Wi-Fi is slow in one room

This is a coverage problem, not a speed problem. Test the room first, move the router if you can, and choose mesh over an extender — extenders halve your bandwidth to buy you range.

1. 1

   Measure it, don't eyeball it

   Run a speed test standing next to the router, then again in the bad room. Note both numbers and the signal strength.

   If the speed next to the router is also poor, this isn't a coverage problem at all — it's your internet service, and no amount of moving hardware will help.

2. 2

   Move the router before you buy anything

   Free, and often enough on its own. Routers broadcast outward and slightly downward, so:

   • Get it central and high — a shelf beats the floor.
   • Get it out in the open — not in a cabinet, not in the basement, not behind the TV.
   • Keep it away from microwaves, cordless phone bases and large mirrors. Mirrors and anything with foil backing are genuinely bad for Wi-Fi.

   Water absorbs 2.4 GHz well, so a big fish tank between the router and the room is a real obstacle.

3. 3

   Understand what's actually blocking it

   Not all walls are equal. Drywall is nearly transparent to Wi-Fi. Brick, concrete, stone and anything with metal mesh in it are not.

   If the bad room is behind a chimney breast, an old lath-and-plaster wall, or a floor with underfloor heating, you're not going to fix it with settings. You need hardware closer to the room.

4. 4

   Pick mesh over an extender

   A cheap extender talks to the router and to your device on the same radio, so it roughly halves throughput in exchange for range. You get bars, not speed. It also usually creates a second network name you have to switch to manually.

   A mesh system keeps one network name, hands your device between nodes automatically, and uses a dedicated link between nodes. It costs more and it's the right answer.

5. 5

   Run a cable if you can

   The best fix for one specific room is a wired connection — either Ethernet, or a mesh node in that room fed by Ethernet.

   If running a cable isn't possible, powerline adapters send network over your electrical wiring. They're inconsistent — performance depends on your house's wiring and they suffer badly across different circuits — but in an old house with thick walls they sometimes beat wireless outright.