The Best Budget Gaming Router For 2024

Harlan Ellison By, Harlan Ellison
Updated
Best Budget Gaming Router
Best Budget Gaming Router

The Rundown

1. Best Overall: TP-Link AC1200 Gigabit WiFi Router

The TP-Link AC1200 Gigabit WiFi Router is the perfect choice for upgrading your home network. With dual band technology and speeds up to 1200 Mbps, this router is capable of providing ultra-fast internet connections for streaming 4K videos, online gaming, and more. Read Review

2. Runner Up: ASUS RT-AX55 Dual Band WiFi 6 Router

The ASUS RT-AX55 Dual Band WiFi 6 Router is the ultimate solution for high-speed home networking. It supports the latest 802.11AX (WiFi 6) standard, providing up to 4x higher total network throughput and lower latency for your connected devices. Read Review

3. Best Efficient: TP-Link AX5400 WiFi 6 Router

The TP-Link AX5400 WiFi 6 Router is a powerful and reliable router designed to deliver fast and reliable internet speeds for your home. With up to 5400 Mbps WiFi speeds, you can enjoy smooth 8K streaming, lag-free gaming, faster download speeds, and more. Read Review

4. Best Design: ASUS ROG Rapture WiFi Gaming Router

The ASUS ROG Rapture WiFi Gaming Router is designed to deliver the ultimate gaming experience. This advanced router has a triple-level game accelerator which optimizes your online gaming packets for a smooth and lag-free gaming experience. Read Review

5. Best Quality: Speedefy AC2100 Smart WiFi Router

The Speedefy AC2100 Smart WiFi Router is the perfect choice for anyone looking for a fast and secure internet connection. This router has dual-core CPU which reduces buffering and provides an ultra-fast web browsing experience. Read Review

Gaming is all about speed, precision, and accuracy. To ensure your gaming experience is seamless, you need a router that delivers fast and reliable internet connectivity. However, buying a gaming router can be an expensive affair, and for most people, it's not feasible to spend hundreds of dollars on a single device. That's where budget gaming routers come in.

In this article, we'll look at the best budget gaming routers on the market, their features, and why they're perfect for gamers on a budget. Whether you're a casual gamer or a professional, you can find a budget gaming router that will cater to your gaming needs without putting a dent in your wallet. So, let's dive in and find out which budget gaming router is right for you.

After lots of research based on customer feedback, We think the best budget gaming router is TP-Link AC1200 Gigabit WiFi Router. With dual band technology and speeds up to 1200 Mbps, this router is capable of providing ultra-fast internet connections. You can also check out the ASUS RT-AX55 Dual Band WiFi 6 Router. We have provided you with a detailed buyer's guide and many other good choices to decide which is best for your requirements.

Our Top Picks

TOP Choice #1 TP-Link AC1200 Gigabit WiFi Router
Our Score:
9.9
TP-Link

The TP-Link AC1200 Dual Band Router - a powerhouse designed to elevate your at-home internet experience to unparalleled heights! With breakneck speeds of up to 1200Mbps, this dual-band gem offers an optimal platform for streaming 4K movies or gaming without enduring pesky buffering. With the boasting 4 Gigabit LAN ports, you can directly connect your wired devices, ensuring you enjoy a fast and seamless internet connection.

Moreover, with the latest and greatest MU-MIMO technology, this router is primed to handle multiple devices concurrently, guaranteeing uninterrupted browsing, streaming, and gaming. Thanks to its built-in AP mode feature, you can easily switch to access point mode and share your internet wirelessly. And don't worry about other innovative features, as this router's got your back with guest WiFi and parental controls, making it an ideal wireless router for family homes. Additionally, you can effortlessly set up and manage your network using the TP-Link Tether app. However, this router may have limited parental control features. 

