TP-Link’s Deco PX50 is the best mesh Wi-Fi system for most people. That’s because it’s easy to set up, provides good speeds that should be faster than your broadband speed and is a sensible compromise between price and the very latest tech.

One of the main reasons it’s our top pick is because it has built-in powerline tech, the newer G.hn type. This means the three units can talk to each other using your home’s electricity wiring, so thick walls or other obstacles which usually reduce Wi-Fi range aren’t a problem for this kit.

And, in turn, it means that you get a good, fast Wi-Fi connection wherever you put the units: they can be further apart than those from other kits which have to use Wi-Fi. Plus, because they don’t use Wi-Fi to communicate with each other, you get the full Wi-Fi speed for your devices without paying the higher price for a tri-band mesh kit.

We saw speeds of around 800Mbps at close range, and very good coverage from the system. You can save money if you live in a smaller home by buying the 2-pack instead. Eventually you’ll be able to buy single units to add to an existing PX50 system but those weren’t available at launch.

The Linksys Atlas 6 provides fast and reliable whole-home coverage for a sensible price. It also offers an impressive array of features, most of which are easy to use thanks to the great Linksys app.

It isn’t the cheapest Wi-Fi 6 mesh system you can buy, but you wouldn’t expect it to be considering the features and performance on offer, which include four Ethernet ports on each unit.

The best speeds require you to have up-to-date devices (such as phones and laptops), but don’t forget that you won’t get much of a benefit from speeds that are faster than your broadband connection.

But for a price that’s a lot less than most Wi-Fi 6E mesh systems, it hits that sweet spot between cost and value. Available in packs of 1, 2 or 3 depending on the size of your home.

We were impressed with the original Eero system, but this is Amazon’s Wi-Fi 6 version – hence the 6 in the name. It’s a dual-band kit, and if you want better performance there’s the Eero 6 Pro which is a tri-band system.

The Eero 6 has a Zigbee hub built in, which could be handy if you have Philips Hue or other Zigbee-based smart home devices.

Note that the satellites in the kit aren’t identical to the main router: they don’t have any Ethernet ports (unlike the original Eero) which could be a deal-breaker if you need to connect a PC or any other device that doesn’t have Wi-Fi.

Assuming that’s not a problem, the Eero 6 is just as impressive as the original, with a great app and easy setup. Of course, performance is also excellent, though you’ll need devices with Wi-Fi 6 to get the best speeds from the system.

The original Wi-Fi 5-based Eero system is still on sale and is cheaper, and a good alternative if you don’t need Wi-Fi 6 yet – or Zigbee.

If there’s one drawback, it’s the fact some features are locked away behind a subscription. On most rival systems there’s no subscription to worry about.

It’s easy to set up, has a well-designed and feature-packed app and can offer fantastic coverage. That’s because, unlike most other mesh systems, the Deco P9 uses a combination of mesh Wi-Fi and Powerline networking which uses your home’s mains wiring to provide a reliable connection even through thick walls, which is something other systems can’t do much about.

It’s a dual-band Wi-Fi 5 system, but technically it’s tri-band because it can use Powerline for ‘backhaul’, which means the mesh units can talk to each other even if they’re further apart than Wi-Fi allows.

While it was originally available only in a set of three offering up to 6000 square feet of coverage, TP-Link has since launched a two-unit set ideal for smaller homes, and it’s great value.

If you want a mesh Wi-Fi system that doesn’t depend on Wi-Fi for the units to communicate with each other, the Deco P9 is ideal.

The Asus ZenWiFi XT9 is a great mesh system that’s packed with features, many of which will appeal to power users. But you don’t need to be one to benefit: it’s easy to set up and delivers fast, reliable Wi-Fi.

As with some of the others here, to take advantage of the fast Wi-Fi speeds you’ll need compatible phones, laptops or other devices that support 160MHz channels. And with devices that do, it’s possible to get over 1Gbps.

Another benefit – if you already have an Asus router that supports AiMesh – is that you can pair it with the XT9 and upgrade your existing system and get even bigger coverage.

There’s no escaping the fact the the XT9 is expensive, and it doesn’t support the latest Wi-Fi standard (Wi-Fi 6E) that has an extra 6GHz band. For that, you’d need the ZenWiFi ET12 which is even more expensive at around $860 / £800 for a two-pack. Even if you don’t own any Wi-Fi 6E devices yet, you will at some point and mesh Wi-Fi systems aren’t the sort of thing you replace on a bi-annual basis. 

