products in this category.
Mesh Wi-Fi systems consist of a main router that connects directly to your modem, and two or more devices (access points), often called satellites, that work together in order to cover your house in Wi-Fi. Simply put, these satellites capture the signal from your router and rebroadcast it.
With the Netgear Orbi system, you get full-strength, flawless, and 100% internet speed throughout up to 5,000-square-foot homes. And there is still room for expansion. You simply buy additional satellite devices to expand your home network.
The best part! Setting up the Wi-Fi mesh network is insanely easy. The router and its satellites come pre-paired, so all you need to do is connect the router to your modem (broadband via its Ethernet WAN port), then position your satellite and power it on. Thanks to colored LEDs on the satellite, you can see the strength of your network – blue (good), amber (fair), and pulsing magenta (no connection).
Overall, the Mesh Wi-Fi system is the future of home networking and Netgear Orbi is a smart system that can definitely deliver powerful and stable Wi-Fi to our entire house.
Best For The Money: Netgear Nighthawk R7000P
Netgear Nighthawk R7000P AC2300 Specs:
Frequency: Dual-band 2.4GHz (600 Mbps) + 5GHz (1625 Mbps) – AC2300 | Wireless standards: 802.11ac | Connectivity: 4x LAN, 1x WAN, 1x USB 3.0, 1x USB 2.0 | Features: Beamforming+, MU-MIMO, Circle Smart Parental Controls, NETGEAR Armor™, Dynamic Quality of Service (QoS)
Netgear Nighthawk R7000P is an ideal router for demanding activities like HD streaming and online gaming.
Equipped with a dual-core 1GHZ processor, 3 amplified antennas with Beamforming technology, and more useful features such as MU-MIMO, Dynamic QoS, and Netgear Armor that protect all your connected smart devices with anti-virus, anti-malware, and data theft security.
The Netgear R7000P is also coming with Circle with Disney app, a form of parental control, that lets you manage internet content access and device screen time which is a useful function if you have children.
Best Budget: Netgear Nighthawk AC1750 (R6700)
Netgear Nighthawk AC1750 (R6700) Specs:
Frequency: Dual-band 2.4GHz (450 Mbps) + 5GHz (1300 Mbps) – AC1750 | Wireless standards: 802.11ac | Connectivity: 4x LAN, 1x WAN, 1x USB 3.0 | Features: Beamforming, Circle with Disney, NETGEAR Armor™, Works with Alexa and Google Assistant
There are cheaper, better routers on the market, TP-Link Archer C1200 for example, but if all you need is a solid, stable connection for daily networking needs, Netgear Nighthawk AC1750 is a decent option. It is powerful enough to give simultaneously smooth video streaming, gaming, or internet browsing.
Do you need more features? The Netgear R6700 comes with Beamforming for better Wi-Fi signal, Netgear Armor for better online security, and Circle app that helps parents to manage and schedule their kids’ online times.
Best For 4K Streaming: Netgear Nighthawk X4S (R7800)
Netgear Nighthawk X4S (R7800) Specs:
Frequency: Dual-band 2.4GHz (800 Mbps) + 5GHz (1733 Mbps) – AC2600 | Wireless standards: 802.11ac | Connectivity: 4x LAN, 1x WAN, 2x USB 3.0 | Features: Beamforming, MU-MIMO, Dynamic QoS, Works with Alexa
Netgear Nighthawk X4S AC2600 is a powerful router, ideal if you need to cover a large home with a strong and stable Wi-Fi signal. In other words, X4S is the super-fast, high-end router – and expensive.
Packed with technology such as Beamforming, MU-MIMO, and Dynamic QoS, the router can reach pretty much anywhere in my house and deliver reliable performance for video streaming, online gaming, and web surfing at the same time. You can also connect up to 45 smart home devices to it.
Nighthawk X4S has two USB 3.0 ports and one eSATA port, so it can smoothly work as a printer and storage server when you connect it to a USB printer or an external hard drive.