TOP Choice #2 ASUS RT-AX55 Dual Band WiFi 6 Router
Our Score:
9.8
ASUS

With a coverage range of up to 3000 square feet, the RT-AX55 WiFi router delivers a next-generation wireless experience. It embraces the latest WiFi standard, 802.11AX (WiFi 6), and an 80MHz bandwidth to improve capacity and efficiency, ensuring optimal performance for connected devices. Its ultra-fast WiFi speeds support 80MHz bandwidth and 1024-QAM, resulting in significantly faster wireless connections.

Additionally, the router achieves a combined networking speed of around 1800Mbps, offering 574Mbps on the 2.4GHz band and 1201Mbps on the 5GHz band, enabling smooth and rapid data transfers. Advanced technologies like MU-MIMO and OFDMA are incorporated to enhance capacity and efficiency. These technologies efficiently allocate channels and allow simultaneous communication with multiple devices, optimizing network resources and improving overall performance. Unfortunately, it may not include a traffic monitoring option.

TOP Choice #3 TP-Link AX5400 WiFi 6 Router
Our Score:
9.7
TP-Link

With blazing speeds reaching up to 5400 Mbps, this router ensures seamless browsing, streaming, gaming, and downloading simultaneously, free from any lag or buffering. The inclusion of 4T4R and HE160 technologies on the 5 GHz bands provides an ultra-fast max 4.8 Gbps connection, catering perfectly to heavy internet usage. MU-MIMO and OFDMA support reduce congestion and deliver 4X the average throughput, accommodating more connected devices than ever before.

The router's wide coverage ensures stable WiFi connections throughout your home, even in areas like the kitchen and bedroom. High-Power FEM, 6× Antennas, Beamforming, and 4T4R structures adapt WiFi coverage to suit your home, concentrating signal strength towards your devices. Additionally, the router's USB 3.0 port facilitates easy media sharing and file storage, making it a valuable addition to any household. Furthermore, TP-Link HomeShield provides top-notch security services, safeguarding your home network with cutting-edge network and IoT protection. Unfortunately, it may be challenging to set up initially.

The Asus ROG Rapture GT-AC5300 is a top-of-the-line gaming router that creates an unmatched online gaming experience. It features a triple-level game accelerator that optimizes online gaming packets from your PC to the game server, resulting in lag-free and buffer-free gameplay. Additionally, it has received a recommendation from GeForce Now, guaranteeing cloud gaming without latency issues. The router also supports AiMesh, enabling it to work seamlessly with other Asus AiMesh-compatible routers, providing a flexible and powerful whole-home Wi-Fi system.

Moreover, the router boasts front-line network security, powered by Trend Micro and lifetime free AiProtection Pro, ensuring all connected devices are protected from online threats, providing peace of mind while browsing the internet. Furthermore, the Asus Aura lighting technology adds a stylish feel to your gaming setup, featuring multiple effects that even reflect the status of your network. The sleek design and advanced features make this router perfect for avid gamers, offering an immersive and lag-free online gaming experience. Unfortunately, the device's user interface may be challenging to navigate. 

5 Speedefy AC2100 Smart WiFi Router
Our Score:
9.3
Speedefy

The Speedefy K7 wireless router is a sturdy and dependable device that elevates your internet experience. It offers dual-band gigabit WiFi support, delivering an impressive speed of 2100M for seamless web browsing, video streaming, and gaming. The router's dual-core CPU minimizes buffering and maintains high-speed connectivity. Its standout feature lies in the powerful signal, thanks to its cutting-edge 7*6dBi external antennas and 4*4 MU-MIMO technology, ensuring strong and stable coverage throughout your room.

Setting up the Speedefy K7 is quick and easy, with a one-stop installation process taking only 5 minutes. You can effortlessly manage the router through the app or web interface, customizing your preferences with ease. The router prioritizes internet security, employing complete WPA2 protocols to keep your connection safe and secure. Real-time risk detection prevents any potential threats, ensuring stable and protected WiFi. Advanced features like parental control for managing kids' internet access and Accelerate WiFi for optimizing performance add to its appeal. Nevertheless, the router's UI could be more user-friendly.

