Simple placement and setup changes that fix most dead spots and slow speeds — before you spend a cent on extenders, mesh systems or a new router you may not need.
Before you buy an extender or a whole new system, know this: most slow, patchy WiFi comes down to a handful of fixable causes — and the router sitting in the worst possible spot is the big one. Tucked in a cupboard, on the floor, behind the TV, in the far corner of the house: that's where routers usually live, and it's exactly where they perform worst.
The good news is that the fixes that help most cost nothing. This guide starts with the free "try this first" moves, walks through where a router actually wants to be, covers the setup tweaks that quietly help, and only then — if you still have a problem — looks at what gear is worth buying. Work through it in order.
Run these first. They're quick, they cost nothing, and between them they resolve a large share of everyday WiFi complaints. Stop as soon as things improve.
Before assuming it's your WiFi, run a speed test right next to the router. Fast there but slow elsewhere means it's a coverage problem — placement will help. Slow even beside the router points at your internet plan or provider, not your WiFi.
WiFi radiates outward from the router in all directions, weakening with distance and with every wall, floor or large object it passes through. So the ideal spot is central and high — roughly in the middle of the area you want covered, up on a shelf rather than down on the floor.
Put it in a far corner and half your signal is spraying out into the garden. Put it in the middle and up high, out in the open, and the same router suddenly reaches rooms it never did before — no new gear, just physics working for you instead of against you.
If your router has aerials, stand them up vertically for coverage across a single floor, and consider one horizontal if you need to reach up or down a level. Point them straight, not splayed — they push signal out sideways from the way they point.
Water and metal are WiFi's worst enemies — which is why a router next to a fish tank, a stack of appliances, or a mirror struggles. If a dead spot is on the far side of the kitchen or bathroom, that's often why.
A few free settings changes can lift speed and reliability once the router's well-placed. The big one is understanding the two bands most routers broadcast: 2.4GHz reaches further and through walls but is slower; 5GHz is much faster but shorter-range. Use the right one for the job.
For a device far from the router, the 2.4GHz band often connects better; for something close and needing speed — a TV streaming, a desk computer — 5GHz wins. Many routers also let you switch channels to dodge interference from neighbours, and picking a less-crowded one can clear congestion in a busy apartment block.
Don't over-tinker. Restarting, good placement and picking the right band fix the overwhelming majority of problems. Channel-switching and advanced settings help in crowded areas, but they're the fine-tuning — not the first thing to reach for.
If you've placed the router well, restarted it, and used the right band and there's still a stubborn dead spot, then it's worth spending. Here's what each option does — and which suits which problem.
| Option | What it does & when it fits | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Move the router (free) | Always try this first. Repositioning fixes more dead spots than any purchase — and costs nothing. | Try first |
| Wired connection | An ethernet cable to a fixed device (TV, desk PC) is faster and rock-solid, and takes load off the WiFi for everything else. | Fixed devices |
| Mesh system | Several units that blanket a home in one seamless network. The best fix for a larger house with multiple dead spots. | Whole-home gaps |
| Extender / booster | A cheap single-spot patch that rebroadcasts the signal. Fine for one stubborn corner, but often slower than mesh. | One dead spot |
| A newer router | If yours is many years old, a modern one can be a genuine upgrade in speed and range on its own. | Old hardware |
For a single fixed device that has to be fast — a smart TV, a games console, a home-office PC — run an ethernet cable to it before buying any WiFi gear. A wired connection sidesteps every WiFi problem at once, for the price of a cable.
// Work down the list — most stop long before the bottom.