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I have a router/modem from my isp, however its WiFi has a very small range, in our study we get about 20Mbps, and we have a (theoretical) 1Gbps. I got a TP-link AX5400. Unfortunately, it turned out the modem does not support bridge mode so I:

  • Set the router to access point mode
  • Disabled the modem WiFi

After doing this, I got download speeds of 350Mbps, upload in the 400 range. However, our modem gives 800Mbps, on the cable. I connected an ethernet cable to the router, which also gives about 800Mbps. The problem must be the Wifi; I checked the speeds of the modem, which were the same as the ones the router gives.

What I tried:

  • Changing the channel width, which either made no difference or made it much slower
  • Reset and reboot both the modem and router
  • Disabling the security
  • TP-link's website lists disabling parental control and QoS, but these are not options in access point mode. The modem does not have these options
  • I checked the clients in the network map, but access points also don't have speed limiter options
  • Setting the router back to router mode, this gave the same results
  • I also tried disabling 2.4Ghz wifi. (btw this wifi gives about 90Mbps)
  • I found another topic like this, which said to limit packet size to 1,492 on the router but I can't find such an option, but it is possible I am not looking in the right place.

My laptop's wireless card is an Intel(R) Dual Band Wireless-AC 7265 which I think should also be able to get 800Mbps. I am about 4m from the router, no walls, and in our farthest room it gives the same 350 Mbps download speed (so the range is improved at least).

Does anyone have an idea what could be causing this?

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  • If you run netsh wlan show interfaces or iw wlan0 link, what negotiated link rate does it show?
    – grawity_u1686
    Commented Mar 7, 2022 at 18:19
  • which values are you interested in? it shows a receive/transmit rate of 866.7, signal 73%, and some other data like channel, authentication and IDs
    – lotte456
    Commented Mar 7, 2022 at 18:24
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    Wifi specs are misleading (some wpuld say a pack of lies). Unless ypu are in a farraday cage you wont ever get the quoted speeds. Your setup is performing pretty well.
    – davidgo
    Commented Mar 7, 2022 at 18:45
  • It's mostly the receive/transmit rate that is relevant (the current "physical" speed between your device and the access point). In your case it has actually negotiated 866 Mbps link rate (the maximum for 802.11ac), so I guess you should be getting more than 400 Mbps in practice... though I still wouldn't expect full 800 Mbps download unless the conditions were very good. (Much like you were getting 90 Mbps over what is likely a "Rx rate: 150 Mbps" physical link.)
    – grawity_u1686
    Commented Mar 7, 2022 at 19:30
  • Does the AX5400 have an option for working in full-duplex?
    – harrymc
    Commented Mar 7, 2022 at 20:14

1 Answer 1

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You have a 2×2 Wi-Fi 5 (11ac) client device. It will achieve the 866.7 Mbit/s link speed you see. That means ~450 Mbit/s net throughput at the very best. You must not confuse the link speed with achievable throughput. Keep in mind that Wi-Fi is half-duplex: Only one station (or the access point) can talk at any given time.

Even with 2×2 Wi-Fi 6 (11ax), you can only achieve 1200 Mbit/s link speed and slightly more than 800 Mbit/s net throughput.

(Client) devices with more than 2 spatial streams are rare (some MacBooks, not much more). You’ll have to accept the reality that Wi-Fi will not allow you to saturate your internet link.

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  • Still 50% as the maximum achievable throughput sounds rather low to me. I've seen ~70% on good quality 802.11n links (110 Mbps over a "150 Mbps" connection)...
    – grawity_u1686
    Commented Mar 7, 2022 at 19:32
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    The 11ac value is based on three years of real-world experience with very little interference (rural + reinforced concrete). Sounds like you got extremely lucky with 11n. Do keep in mind that different Wi-Fi standards use different ways to transmit data reliably, so efficiency may vary.
    – Daniel B
    Commented Mar 7, 2022 at 21:35
  • Tested it: On my X220 (Intel Centrino 6205 Wi-Fi) I get ~130 Mbit/s out of 270 Mbit/s link speed. On my R61e (Intel 3945ABG Wi-Fi) I get ~25 Mbit/s out of 54 Mbit/s link speed. Those are just normal values with Wi-Fi.
    – Daniel B
    Commented Mar 8, 2022 at 8:16

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