6 ASUS AC1200 WiFi Gaming Router
Our Score:
9.1
ASUS

This Asus wireless router is an excellent choice for those in need of reliable and high-speed wireless connectivity for their homes or small offices. With a coverage area of up to 3000 square feet, it ensures uninterrupted and fast wireless performance throughout most homes. The dual-band Wi-Fi supports speeds of 300 Mbps on the 2.4GHz band and 867 Mbps on the 5GHz band, making it perfect for various online activities like streaming and gaming.

Additionally, the router is equipped with four Gigabit LAN ports, delivering connections up to ten times faster than standard Ethernet, ensuring smooth connectivity for multiple devices. The presence of a USB 2.0 port allows convenient local and remote file sharing using the ASUS AiDisk network file-sharing feature. Setting up the router is effortless with the user-friendly ASUSWRT dashboard UI, enabling easy management. Moreover, the four external antennas enhance coverage and improve performance for multiple devices. Nonetheless, the router's instruction manual may not be very helpful.

7 Linksys Mesh WiFi 6 Router
Our Score:
9.0
Linksys

Are you tired of weak and unreliable WiFi coverage in your home? Look no further than the Linksys Mesh WiFi Router 6. Powered by Intelligent Mesh Technology, this router delivers a range of up to 3000 square feet and supports over 40 devices, making it the perfect choice for homes of all sizes. This router can dynamically maximize WiFi speed, ensuring you enjoy fast and reliable connectivity throughout your space. And with its ability to eliminate dead zones, you can be sure that you'll never have to deal with frustrating dropped connections or slow speeds again.

Moreover, this Linksys router is also designed to be future-proof and easily expandable. You can add Linksys Mesh products to expand coverage throughout your home, ensuring you have the range you need no matter how your needs change over time. And with the Linksys Seal, you can be sure that you're getting a product backed by a company with a proven track record of delivering high-quality, reliable networking products. The only minor downside of this router is that it is a bit difficult to set up different SSIDs for the 2.4 and 5 GHZ bands 

DumaOS 3.0 is built especially for gamers, reducing ping rates up to 93% while enjoying faster, lag-free online gaming and smoother streaming.

Compatible with any wired Ethernet or wireless gaming device including PCs, Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo Switch consoles.

Brings unbelievable speed and lower latency to your PS5 by leveraging all the benefits of WiFi 6 so you can always beat the competition.

High performance: 4x5dBi high gain antennas increase the sensitivity of the wireless router, connect over long distances, and provide strong wall penetration. The wireless network covers the entire family.

AC 1200Mbps: extremely fast dual band transfer rates up to 1167Mbps (2.4GHz: 300Mbps + 5GHz 867Mbps), supports multiple devices simultaneously. Works with any wireless network, modem and Wi-Fi enabled devices, including smart home devices, smartphones, Echo, Alexa, Sky Q, laptops, etc.

Three working modes: Router / Wlan Access Point / Repeater mode, meet your different network requirements. Complies with the IEEE 802.11ac / a / b / g / n standards - the new generation of WLAN.

Wi-Fi 6 Connect More Devices. Easily handle dozens of devices streaming and gaming at the same time with WiFi 6 OFDMA technology, enabling your Wi-Fi to connect more devices compared to Wi-Fi 5 router. Future-proofs your home or office networks by providing greater capacity to connect more devices, add more Wi-Fi devices will no longer means dragging down performance.

Upgrade to 1.8Gbps WiFi 6 Speed. Compared with Wi-Fi 5, Cudy AX1800 Wi-Fi 6 router brings a 90% speed boost on the 2.4GHz and 40% speed boost on 5GHz band. The maximum speed of 5Ghz reaches 1201Mbps, and the maximum speed of 2.4GHz reaches 574Mbps. With such a significant speed increase, there will be no difference between WiFi connection and wired access, every application in the network will feel smoother.

All in One WiFi Router / Mesh WiFi Router / Access Point / WiFi Extender / WISP Router. Supports WiFi Router, Access Point, Range Extender, and WISP modes to meet any network need. All you need to do is upgrade the firmware to the 1.10.0 or later version, then you could enjoy the multi mode function to setup your network.