Best Performance: Netgear Nighthawk X10 (R9000) AD7200
Netgear Nighthawk X10 (R9000) AD7200 Specs:
Frequency: Tri-band 2.4GHz (800 Mbps) + 5GHz (1733 Mbps) + 4600 Mbps for 60Ghz band device – AD7200 | Wireless standards: 802.11ac + 802.11ad | Connectivity: 6x LAN, 1x WAN, 2x USB 3.0 | Features: Beamforming, MU-MIMO, Dynamic QoS, Plex Media Server, Amazon Drive Cloud Backup, Works with Alexa
The Netgear R9000 Nighthawk X10 is an expensive router with a price of around $400. It is worth the price? Well, for most people and for their daily networking needs, it is too expensive.
But if you are willing to invest in it, this premium high-end router is one of the best choices you can make. A router that has powerful hardware to handle many network clients.
Nighthawk X10 supports fast storage solutions that can be connected to the router and used for media streaming and file sharing. With its ReadySHARE feature, the sharing of USB devices is truly plug-and-play. It has also two USB 3.0 ports and when you plug in an external hard drive, you can stream content stored on it to Plex clients.
Is Netgear Nighthawk X10 (R9000) a good router? There’s no doubt that the X10 is powerful. But it’s powerful in areas that most home users don’t need.
Best For Gaming: Netgear Nighthawk Pro (XR500)
NETGEAR Nighthawk Pro (XR500) Specs:
Frequency: Dual-band 2.4GHz (800 Mbps) + 5GHz (1733 Mbps) – AC2600 | Wireless standards: 802.11ac | Connectivity: 4x LAN, 1x WAN, 2x USB 3.0 | Features: Beamforming, MU-MIMO, NETGEAR Armor™, Quality of Service (QoS), DumaOS, Geo Filter, Gaming VPN
Netgear Nighthawk XR500 Pro is a router for serious gamers with low latency and a high-performance design. It combines a Quality of Service (QoS), double-width data channels, and a customizable gaming dashboard using Netgear’s DumaOS.
The DumaOS interface has lots of customization options and offers an impressive amount of features such as Network Monitor, Geo-location filtering, already mentioned QoS, and VPN client support. In this interface, you can configure this gaming router to do exactly what you want it to do.
Netgear Router Buying Guide and Basic Configuration
At some point, you will need to upgrade your home network. Buying a router can be hard unless you are a tech person – there are some terms and features you should know a little bit more about.
Understanding Some Router Tech Terms
Wireless standards – Wi-Fi is a global standard, and to ensure that different smart devices can connect without issue, some specifications are very important. Every router has a numerical classification of “802.11”, which is the international Wi-Fi standard, and the letters a, b, n, or ac. The versions are all compatible with each other, but connecting to an earlier version means your device will be capped at a slower speed.
Technically, 802.11ac is supporting simultaneous connections on both the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz Wi-Fi bands. It offers compatibility with 802.11b/g/n and bandwidth rated up to 1300 Mbps on the 5 GHz band plus up to 450 Mbps on 2.4 GHz.
The newest home wireless routers are compliant with the – 802.11ac.
Dual or Tri-Band Router – By default, older devices connect using the 2.4GHz band, so you can run into signal distortion. Dual-band routers can broadcast a 5 GHz signal and a 2.4 GHz signal. Devices that support modern 5GHz Wi-Fi will connect to the faster one, while older devices will connect to the slower, but more compatible 2.4 GHz signal.
Tri-band routers broadcast three different signals – a 2.4 GHz signal and two separate 5 GHz signals. This offers more speed to share among your devices in a modern smart home.
For most people who live in a crowded neighborhood or a more populated area, a dual-band router is the best way to go.
Quality of Service (QoS) – An excellent tool allowing your router to set priorities for certain devices or types of traffic. It does mean that your video streaming or online gaming will not freeze and stutter because somebody is downloading files, watching Netflix, or is web browsing in your home at the same time.
MU-MIMO (Multiple-In, Multiple-Out) – This technology allows a WiFi router to communicate with multiple devices simultaneously which has a noticeable impact on everyday Wi-Fi. It makes networks much more efficient.
