While your average wireless router is fine for scrolling the web and streaming shows or movies, enduring slow speeds and additional lag of a less-than-capable router when gaming can be unbearable, potentially leading to your demise when online gaming. Sure, those issues may also be linked to your ISP, but oftentimes, the culprit is the router. So, if you’re serious about gaming a gaming router like our top pick, the Netgear Nighthawk X6S is worth considering.
TL;DR – These are the Best Routers for Gaming:
- Netgear Nighthawk X6S (R8000P) – Best Router
- Asus RT-AX82U – Best Budget Router
- Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router (XR1000) – Best Dual-Band Router
- Netgear Orbi 860 Series – Best Mesh Router
- Asus ROG Rapture GT-AXE16000 – Best Wi-Fi 6E Router
In addition to offering the latest Wi-Fi standards like Wi-Fi 6, Wi-Fi 6E, or even Wi-Fi 7 for faster speeds, reduced latency, and more stable connections, the best gaming routers can prioritize gaming traffic. That means you get the lion’s share of bandwidth for smoother action with less rage-inducing lag. Some higher-end models are even packed with advanced features like multi-gig LAN ports delivering lightning-fast wired connections – competitive gamers rejoice! – and mesh network support for better coverage, helping eliminate dead zones or weak signal areas.
If you’re ready to leave your older or cheaper router and its slow speeds, congestion, and signal dropouts in the dust, our experts have carefully selected five of the best gaming routers to keep your games and streams running as smoothly as butter. Whether you’re after a budget option that still gets the job done like the Asus RT-AX82U, or something feature-rich and fast like the Asus ROG Rapture GT-AXE16000, one of our picks should work perfectly with your gaming setup – and find them here in the UK.
1. Netgear Nighthawk X6S
The Best Overall Gaming Router
When you’re gaming, you need speed and a strong signal to ensure you don’t lose a connection when in the heated moments of a game. You get that with the Netgear Nighthawk X6S. This gaming router gives you the typical things you expect with a 2.4GHz and 5GHz connection, along with some external antennas offering a strong signal throughout your home. It even beefs up your connectivity options with an additional 5GHz band, meaning if you want to game on Wi-Fi instead of an Ethernet connection, you can dedicate a whole 5GHz band just for your gaming. The other 5GHz connection can be used for the rest of your activities. And as far as speed goes, you get 1,625Mbps on the two 5GHz bands and 750Mbps on the 2.4GHz.
Now, this router isn’t offering all the latest features like Wi-Fi 6E or 2.5Gbps WAN, but it also comes at a more affordable price than those that do. It still offers MU-MIMO, so you’ll be good for simultaneously streaming data on a bunch of devices, while QoS lets you prioritize devices on the network. There are plenty of other settings available, like parental controls, data theft protection, and guest networks, which can all be set up using the Netgear app. You even get ample connectivity options like four ethernets, a WAN, and USB ports to wire up devices.
2. Asus RT-AX82U
Best Budget Gaming Router
Admittedly, many routers in this guide will set you back a good chunk of change, but the Asus RT-AX82U keeps the price lower while still rocking all the gaming chops you need. It has dual-band Wi-Fi 6, which offers a stable connection and low-latency communication between your gaming system and the router. There’s a speedy 2.4GHz band and an even faster 5GHz band; we’re talking 5400Mbps speeds. You can even connect a PC or gaming device to the dedicated gaming port, ensuring it gets the lion's share of the connection.
The Asus RT-AX82U looks the part of a gaming router with its bulky design, four visible antennae for a better signal, and a healthy dose of RGB lighting. If you’re worried about a poor signal in certain areas of your home, you can even build out a mesh network for seamless extended coverage thanks to ASUS AiMesh support. And through the router’s app, you can prioritize whatever you’re doing and remove bottlenecks. The sheer number of ways to manage your network’s traffic is pretty astounding.
3. Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router (XR1000)
Best Dual-Band Gaming Router
What can a dual-band router do? Well, if it's running Wi-Fi 6 and powerful hardware inside, quite a lot. The Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router XR1000 from Netgear is solid evidence of this. This router gives its two bands plenty of room to run with 2×2 MU-MIMO on the 2.4GHz band for 574Mbps speeds. But the 5GHz channel is where you’ll want to turn for the ultimate throughput and low latency, as it's capable of 4×4 MU-MIMO and can clock in at 4,804Mbps. If you’re looking for a wired connection, you get one WAN port and four ethernet ports, though you don’t get link aggregation or any Multi-Gig connections.
That's a good start for the hardware, but Netgear takes this router even further into the depths of gaming with special firmware. The Nighthawk Pro Gaming Router can help you ensure your gaming systems are getting the best connection possible with QoS that'll let you give more priority to your games than other web uses, like live streams, VoIP, or web browsing. The dedicated gaming dashboard even lets you see the quality of your connection to a games server and geofence certain areas to eliminate servers that are out of range or underperforming. There are also some enhanced security features like malware protection to ensure everything stays at peak performance.
4. Netgear Orbi 860 Series
Best Wi-Fi Mesh System for Gaming
Sometimes you have multiple gaming devices spread all around your home that need to be connected to fast internet, and that’s where a mesh Wi-Fi router steps in. A perfect option for gaming is the Netgear Orbi 860 Series, which offers a main router and an node, and you can purchase additional high-speed nodes to ensure every nook and cranny of your home is up to speed. There’s coverage up to 5,400 square feet with this two pack, but each node expands your wireless network, while MU-MIMO, beamforming, and other Wi-Fi tech ensure no drop-offs.