Product Images, Product Titles, Product Highlights from Amazon Product Advertising API

What to Look For in a best budget gaming router?

Actually, when you decide to invest in best budget gaming router for yourself, lots of things to consider! It's harder to choose since the product comes with many types, functions, and features from different manufacturers. That’s why you should find a reliable space to acquire knowledge related to the item. 

We’ve highlighted the essential features of the best budget gaming router below. Along with checking out the list of best models in the list, you should also carefully read the buying guide here:

Security

To secure your router, you should use the latest available encryption standard. This is likely WPA2 or WPA3, depending on the age of your router. You’ll need to enter the password just once into each wireless device you use; afterward, the device will remember it.

USB Ports

USB ports on a router are used for connecting to a flash drive, an external hard drive, or a USB printer if the router has a built-in print server.

LAN Ports

Many internet-connected smart home devices, such as Philips Hue and Samsung SmartThings products, require a LAN port-connected hub to function. If you need more LAN ports than the router has, you can expand the number available by adding an Ethernet switch. This is sort of like a power strip that adds open Ethernet ports.

Booster Club

When it comes to wireless routers, most ISPs offer several tiers of service. If you’re ever in a situation where you need more speed for streaming or gaming, you can always upgrade your service. A connection speed of around 200 megabits per second should be able to handle a family’s worth of activities like this.

Quality Of Service

Wireless Routers offer a great way to optimize the performance of your computer. You can change the router's settings to work best for streaming videos, making Skype calls, playing games, or streaming music. This will give those applications more of the bandwidth—so, for example, your Netflix movie doesn't pause and rebuffer because someone in your house is downloading a large file.

App-Based Management

Every new router comes with apps meant to simplify the task of setting up and making adjustments to your WiFi network. The apps make it easier than ever before to monitor which devices are connected to your network and adjust which devices get priority. These apps can also alert you when an update is available for your router.

WiFi Standards

As of early 2021, the tech world is starting to transition away from the WiFi standard known as WiFi 5 and towards WiFi 6, which is faster and boasts better support for more devices connected at the same time. Older, WiFi 5-certified devices like smartphones and laptops can still be used with WiFi 6 routers, but you won’t receive the full benefits of WiFi 6 unless the device you are using is certified for the new standard. For more information on WiFi 6, be sure to read this article.

FAQs

What is a budget gaming router?

A budget gaming router is a type of router designed to provide an enhanced gaming experience at an affordable price. It typically includes features such as faster speeds, improved range and coverage, and specialized gaming settings to optimize your connection.

What are the benefits of using a budget gaming router?

Using a budget gaming router can help improve your gaming experience by providing faster speeds, improved range and coverage, and specialized settings for gaming. It can also help reduce lag, latency, and other performance issues.

What features should I look for in a budget gaming router?

You should look for features such as dual-band functionality, Quality of Service (QoS) settings, adjustable antennas, and the latest wireless technologies (such as Wi-Fi 6 or 802.11ax).

How do I set up a budget gaming router?

Setting up a budget gaming router is relatively easy. First, connect the router to your modem using an Ethernet cable. Then, connect to the router’s Wi-Fi network with your device. Finally, access the router’s settings page and configure your settings according to your needs.

After knowing the suitable kinds of best budget gaming router and the features you wish, it’s high time for you to start your shopping. Note that you shouldn’t run out to a particular store or start scrolling through online sales just yet. With the development of technology, especially the expansion of sale sites, you can easily find your buddy. 

Remember to check out our site weekly round-up to ensure that the current sales on best budget gaming router perform well in our tests. So you can catch up with them as soon as possible. Would you please give us your feedback for better service? Many thanks!


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About Harlan Ellison

Harlan Ellison

Harlan Ellison is a writer and audio equipment enthusiast. He's particularly interested in home theater HiFi audio, and he has been the editor of The Audio Insights since its inception. Harlan is known for his sharp wit and scathing critiques, but he also has a great love of music and audio gear. When he's not writing or editing, Harlan can be found listening to music or watching movies with his wife.