Best Wireless Routers Under 150 (2021): Top 3 Routers For $150 Review

One hundred fifty bucks is not a small amount; you can easily find the best wireless routers under 150 dollars; however, it requires some basic knowledge of a router. Don’t worry! We will discuss them today. 

Wait, I am not going to tell you – what is a WiFi router and how it works as nobody has that much of time to read that shit. Trust me, Networking devices’ manufacturers are doing their job very impressively. However, we’ll definitely take a look at some of the essential vital factors which actually help in buying the best router under $150. 

if you are new or visiting the first time my website pickmycablemodem.com, you should know that I’ve already written some other under category’s articles:

1. Best WiFi router under $50
2. Best WiFi router under $100
3. Best WiFi router under $200
4. Best Cheap WiFi Routers

In case, if you change your mind from router 150 dollars to any one of them, please check them too. 

So without any further ado, let’s get started. Today, we will discuss only three best WiFi routers under $150 out of 27 routers. However, I could have taken more than three and left you with a lot of confusion – which I never want. 

Here are my three best routers you can go for under $150

1. Netgear Nighthawk WiFi Router R6700 – My Choice

Highlights:

1. WiFi Speed: AC1750 (Up to 1.7Gbps)
2. WiFi Coverage Up to 1500 Sq.ft.
3. Ethernet Ports: 4X LAN Gigabit Ports
4. Band: Dual-band
5. Beamforming+

Overview:

The Netgear Nighthawk R6700 is, without any doubt, one of the best routers under 150 bucks. It is a dual-band router and equipped with some excellent features and technology in order to meet your needs. The R6700 promises combined WiFi speeds of up to 1.75Gbps; however, they are theoretical speeds. Moreover, with the help of two frequency bands: 5Ghz and 2.4Ghz bands, the router is capable of delivering a reliable and consistent WiFi connection, which I have seen so far from tri-band routers.

The R6700 is also sharing the same design that we’ve seen in some of the Nighthawk series’ router, such as R7000 and x4s, x6, and x8. However, they all are upgraded models and offer better performance and features with a higher price tag. Furthermore, the R6700 boasts a robust dual-core 1Ghz processor and 256MB of RAM in order to handle up to 25 multiple devices simultaneously. 

In addition to the design, R6700 comes in black color and has rubber feet with a broad base. On the backside, it includes four external antennas (all are detachable), one USB 3.0 port, four Gigabit Ethernet LAN ports, one WAN (internet) port, and some buttons such as Power On/Off, one reset, and WPS.  

Pros & Cons:

I like:

1. Excellent and consistent WiFi connections with the robust coverage up to 15,00 sq.ft.
2. Simultaneous dual-band operation for connecting up to 25 multiple devices at the same time. 
3. Advanced QoS feature for prioritizing gaming and streaming applications. 
4. The Airtime Fairness feature ensures a lag-free consistent WiFi connection between devices when slower devices are connected.  
5. The best-in-class technology – Beamforming+, provides more reliable WiFi connectivity as it reduces interference.

I don’t like:

1. Only one USB port. 

Summary:

The Netgear Nighthawk R6700 is my top pick for under 150 dollars. It will be an ideal option for medium to large homes. Up to 25 devices at once, Circle Smart Parental Controls, Google Assistant compatibility, VPN support, WPA/WPA2 encryption, double firewall protection, and high-level security called Denial-of-service (DoS), are enough to determine the router best-in-class. 

2. Asus AC1900 (RT-AC68U) – Runner Up!

Highlights:

1. 802.11ac wireless standard
2. Up to 1900Mbps WiFi speed
3. AiMesh Supported
4. 4 Gigabit Ethernet LAN ports
5. AiProtection Pro

Overview:

The RT-AC68U is a dual-band router and boasts a fast dual-core processor, which is responsible for handling multiple devices at once without compromising on WiFi speeds. The RT-AC68 is an upgrade to the previously launched RT-AC66U. As a dual-band router, it offers a maximum WiFi speed of up to 1300Mbps on the 5Ghz frequency band. While on the 2.4Ghz band, it delivers up to 600Mbps. As a result, you get the combined dual-band WiFi speeds of up to 1.9Gbps.   

