The best Gaming Routers in 2023 – our top picks
If you’re on the hunt for the best gaming router, you’ve come to the right place.
Gaming routers are an essential part of your setup, especially if you’re someone who spends many hours streaming and multiplayer titles, where low latency is everything. Let’s face it, lag is incredibly disruptive when trying to do just about anything online. You shouldn’t have to contend with stuttering payback and struggling performance. However, the routers meant for gaming can eliminate this problem.
These days, you can find gaming routers with the latest WiFi 6 and WiFi 6E technologies. On top of that, for a stable wired connection, these routers also boast Gigabit, multi-gig, and 10G Ethernet ports. You’ll also find USB ports on these routers, which can help you quickly share files over the network by connecting your external storage devices.
Gaming routers also come with additional features that make them different from regular routers. These features are meant to provide you with a smooth online gaming experience. These include Quality of Service, Game Accelerator, Game Protector, dedicated gaming ports, and more.
With so many options to choose from, it can get challenging to choose the right router. To help you out, we’ve rounded up some options we think are the best gaming routers. We selected these routers on the basis of their performance, features, and the value for money they offer.
So, without any further ado, let’s dive into the list of the best gaming routers you can get today!
Products at a Glance
How we picked
We used our expertise to find and research the best gaming routers. We’ve made our choices based on the value for money offered and the feature sets that each router brings to the table. We’re also constantly exploring the market for more options, so make sure to check back here soon for an updated list.
The best Gaming Routers in 2023 – our top picks
- Quad-band
- WiFi 6E
- Supports speeds of up to 16,000 Mbps
- Two 10G ports
- ASUS RangeBoost Plus technology
- Expensive
- Can be overkill if not used with a high-speed internet connection
If you’re looking for a model that ticks all the boxes of a premium gaming router, you’d want to check out the Asus ROG Rapture GT-AXE16000, which we think deserves to be one of the best Asus routers.
To begin with, the GT-AXE16000 is a quad-band WiFi 6E router, meaning it features four radio bands – a 2.4GHz band, a 5GHz band, a 6GHz band, and another 5GHz band, something that should help it deliver faster, top-notch performance. It supports speeds of up to 16,000 Mbps, so it is an excellent choice for a high-speed internet connection.
On top of that, when your PC or console is directly plugged into the router via an Ethernet cable, you’ll benefit greatly from the two 10G ports that can be found at the back of the router. Aside from these, there are four Gigabit LAN ports and one 2.5G multi-gig WAN port. There’s also a USB 3.2 and USB 2.0 port, which you can use to connect your external storage devices or printers with the router.
To make sure the router performs smoothly under load, there’s a 2.0 GHz quad-core 64-bit CPU packed inside it. For range, the router features the ASUS RangeBoost Plus technology, which, when paired with the eight antennas, should provide great coverage and WiFi performance. There’s also triple-level game acceleration, which stabilizes a specific connection to prevent jitter, reduce lag, and lower the ping.
Overall, if you’re looking for the best gaming router, the Asus ROG Rapture GT-AXE16000 is a solid choice. It also supports VPNs, and its range can be increased using AiMesh-compatible extenders.
- Tri-band
- WiFi 6
- Supports speeds of up to 6,579 Mbps
- 8 detachable high-performance antennas
- 2.5G multi-gig WAN/LAN port
- Can connect with up to 100 devices simultaneously
- No 10G port
TP-Link makes some of the best routers in the world, and their GX90 does not disappoint when it comes to performance. Just by looking at this router, you’ll be able to tell that it’s meant for serious gaming. After all, it is one of the best TP-Link routers.
The TP-Link GX90 is a tri-band WiFi 6 router, which translates to one 2.4GHz band and two 5GHz bands for better performance. If you have a high-speed internet connection, this router will be a good choice as it supports speeds of up to 6,579 Mbps. The router also boasts a 1.5GHz quad-core processor, which should help it operate smoothly even when multiple devices are connected to it. Speaking of this, the GX90 can connect with up to 100 devices at the same time, making it on par with some of the best routers for multiple devices.
