"It does not reach upstairs" is among the most common calls we get. Before selling anybody a mesh system, we usually ask them to try a few things that cost nothing.
Check where the router is
A lot of routers live in a utility closet, under the TV, or in whichever back bedroom the line happened to come into. All of those are poor. Signal spreads out in every direction, so a corner placement throws half of it out through the wall.
- Get it as central in the house as you reasonably can, even if that means running more cable.
- A meter or so off the floor, not on the carpet or the bottom shelf.
- Away from metal, fish tanks, microwaves and large appliances.
- Antennas vertical, not all folded to one side.
Then check the band
5GHz is fast but poor through walls; 2.4GHz is slower but travels. If a device crawls the moment it goes through one wall, it may be clinging to 5GHz. Most routers let you name the two bands separately so distant devices can be pinned to 2.4GHz.
When you really do need more hardware
If all of that is sorted and there is still a hole, it is a coverage problem. There are two options: an extender, or a mesh system.
Extenders are cheap, but they halve usable bandwidth and often need you to switch network names by hand. Mesh costs more and roams seamlessly, so you do not drop out walking between rooms. Where the budget allows, we recommend mesh nearly every time.
The single most important thing
If you can physically run a cable between the nodes, do it. That beats buying a more expensive model by a wide margin.