As far as the design of the router is concerned, it won’t feel too bulky and large. So, no problem while placing it on a smaller desk. Despite being light-weight and compact, it is an ideal option for larger homes as it is the most feature-packed router on the market that comes under 150 dollars. Moreover, its dimensions are 8.66×6.30×3.28 inches. It shares the same design seen in the previous models, such as RT-N66U and RT-AC66U. However, The RT-AC68U is not mountable. Instead, it comes in an upright position. Furthermore, it is a glossy dark gray finished router with an innovative standing design. 

On the hardware side, it boasts a powerful Broadcom BCM4709 WiFi chipset and ARM Cortex A9 dual-core CPU with a clock speed of 800Mhz. It is equipped with 256MB of DDR RAM. If I am not wrong, you’ll find this CPU and chipset only in high-end routers, not in cheap routers. The RT-AC68U also includes two USB ports: one USB 3.0 port and one USB 2.0 port. 

Pros & Cons:

I like:

1. Excellent performance, powerful hardware, innovative design with a robust processor. 
2. Great Ultrawide WiFi coverage throughout the house since it uses AiRadar technology. 
3. A wide range of connectivity options: 5x Gigabit Ethernet LAN Ports & USB 3.1 port. 
4. Security is commercial-grade; it features AiProtection, which is powered by Trend Micro™ for your family. 
5. Unlike the previous model, the RT-AC68U supports the AiMesh feature. 

I don’t like:

1. It is not wall-mountable. 

Summary:

The RT-AC68U is going to be a powerful router for those who want to run ahead since it offers tons of advanced features and technologies. Furthermore, it doesn’t loosen up your pockets as it comes under 150 dollars. Therefore, it is a perfect router for above-average users. However, if you want less expensive or don’t want to invest much, then consider buying Netgear Nighthawk R6700. 

3. TP-Link WiFi 6 AX3000 – Best WiFi 6 Router Under $150

Highlights:

1. Up to 3Gbps Speeds
2. Next-Generation WiFi6
3. Beamforming & MU-MIMO
4. 4-Stream Dual-band
5. Backward compatible

Overview:

The TP-Link AX3000 (Archer AX50) is one of the latest routers from Tp-Link to support WiFi 6 technology. It boasts OFDMA and MU-MIMO technology, allowing you to connect more devices with smooth, buffer-free consistent WiFi connection and less network congestion. Despite being equipped with WiFi 6, it is backward compatible too, and supports all the previous 802.11 standards. 

On the inside, the router has pretty solid hardware, such as an Intel Home WiFi WAV654 chipset and 256MB of RAM. With a configuration of 2×2, it supports both MU-MIMO and OFDMA; however, they can be turned off if required. Moreover, it is a dual-band router and offering two frequency bands: 5GHz and 2.4GHz. Therefore, its 5GHz band promises a maximum WiFi speed of up to 2402Mbps (160MHz) while 2.4GHz(40MHz) band up to 547Mbps.  

On the hardware side, It houses a wide range of ports and physical buttons, including four Gigabit Ethernet ports, one Gigabit Ethernet WAN port, a single USB 3.0 port, and four external undetachable antennas sticking up on the back. However, it doesn’t include any multi-gig port and USB 2.0 port. 

Pros & Cons:

I like:

1. It supports the TP-Link Tether app for monitoring the status of the router. 
2. It has millions of network settings and customization options for you. 
3. It is more affordable, wall-mountable, light-weight, and provides excellent coverage throughout the home. 
4. It supports vivid 8K/4K streaming and online gaming as long as your devices are wireless AX compatible. 
5. The setup of the router is straightforward and simple; it can be set up within 5 to 10 minutes to get everything running. 

I don’t like:

1. It doesn’t support the Link Aggregation feature.  

Summary:

The AX3000 is the only router, on my list, that supports the next generation WiFi 6 technology. It is not one of the cheap routers; however, it costs around $150 and less. You won’t believe, but this WiFI 6 compatible router is more affordable than the most WiFi 5 routers available on the market. 

