Wifi channels are specific frequency ranges that your router uses to transmit data. Channel size (bandwidth) determines connection speed—wider channels offer faster speeds but shorter range. This article explains how channels work and which channel sizes eero supports.
How do wifi channels work?
Wifi network traffic works by sending data over radio waves at a certain frequency. The ranges of radio wave frequencies are referred to as frequency bands, with wider bands offering higher speeds for data transfer. We refer to a channel's bandwidth as a general measure of how fast data travels on that channel—the more bandwidth, the higher the speed.
While bandwidth is useful for speed, higher bandwidth is not necessarily suitable for every task or environment. Bandwidth has an inverse relationship with reception, meaning that higher bandwidth also means shorter connectivity range. Routers have separate antennas allowing them to communicate over standardized frequencies: 2.4, 5, and 6 gigahertz (GHz).
What are the differences between 2.4, 5, and 6 GHz frequencies?
Bandwidth is measured in megahertz (MHz), and channel widths increase in 20 MHz increments. For our purposes, the most relevant channel widths are 20, 40, 80, 160, 240, and 320 MHz. As mentioned above, the higher the bandwidth is for a given channel, the faster the connection speed will be when connected to it.
The connectivity range of the 2.4 GHz frequency extends much farther than that of 5 GHz. Though because channel widths at 2.4 GHz are limited to either 20 or 40 MHz, connection speeds on 2.4 GHz are slower than 5 GHz.
For the highest speeds, connections at 160 MHz and above are recommended. 160 MHz doubles the throughput compared to 80 MHz channels.
Tri-band routers like the eero Pro 6E can access the newer 6 GHz band, which offers even higher connection speeds than 5 GHz on 20, 40, 80, and 160 MHz channels. However, the connectivity range is even shorter than 5 GHz, and only the newest client devices have 6 GHz radios.
Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be) unlocks channel widths of 320 MHz on the 6 GHz frequency and 240 MHz on both 5 GHz and 6 GHz, offering the fastest wifi speeds yet. If you'd like more information about which channels are supported by eero, check out our Wifi Product Comparison.
Will my devices work with wider channels?
It is important to know that not all client devices support 160 MHz-wide channels, and even fewer support 320 MHz channels. While devices that don't support 160 MHz channels will still connect to eeros that do without issue, they'll only be using half the available bandwidth, and won't see significant improvement compared to a router using 80 MHz channels.
Using 160 MHz channels on 5 GHz requires the network to run within Dynamic Frequency Selection (DFS) channels. If a network using 160 MHz channels encounters a DFS strike, the network will dynamically switch to 80 MHz operation until DFS is available again. Though channels on 6 GHz aren't subject to DFS strikes, the vast majority of wireless devices currently available can't connect on this band.
Note: The 6 GHz band uses WPA3 encryption. This means the eero App's WPA3 setting only affects the 2.4 and 5 GHz bands. Additionally, some devices don't support WPA3 and won't connect to eero networks with WPA3 enabled. See our WPA3 article for more information.