How to get decent Wi-Fi in every room of your house

Thick walls, a router tucked behind the telly and a loft conversion: why your signal drops off, and the fixes that actually work.

If your Wi-Fi is fine in the living room but gives up halfway up the stairs, you're far from alone. British homes are tough on wireless signals: solid brick and block walls, plaster on metal mesh in older properties, extensions added decades apart and, very often, a router left exactly where the broadband engineer happened to install the socket.

The good news is that most patchy Wi-Fi can be fixed without paying for a faster package. Work through the steps below in order. The early ones are free.

1. Move the router before you buy anything

Routers broadcast in every direction, so one hidden in a cupboard, behind the TV or on the floor in a corner wastes much of its signal. If you can, put it somewhere central, raised off the floor and out in the open. Even moving it from the floor to the top of a bookcase can make a noticeable difference.

Keep it away from fish tanks, mirrors, microwaves and large metal objects such as radiators, all of which absorb or reflect the signal. If the socket is in an awkward spot, a longer cable from the master socket (or an Ethernet cable from the router to where you need it) is often the cheapest upgrade there is.

2. Check which band your devices are using

Most modern routers broadcast on two bands. The 2.4GHz band travels further and through walls better but is slower and more crowded. The 5GHz band is much faster but drops off quickly through brick. Many routers combine both under one network name and choose for you, which usually works well. If a device in a far room keeps struggling, it may help to make sure it can fall back to 2.4GHz.

3. Restart and update

It sounds obvious, but routers benefit from an occasional restart, and firmware updates often fix stability problems. Most broadband providers push updates automatically; if you use your own router, log in to its settings page and check for updates.

4. Extender, powerline or mesh?

If moving the router doesn't solve it, you'll need extra hardware. There are three main options.

Wi-Fi extenders

A single plug-in extender picks up your existing signal and repeats it. It's the cheapest fix and works well for one problem room, but it has to sit where the signal is still reasonably strong - put it in the dead zone itself and it has nothing to repeat. Extenders can also halve the available speed and sometimes create a second network name.

Powerline adapters

Powerline kits send your internet connection through your home's electrical wiring. One adapter plugs in next to the router, another in the room that needs a connection. They're a good fit for a garden office or a loft room, and particularly useful in homes with very thick walls. Results depend on your wiring, so buy from a retailer with an easy returns policy.

Mesh systems

A mesh system replaces (or works alongside) your router with two or three units placed around the house that talk to each other and create one seamless network. Your phone moves between them automatically as you walk around. For larger homes, multi-storey houses or anyone working from home upstairs, mesh is usually the most reliable long-term answer.

5. Wire what doesn't move

Games consoles, smart TVs and desktop computers stay in one place, so connect them with an Ethernet cable where you can. They'll get a faster, steadier connection, and they'll stop competing for Wi-Fi with everything else in the house.

Before you upgrade your broadband

Run a speed test next to the router, then in your problem room. If the result next to the router matches roughly what you pay for, your broadband is fine and the problem is getting the signal around the house. Paying for a faster package won't fix that. If speeds are poor even next to the router, that's the moment to contact your provider.

TechStart Today is reader-supported. Some articles contain links to retailers, and we may earn a commission if you buy through them - this never affects what we write. Some pages on this site are clearly labelled advertising. More about how we work.