So, at the end of the review, if you want WiFi 6 router for a small or medium home, then TP-Link Archer AX3000 is going to be an excellent upgrade for you. 

Buying Guide: How to buy the best wireless router under $150 on your own?

Since there are many vital factors to consider, we’ll discuss the only most essential ones. However, most modern routers share the same features and technologies. So it becomes a bit challenging to identify which is good. Therefore, this ultimate buying guide will help you and lets you decide on your own how to pick the best from the market. Let’s get started. 

LAN ports:

LAN ports are known for making multiple wired connections. For that, you connect an ethernet cable to your computer and router. Now, you might be thinking that it is the era of wireless connections, not wired. You should understand that there many smart devices, such as Samsung SmartThings and Philips Hue, which require LAN ports to function. 

However, there are many networking devices also available that allow you to expand the number by adding them to one of the existing LAN ports. In short, I would suggest you buy a router that includes atleast 4 Gigabit Ethernet ports. 

USB Ports:

USB ports are essential to consider, especially in 2021. Using them, you can connect NAS, a flash drive, an external hard drive, and many others. Most modern routers include one USB 3.0 and one USB 2.0 ports. So make sure you look for atleast one USB port on your desired router. 

QoS:

QoS stands for Quality of Service. In other words, you can say traffic control or media prioritization features. With the help of this feature, you can optimize your router’s performance as it offers tons of customization network settings for you. It comes in handy when many devices are connected to the network at a given time. Using the QoS feature, you can enjoy media streaming and a large file downloading simultaneously after giving more of the bandwidth to the particular application as per the usage. 

Management:

It is always better to have a router that offers App-based management rather than web-based. In other words, an App makes it easier to monitor and manage your network better. Moreover, it also alerts you when there is any update available for your router. 

Additional Features:

Tons of other additional features also need to be considered before buying a router. For example, wireless standards, speeds, coverage, router limits, bands (single-band, dual-band, tri-band), MU-MIMO & beamforming, and many others. But, these are standard features, and most routers offer them. So don’t worry about these features. 

FAQs: The most commonly asked questions?

1. Should you buy any router that costs less than $150? 

Of course, we should. You can easily find a great router under $150. As I said earlier, $150 is not a small amount and, in this price range there are tons of mid-range routers available, such as Netgear Nighthawk Archer R6700 (very budget-friendly option) – an excellent option for small to medium homes, Asus RT-AC68U is an ideal option for medium to large homes and if you have the latest WiFi6 supported devices, then consider TP-Link WiFi 6 AX3000. An excellent thing about them is they all costs below $150. 

2. Can you expect a good WiFi 6 wireless router around $150 or less?

Yes, TP-Link has done it for you as it has introduced the TP-Link Archer AX50 router, unlike conventional routers. It supports the latest new-generation WiFi6 technology, which is known for its better, more reliable, and faster WiFI speed. However, if you want to get the most out of it, make sure your device supports the same 802.11AX wireless standards. If you’re interested in buying, then read the full review above. 

3. How much security can a router provide? 

You might have heard of password encryption protocols of a router, such as WPA, WPA2, and the latest WPA3. In order to secure your router, you should atleast go for WAP2. A strong password, using WPA2 and WPA3 encryption, provides an extra layer of protection for your router. All of the routers listed up above are provide you with high-level security options. 

Conclusion:

So my list of best WiFi routers under $150 ends with three unbeatable routers: Netgear Nighthawk R6700, Asus RT-AC68U, and TP-Link Archer AX50. These routers are my overall favorite in terms of performance, features, technologies, and of course, pricing. All of these routers are capable of providing incredible WiFi coverage and reliable WiFi. 

You can choose any one of them which suits your needs the most. In short, the Netgear Nighthawk R6700 is a budget-friendly option yet powerful, Asus RT-AC68U is good for large homes with excellent WiFi coverage throughput, and TP-Link Archer AX50 is a perfect WiFi 6 upgrade for a small to medium home.