Wi-Fi Speed Test
Is Wi-Fi your bottleneck? Press GO to measure your wireless download speed, upload speed, ping, and jitter — then compare against a wired result to find out.
Wi-Fi 6 / 6E (802.11ax)
Current generation. Handles dense environments well, supports multi-gigabit speeds, and has significantly improved jitter performance.
Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac)
Still capable for most households. Real-world throughput is 200–600 Mbps depending on conditions.
Wi-Fi 4 (802.11n)
Adequate for basic browsing and HD streaming. Struggles with multiple simultaneous users above 150 Mbps.
2.4 GHz only
A bottleneck for modern connections. Highly congested in apartment buildings, limited to ~100 Mbps effective throughput.
How to tell if Wi-Fi is your bottleneck
The definitive test: run this test over Wi-Fi, then plug in an Ethernet cable and run it again. If your wired result is significantly faster, Wi-Fi is the limiting factor — not your ISP plan or modem.
Common signs that Wi-Fi is limiting your connection:
- Speed drops when you move further from the router
- Speed fluctuates significantly between tests run minutes apart
- Jitter is above 10 ms even though your plan should support low-latency connections
- You share the building with many other Wi-Fi networks
2.4 GHz vs 5 GHz vs 6 GHz
2.4 GHz
Longer range, better wall penetration, but only 3 non-overlapping channels and shared with Bluetooth and microwaves. In apartments, the 2.4 GHz band is almost always congested. Maximum effective throughput is around 100–150 Mbps. Use this only for devices far from the router where the 5 GHz signal is too weak.
5 GHz
More channels, far less congestion, and capable of 300–600+ Mbps in real-world conditions. This is the band you should be on for most devices within one or two rooms of the router.
6 GHz (Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7)
Newest band, available only on Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7 hardware. Virtually no congestion, very wide channels, extremely low latency. Exceptional performance for devices close to the router.
Why Wi-Fi adds jitter and packet loss
Unlike a wired cable, radio channels are shared and subject to interference. Each time two devices transmit simultaneously, a collision occurs and both must retransmit — adding variable delay. This is the primary cause of Wi-Fi jitter and intermittent packet loss, which damage gaming and voice calls more than raw speed reduction.
Quick improvements
- Move closer to your router and re-test
- Switch to the 5 GHz band if you're currently on 2.4 GHz
- Change your router's Wi-Fi channel manually to reduce congestion
- Restart your router to reset internal state
For a complete improvement plan, see our Wi-Fi improvement guide. On hotel or café Wi-Fi where the login page won't appear? See our captive portal guide.
When to test over Wi-Fi vs Ethernet
For an accurate picture of your ISP plan speed, test over Ethernet. For diagnosing what your devices actually experience day-to-day, test over Wi-Fi from the locations where you use them. The gap between the two results tells you exactly how much your wireless setup is costing you. Full accuracy tips →