However, that said, if you simply want the fast speeds that the XT9 can deliver on newer devices then it’s still a fine choice.

The MW3 is the cheapest mesh networking system we’ve reviewed. It has dropped in price since it was launched, making it a very tempting option for those on a tight budget.

As you’d expect, it can’t match the performance of more expensive rivals, but it still does a great job of delivering a strong Wi-Fi connection and eliminating dead zones around your home. Obviously, it doesn’t support Wi-Fi 6, but instead Wi-Fi 5, which is still perfectly good for streaming video, playing games and other internet activities.

That makes it a terrific bargain if you just need to provide a good internet connection around an average-size home, rather than have the ultimate Wi-Fi speeds.

The follow-up to the Mini XD4, the Mini XD5 fixes one big problem with its predecessor: range. Or, more specifically, decent speeds at long range. In our tests, the XD5 gave us stable speeds of 200Mbps when the second node was placed two rooms away. That’s not the top speed you can expect, though. If you’re within 3m of the main node, you should get at around 800Mbps on a compatible device. That’s about right for a 2×2 Wi-Fi 6 system, which is what this is.

If you need more than two nodes, no problem: Asus also sells a three-pack, and whichever you go for, you get a whole bunch of features including a VPN server and VPN client, detailed QoS control, parental control with scheduling and content filtering for the kids, versatile guest network capability, and built-in lifetime virus monitoring from Trend Micro. These are the types of features some other manufacturers like to lock away behind a subscription, but not Asus, so kudos for that.

The current version of Google’s mesh Wi-Fi system has evolved quite considerably. The main unit (and additional ‘points’) are also smart speakers with the Google Assistant, so this mesh system will save you if you were planning to buy one or more Google Nest speakers, along with using fewer mains outlets and you have fewer devices littered around your home.

If there’s a disappointment it’s that the kit doesn’t support the latest Wi-Fi 6 standard, but Nest WiFi is plenty fast enough for the average home and will improve signal around even smaller house vs a regular router.

Of course, you also get great Google software which makes the whole process simple and easy to use. Not only it is a breeze to get set up, but the features are accessible and helpful including a guest network, priority devices and parental controls. You can even pause the network with your voice via the Google Assistant.

Netgear’s Orbi mesh systems are known for their high prices but, at the same time, their performance. The RBK762S is a tri-band Wi-Fi 6 system which can deliver gigabit speeds to compatible devices when they’re relatively close to one of the two routers.

This means you need to have a phone, laptop or other device that’s capable of communicating at those speeds, and you need to be within 1m of the Orbi.

However, the system still provides fast Wi-Fi further away, and the two units provide good coverage. There’s a great companion app which is used to set up and manage the system, and lots of useful features and options. There’s security software (Netgear Armour) and good parental controls, but both are subscription services, although you do get a free trial to test them out.

If you live in a larger home and want more coverage, then Netgear also sells a kit with two satellites instead of just one (these are in addition to the main router in each kit), but that is more expensive still.

Ultimately, the Orbi RBK762S is great if you really want the fast speeds it offers, and have devices that can take advantage of it – plus very fast broadband, of course. If you have slower broadband and don’t need gigabit speeds, there’s an argument for spending less money on a three-router system which could provide better coverage, such as TP-Link’s Deco PX50.

Where we’ve criticised other systems here for not having the latest Wi-Fi standard, TP-Link has that well covered with this, the first Wi-Fi 7 mesh system to go on sale. Yes, you pay handsomely for it, just like any bleeding-edge tech, but it’s also mighty impressive.

With barely any phones or any other devices with Wi-Fi 7, it was a tough one to test. But using a Xiaomi 13 Pro we saw some respectable speeds on the 6GHz band: almost 1500Mbps. However, that only scratches the surface of what this system is capable of: delivering that sort of speed to multiple devices at the same time.

Of course, such speeds are unnecessary for the vast majority of people, even those with full fibre broadband. Ultimately, while the BE85 might be technically “the best”, it’s overkill for now. And by the time you have multiple devices with Wi-Fi 7, the price should have dropped quite significantly. Time will tell.