This post is a roundup of the best five gaming routers and their worthy alternatives out of many I’ve reviewed.
There’s no concrete definition of a “gaming router,” but all listed below meet at least two of my qualifying criteria.
Any of these mentioned here will give you an edge in getting connected, plus, if nothing else, the much-needed placebo effect. Among other things, you know you’re already well-equipped, possibly even better-equipped than the other guy.
Dong’s note: I first published this post on January 29, 2021, and updated it on October 2, 2025, to include the most up-to-date options.
Best gaming routers: The list
All routers on this list are excellent for general use. Additionally, they collectively check all the gaming boxes. The routers listed below are arranged in the recommended order, with the most highly recommended at the top—the numbers indicate the ranking.
1. ASUS GT-BE98 Pro
ASUS has undoubtedly been a leader in gaming routers, thanks to its extensive collection of hardware, which includes a wide range of models in various shapes and sizes. The company has routers in three series—RT, ROG, and ROG Strix (or TUF)—with different flavors of gaming-related features and hardware designs.
ASUS’s networking hardware
ASUS has a vast collection of Wi-Fi hardware options available as standalone routers and purpose-built Wi-Fi systems—all share the same ASUSWRT firmware—in the following series:
- The RT series: General consumer-grade standalone routers ranging from entry-level, mid-range, and high-end models. Improved variants might carry the “Pro” suffix, such as the RT-AX88U Pro.
- The TUF and ROG series: Gaming-related Wi-Fi routers of different tiers, including the highest-end flagship routers. Improved variants, such as the GT-AX11000 Pro, might carry the “Pro” suffix.
- The ZenWiFi series: This series includes consumer-grade, purpose-built AiMesh-based(*) Wi-Fi systems with a broad range of configurations. Some variants have built-in MOCA or Powerline support.
- The ExpertWiFi series: First announced in early 2024, ExpertWiFi is ASUS’s hardware for networking enthusiasts and office environments. These are AiMesh-enabled business-oriented solutions with more advanced options for network customization and hardware design, available as purpose-built mesh systems, standalone routers, access points (APs), and switches.
The GT-BE98 Pro is the flagship router that supports Wi-Fi 7 and delivers non-compromising performance on all accounts. It has everything to represent this large pack and likely will retain its post until the GT-BE19000AI is released.
Still, any ASUS alternatives in the table below will deliver a similar gaming experience and among those, you’ll find some to be part of this list below.
All of these routers have the standard set of ASUS’s gaming features, including Mobile Game Mode, Open NAT, Gear Accelerator, and VPN Fusion.
2. Archer GE800
The Archer GE800 is TP-Link’s latest gaming router and the first real one. Prior to it, previous gaming routers from the vendor, namely the Archer AX11000 and Archer GX90, had little more than a fancy look.
The new Archer GE800 is massive and features full multi-Gigabit ports and Wi-Fi 7. It’s easily the best standalone router TP-Link has ever made to date.
Similar or not-so-similar alternative:
Pros
Top-tier tri-band Wi-Fi 7 specs with full multi-Gigabit to deliver excellent real-world performance
Robust web user interface with an excellent set of network features and Wi-Fi settings, including MLO and gaming-related features
Competitively priced; useful (optional) mobile app; EasyMesh-ready; cool-looking design
Cons
Bulky design with audible internal fan; runs hot; Wi-Fi throughputs could be comparatively a tad better
No AFC; online protection and advanced parental controls require subscriptions
3. ASUS GS-BE18000
The ASUS GS-BE18000 is a budget-friendly gaming router that comes equipped with numerous game-related features and eight 2.5Gbps ports. Additionally, it’s the first home-grade Wi-Fi 7 router to feature the AFC (Adaptive Frequency Control) feature, allowing its 6GHz band to deliver the same range as the 5GHz band.
If you can’t connect your game console to the router via a network cable and it supports 6GHz Wi-Fi, this is the gaming router to get.
Pros
Excellent overall performance, eight 2.5Gbps ports, AiMesh-ready, official AFC support with extended 6GHz range
Lots of free, in-depth, and useful networking features and settings (VPN, AiProtection, Parental Control, Bandwidth monitoring, etc.)
No vendor required login account; fanless; runs cool and quiet
Cons
AFC needs help from a supported client in getting precise GPS coordinates
NAS performance (when hosting a portable SSD) could be better
4. TP-Link GE650
The Archer GE650 is a compact version of the Archer GE800, sharing the same physical size and hardware specifications. Still, it has enough to make many gamers happy, especially considering its friendly price tag.
Pros
Excellent performance for the specs.
Two 5GBASE-T, three 2.5GBASE-T ports in a compact, fanless, cool-looking design
Robust web user interface with a generous set of free network features, including MLO and gaming-related functions
Competitively priced, EasyMesh-ready
Cons
No 10Gbps ports, mid-tier Wi-Fi 7 specs, no AFC
Online protection and advanced parental controls require subscriptions
5. ASUS ROG Rapture GT6
The GT6 is the only Wi-Fi 6 router on this list, and it’s a special one.
For one, it’s a canned mesh router and often available in a two-pack. Supporting UNII-4, it’s the only mesh system designed for gamers. Most importantly, it proved to be an excellent performer in years-long real-world usage.
Having a large home and can’t run network cables? The GT6 is your friend.
Pros
Excellent Wi-Fi performance and coverage, UNII-4 support
Tons of useful features and settings, including built-in gaming features
AiMesh 2.0 full support, helpful mobile app, no login account required
Compact and good looking, USB port
Cons
Single 2.5Gbps WAN-only port
Buggy (initial release) firmware
Slow network storage performance when hosting a USB portable drive; not wall-mount-ready
Tips on gaming and Wi-Fi
Generally, get your home wired for the best online experience, including online gaming or whenever you need a reliable connection with the lowest latency.
Next, connect your gaming rig to your network using a cable. No matter how fast Wi-Fi is, it is always less ideal and will add a few extra milliseconds, or even a significant amount, to your broadband’s latency.
Reliability and low latency are more critical than fast speeds in gaming or any real-time communication applications. So it’s more a question of wired vs. Wi-Fi than Wi-Fi 5 vs. Wi-Fi 6 vs. Wi-Fi 7.
But we can’t always use wires. That said, the rule in Wi-Fi for gaming is to avoid multiple hops.
Specifically, here is the order of best practices when connecting your gaming device to the network via Wi-Fi:
- Use a single broadcaster—just one Wi-Fi router or access point.
- If you must use multiple broadcasters (like a mesh system), then:
- Use a network cable to link them together (wired backhaul).
- If you must use a wireless mesh, then:
- Connect the game console directly to your home’s primary router. Or
- Connect the gaming device to the first mesh satellite node using a network cable. Also, in this case, it’s best to use mesh hardware with an additional 5GHz band unless you have Wi-Fi 7.
- Avoid the daisy-chain mesh setup.
- Avoid using extenders. I
Again, the idea is that the Wi-Fi signal should not have to hop wirelessly any additional time before it reaches your device—you’ll experience significantly worse latency after each additional hop.
The final thoughts
Generally, you can play games with any router. Most routers with a good QoS feature can be manually tuned to support a particular game well. However, gaming-oriented routers make things easier since most can automatically adjust their settings when you select a game.
Still, at the end of the day, it’s your skill and the quality of your broadband connection that matter; there’s only so much a router can do.