This Orbi system features tri-band Wi-Fi. You don’t get Wi-Fi 6E support, so there’s no 6GHz band, but that second 5GHz band should handle backhaul traffic between nodes if you plan to purchase them. That leaves blazing-fast speeds for the other 5GHz and 2.4GHz bands to connect to all your gaming devices. There are even four LAN ports on the router for a wired connection to devices that benefit from consistent speed, like gaming PCs and consoles. One WAN port also hits 10 Gbps if you’ve got multi-gig internet.
5. Asus ROG Rapture GT-AXE16000
Best Wi-Fi 6E Gaming Router
If you want a serious router for gaming, you can't get much more serious than the Asus ROG Rapture GT-AXE16000. It isn't just a Wi-Fi 6 router, but rather a Wi-Fi 6E router, which brings access to even more potential, thanks to the 6GHz spectrum it adds on top of 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands. Quad-band connectivity offers up an easy way to split up your network so you can ensure your gaming devices have the fastest connection in the house. That 6GHz offers incredible throughput, and that connection is not as common yet, eliminating the same kind of interference from all your neighbors' routers that you will see on 2.4GHz and 5GHz networks.
This router has eight antennas to deliver a powerful signal, and with beamforming, it can go even further, ensuring a strong connection between your wireless devices and the router. You also get some blistering speeds from wired connections, as the router supports 10Gb WAN or LAN and link aggregation, so you're not stuck with the 1Gbps Ethernet speeds many other routers will limit you to. Beyond that, you get features like Game Accelerator, which prioritizes gaming devices in the dedicated gaming port, and security software built in to ensure everything stays safe while you’re online.
Where to Get Top Gaming Routers (In Stock) in the UK:
How to Get the Most Out of Your Gaming Router
Be aware, just having a gaming router doesn't mean you're going to automatically get the best home network instantly. You still should follow a number of best practices for optimizing your home network. Don't try tucking your router out of the way in a closet at the bottom of a shelf, as that's the quickest way to ensure you won't get the full performance out of it.
Your router should be placed somewhere central in your living space, ideally high up, and without many obstacles in the way (i.e., don't put it behind your TV). Everything in the path from your router to your connected devices will impact the signal and thus the quality of your connection.
You can also help out your wireless devices by using a wired Ethernet connection wherever possible. (If you need one, consider our best pick: DbillionDa Cat8 Ethernet Cable). Limiting the number of devices connected to your Wi-Fi at a time can help ensure each device gets better performance.
Securing your wireless router is also important not just for security but also for your performance. Sure, you don't want potentially malicious users accessing your home network, but you also don't want your neighbors piggybacking onto your network, as they'll eat into your bandwidth and potentially drag down your network performance. Use a strong password and consider disabling any guest networks. You might even consider not broadcasting your network ID, which makes it far less likely someone will access your network with the tradeoff that setting up new devices can be a little more time-consuming.
What to Look for in a Gaming Router
While you're shopping for a gaming router, you should be on the lookout for which version of Wi-Fi it supports. The main two you'll want to look out for are Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax)—with Wi-Fi 6E expanding Wi-Fi 6 to include a 6GHz band—and Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac), as they deliver the fast wireless speeds. Wi-Fi 7 is here too, but most devices don't support it just yet. During your search for a gaming router, you'll undoubtedly come across units designed for Wi-Fi 4 (802.11n) that look very attractive thanks to their low prices, but you should avoid this siren's call. Wi-Fi 4 is an outdated standard that provides fairly slow speeds compared to its two more modern renditions.
You'll also want to find a gaming router that is at least dual-band. Single-band routers only support the 2.4GHz band, which is fine enough for web browsing and downloading most files, but dual-band routers add a second 5GHz channel that provides much faster wireless speeds. You'll also find Tri-Band or Quad-Band routers—and we've featured them as well—that feature an additional 5GHz or 6GHz band you can completely dedicate to gaming.
Gaming Router FAQ
What’s the Difference Between a Normal Router and a Gaming Router?
Routers are the standard gateways that allow providers to set up internet access in your home. Gaming routers come with enhanced features for, you guessed it, gaming. They enable users to customize how bandwidth is prioritized across devices on a network and can determine which is the best server for a given application. Many gaming routers also come with additional ports.
As mentioned above, upgrading your router doesn’t suddenly mean your ping will drop to 0. Bandwidth is ultimately determined by your internet provider, and if coverage is bad in certain areas of your house, a gaming router won’t prevent you from encountering lag. To avoid bottlenecks, make sure any router you get is well-suited to your specific internet plan.
Do You Need a Gaming Router?
Gaming routers are specialized and more expensive than their “normal” counterparts, so it’s worth asking whether the additional cost is worth it for the average gamer.
In general, wired connections are always best for gaming. Gaming routers can be useful for dorms or other locations where you otherwise may not be able to set up a secure ethernet cable.
Gamers who mostly enjoy offline RPGs or cozy simulation games are unlikely to see any benefit from a gaming router. However, with customized QoS, serious online MOBA and FPS players may be able to get the latency edge they need to set off an ability or secure a winning headshot before their opponent.
How to Extend WiFi Range for Gaming
The further you get away from your router, the weaker the signal is going to get. If your gaming setup isn't close enough to your router, consider picking up a Wi-Fi range extender to get a bit more reach.
For more WiFi help, see the best USB WiFi adapters. If security matters most to you, also see our list for the best gaming VPNs for 2024.
Danielle Abraham is a freelance writer and unpaid music historian.
