Why Is My WiFi Signal So Bad? 5 Factors That Affect WiFi Performance
WiFi can be a fickle thing. You may be enjoying a perfectly strong WiFi signal, move just a few steps in one direction, and watch it drop to one bar. The seemingly unreliable nature of WiFi networks has everything to do with the fact that there are many factors that influence their performance.
1) Physical distance
For obvious technical and safety reasons, WiFi routers don’t have the same transmitting power as cell towers. Cheaper routers may even struggle to cover a relatively small apartment with a strong WiFi signal — let alone an entire house. You can determine the reach of your WiFi router using a WiFi analyzer app.
2) Obstructions
WiFi signals can be partially absorbed or even completely blocked by various obstacles and objects, including walls, duct work, furniture, home appliances, and even people. These WiFi blockers have especially negative effect on 5 GHz WiFi networks, because higher frequency signals don’t penetrate solid objects nearly as well as lower frequency signals.
3) Interference
WiFi signals occupy the same radio frequency band of the electromagnetic spectrum actual radios, cell phones, microwave ovens, walkie talkies, baby monitors, and many other devices, all of which can interfere with WiFi signals. Of course, WiFi networks can also interfere with one another, a problem that’s especially common in apartment buildings and other densely populated areas.
4) Router capacity
Just like some computers can barely handle casual web browsing and some can render complex 3D objects, not all routers are equally powerful. You can’t reasonably expect a low-end router to provide reliable wireless access to the internet to a busy office with more than a dozen of employees and several fax machines, WiFi connected printers, and wireless security cameras.
5) Bandwidth hoggers
Sometimes, the problem isn’t with the strength of your WiFi signal but with the capacity of your internet connection. Video chatting or streaming on multiple devices can bring even a strong WiFi network to a crawl. For the best experience, it’s important to manage bandwidth hoggers and prevent them from stealing bandwidth from everyone else.