For WiFi, there are 8 detachable high-performance antennas, which promise to keep the signals strong everywhere inside a 4-bedroom house. If you’re planning to connect multiple devices to the router simultaneously, you won’t have to worry about any lag thanks to the OFDMA and MU-MIMO technology. As for connectivity, there is one 2.5G multi-gig WAN/LAN port, one Gigabit WAN/LAN port, three Gigabit LAN ports, and 2 USB ports.
For gamers, the router features plenty of features that can improve the gaming experience. We have the Game Accelerator, which prioritizes the device you’re gaming on and provides it with the best network connection to reduce latency. Then, there is also the Game Protector feature, which works with HomeCare to keep your devices safe from online threats.
Overall, the TP-Link GX90 is worth every penny, and we think it is the best wireless router for gaming.
- Affordable
- Simple installation
- Four antennas for extra reach and faster speed
- 3,000 sqft coverage
- WiFi 6 with support for speeds up to 3,000 Mbps
- No multi-gig port
- Lack of dedicated gaming features
You don’t have to spend a fortune to get your hands on a gaming router, as there are some affordable options available in the market, too. For instance, the Asus RT-AX3000, which we think is the best budget router for gaming.
The feature that makes it stand out from the rest of the budget gaming routers in the market is its range, as it offers a coverage of up to 3,000 sqft. This makes it a great choice for a medium-sized home. On top of that, the RT-AX3000 can connect with up to 30 devices simultaneously. Don’t worry about your gaming experience getting ruined due to multiple devices, as you can use Quality of Service to prioritize your PC or console so it gets the best connection.
The router also supports WiFi 6 and is dual-band, with support for speeds up to 3,000 Mbps. For connectivity, there are four Gigabit LAN ports and one Gigabit WAN port, which should deliver a fast and smooth wired gaming experience. Yes, there isn’t a multi-gig port, but this was already expected from a budget option. Other than that, there’s also a USB 3.2 port, so you can connect your external storage device and share files over the network.
Overall, the Asus RT-AX3000 is a great budget option for gamers. It also comes with additional features like parental controls and a built-in VPN, and you can extend its range using AiMesh-compatible extenders. Sure, it may not have some dedicated gaming features like the ones found in the other options on our list, but it still delivers great performance in gaming for the price. It’s also worth noting that the RT-AX3000 is one of the best routers for Starlink.
- Great for PS5
- WiFi 6
- DumaOS 3.0 technology for low ping
- Quality of Service feature
- Support for speeds up to 5.4 Gbps
- Expensive
- Lack of multi-gig and 10GB ports
If you’re looking for the best gaming router for PS5, then the Netgear Nighthawk Pro XR1000 is a solid choice. A good router for PS5 should prioritize speed and low latency, and this router does this job well. After all, it is one of the best Netgear Nighthawk routers.
For better speed and top-notch performance, the XR1000 offers WiFi 6 and dual-band connectivity, with support for speeds up to 5.4 Gbps. This makes it a great choice for users with a high-speed internet connection. The feature that makes it shine among the rest of the routers is the DumaOS 3.0 technology, which reduces ping rates by up to 93%, something that will let you enjoy faster, lag-free online gaming.
To make sure the router performs well under load, Netgear decided to throw in a 1.5 GHz processor. There are also four Gigabit Ethernet ports in case you want to connect your PS5 with the router using an ethernet cable to enjoy a fast and stable connection. While the router can connect to multiple devices simultaneously, you can use Quality of Service to assign more bandwidth to the applications and devices that matter to you the most. You can control the maximum upload and download speeds, something that helps reduce lag spikes.
Overall, for a PS5, the Netgear Nighthawk Pro XR1000 is a great choice!
How to pick the best gaming router
Picking the best gaming router can be tricky, as the market is filled with hundreds of them. You don’t want to end up getting a router that looks good on the outside but is pathetic when it comes to performance. To help you out, we’ve mentioned some features to consider before making a finance purchase.
Quality of Service (QoS)
Here’s something to keep in mind when shopping for your next gaming router: it absolutely needs to feature Quality of Service monitoring (or QoS for short).
We’ve all experienced it before: one roommate is torrenting the latest season of The Walking Dead, and your connection comes to a pithy standstill. So what happened? Well, before you start thinking of some creative adjectives to describe your housemate, it’s not really his or her fault. In simple terms, your modem divides how much speed each computer gets depending on how much data you’re using. A 30GB torrent will demand more resources, so the modem will provide more resources so you can get the fastest possible speed. Unfortunately, this leaves the rest of the gaming household with some very lazy connections. This issue can be alleviated if you pair the right router and modem together. Luckily, we’ve reviewed the best router/modem combinations.