Jump To…
- How To Setup Netgear Wireless Router
- How To Change Wi-Fi Name and Password on Netgear Router
- How To Change The Default Admin Password On Your Netgear Router
- How To Reset Netgear Router To Factory Default Settings
How To Setup Netgear Wireless Router
The good news is that even a beginner can properly set up a Netgear router. The installation process is quick and simple. You can do it either using your web browser or with the official Nighthawk App which works with both Android and IOS.
Basic Setup:
Step 1
Set up your hardware connection. Use the Ethernet cable to attach your modem or active data jack to the blue port of the router.
Step 2
Plug in the router and power on using the Power On/Off switch on the back of the device.
Step 3
Connect to the wireless network. You will find the default SSID and WPA2 key on the bottom of the router.
How To Change Wi-Fi Name and Password on Netgear Router
Step 1
Open the Internet Browser like Google Chrome, Firefox, Opera, or Internet Explorer.
Step 2
Type http://www.routerlogin.net into the address bar.
Step 3
Enter the router username and password when prompted. The default user name is admin. The default password is password or admin. Click OK. You can also find another default login credentials here.
Step 4
On the home page, select Wireless.
Step 5
Enter the new name of your Wi-Fi network in the Name (SSID) field.
Step 6
In the Password (Network Key) field, enter your new password for the Wi-Fi network.
Step 7
Click the Apply button.
Step 8
Now you have to sign in to your home Wi-Fi network using your new SSID and password.
How To Change The Default Admin Password On Your Netgear Router
As you already know, the default username and password used to login to the configuration page of the Netgear router are “admin” and “password”. That applies to all routers from Netgear.
It is quite logical if you want to secure your home network, you have to change the default username and password of the Netgear router. This will make it more difficult for someone to change settings and get access to your network.
Step 1
Open the Internet Browser like Google Chrome, Firefox, Opera, or Internet Explorer.
Step 2
Type http://routerlogin.net into the address bar.
Step 3
When the login window displays, enter the default username and password – admin, password.
Step 4
On the home page, select the Advanced tab.
Step 5
Then go to Administration > Set Password.
Step 6
Type the old password, and type the new password twice.
Step 7
Select Enable Password Recovery.
Step 8
Click Apply.
Done. Your router is ready for standard daily use, but a good idea is a test if you get the best possible internet speed for your location. Here is our simple guide about this topic – How to test your router speed.
How To Reset Netgear Router To Factory Default Settings
If your router doesn’t work as it should and you suspect some of its settings may be the cause, reset it. There are three ways how to reset your Netgear router – cold, soft, and hard.
Note: If you choose factory reset, this process deletes all personalized settings including your user name, password, WiFi network name (SSID), and security settings. A factory reset is necessary when you cannot recover your password.
Cold Reset:
Step 1
Unplug from everything for 15 seconds.
Step 2
Plugin the power.
Step 3
Plug everything else.
Soft Reset:
A soft reset is a process when you have access to the web interface of your router.
Step 1
Check if your router is in working mode and connected to the PC.
Step 2
Open your web browser and write in the address bar the IP address of the Netgear wireless router. For Netgear, use one of these – 192.168.1.1 or 192.168.0.1. You can also type: http://www.routerlogin.net/ in your browser to access the admin panel.
Step 3
Fill up the username and password. If you have never changed these credentials, then use the default username – admin – and default password – password, admin or 1234. You can find them on RouterPasswords.com
Step 4
Now, you see Netgear´s router homepage, look for the Backup Settings from the Maintenance section of the left tab.
Step 5
Click the Erase button in the Revert to Factory Default Settings section.
Step 6
Click on the Yes button.
Now your Netgear router will be restored into the factory default settings.
Hard Reset:
All the routers from Netgear have a reset button on their backside at the rear panel. It is a small recessed button that is designed to avoid accidental reset.
Step 1
Use a paper clip or similar object to press and hold the Reset button for seven seconds.
Step 2
When you hold the button, you will see the blinking test light.
Step 3
Release the Reset button. Your router resets.
When you log in to your router again, use the default login credentials: username – admin, password – password.
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Image credit: Netgear
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