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Your router probably lives wherever the installer left it: a basement corner, a closet by the front door, a shelf behind the TV. Nobody chose that spot for your Wi-Fi. It’s simply where the cable came through the wall.
That one accident decides how fast the internet feels in every other room. Before you buy an extender or a mesh kit, it’s worth knowing what’s actually blocking your signal, where your router should go, and which hardware fixes which problem. Placement comes first, because it’s free.
Why Walls Matter More Than Distance
Wi-Fi weakens with distance, but what sits in the way matters more. Signal loss is measured in decibels (dB). As a rule of thumb, every 3 dB of loss cuts the signal’s strength roughly in half, and 10 dB cuts it to a tenth.
Here’s roughly what common materials cost you, based on approximate attenuation figures for building materials:
| What’s in the way | Loss on 2.4 GHz | Loss on 5 GHz |
|---|---|---|
| Drywall or a light interior wall | 3–6 dB | 5–10 dB |