But when you are using a modem with QoS enabled, it will prioritize certain applications (such as web browsing and games) over torrenting, video watching, and downloading large files. The result is that your ping or latency will be lower, which means faster and smoother gameplay, even when others are downloading to their heart’s content.
Every good gaming router has QoS enabled by default, so unless you’re buying a secondhand model, you shouldn’t run into this issue too often.
Gigabit Ethernet ports
So besides making sure your new toy is QoS-friendly, you also need to make sure that there are enough Ethernet ports on your router. Because frustration doesn’t begin to describe how it feels to try to play a game over wireless – your connection will be awful, your team will hate you, and your KDA will be laughable by even the freshest of new players.
Even if you sit less than a meter away from your router using wireless, there will still be a delay between your router and PC, and even a few milliseconds can contribute to a higher ping.
So make sure each gamer can be plugged in via an Ethernet connection if you want the best possible speeds. These days, some of the best gaming routers also come with multi-gig and 10G ethernet ports, so keep an eye out for them for an even better-wired gaming experience.
Latest WiFi standard
This is absolutely essential to have a good gaming router. WiFi 6 is the best Wi-Fi support that you can ask for in a router nowadays. Wireless networking has gone through many changes since its introduction to the market, with each frequency allowing for greater and greater speeds. This top speed is unmatched when compared to lower speeds and is impervious to a lag-free gaming experience.
WiFi 6 is the new wireless standard, which promises greater speeds and more stable connections. Most modern-day routers will support this configuration by default, but you’ll also need compatible hardware to make the most of it. Make sure that you give your computer a bit of an anatomy check to ensure that all of your pieces of hardware can support WiFi 6. This is something that should be included on most routers nowadays, but it doesn’t hurt to double-check to make sure.
WiFi 6 is over twice as fast as the previous standard speed, Wifi 5. You can also find routers with WiFi 6E, which is an extension of WiFi 6. In case you want to explore options with these two WiFi standards, check out our top picks for the best WiFi 6 routers and the best WiFi 6E routers.
Dual-band
A new feature of modern-day routers is dual-band networking. This means the router will be able to transmit on two different channels at once, thus providing more wireless network capacity.
Although this is not a feature that is strictly limited to gaming, it can be a handy feature, especially for large households with many people using the router at once. Having multiple connections to the router can slow everyone’s speeds down, so having a dual-band Wi-Fi router could be the answer to your problems. Dual-band capabilities are typically advertised very strongly on the label of the router itself, so you know exactly whether or not you are purchasing one with dual-band
Make sure that you ask around to make sure you are getting this essential feature, as you don’t want a router that comes without it. You can also find tri-band and quad-band routers in some of the best gaming routers, so you should opt for them if you want better speed and performance. However, do keep in mind that they come at a significantly higher price tag than dual-band routers.
Do I need a gaming router?
Gaming routers are tailor-made by companies to prioritize online gaming and the bandwidth strain associated with it, as opposed to your average everyday model. This is done by providing a higher quality of service to specific apps, client launchers, and designated URLs. If you believe that this may be more than you need for your everyday use, a good budget router could be all you need.
Who makes the best gaming routers?
We think that Netgear, D-Link, and Asus make some of the best gaming routers on the market right now. This is because these companies’ models have a proven track record of delivering excellent performance across the board.
Are gaming routers faster?
Gaming routers will have little difference in internet speeds, as your internet service provider has the biggest impact. However, they do provide special network prioritization for your game to increase online performance. A normal Wi-Fi 6 router should provide enough performance for regular gaming needs.
Our Verdict
For us, the Asus ROG Rapture GT-AXE16000 is the best gaming router available in the market today. It is a quad-band router with WiFi 6E, with support for speeds of up to 16,000 Mbps, something which makes it a solid choice for high-speed internet connections. On top of that, it comes with two 10G ports, which should provide a lag-free online gaming experience. For better coverage, the router also features the ASUS RangeBoost Plus technology, and you can expect the signals to remain strong everywhere inside a 4-bedroom house.