Wi‑Fi 7 Speed Tests & Placement Guide

Quick summary

Plan node height and spacing, then test near‑, mid‑, and far‑room spots with the same device. Prefer wired backhaul for main nodes; tune channels and power for stability.

Case study: one small move, big upload gains

In a plaster‑and‑lath colonial, moving the living‑room node from a TV cabinet to an open bookshelf raised uploads from ~40–60 Mb/s to ~120–180 Mb/s at the far couch. Calls stopped stuttering, and streaming DVR uploads finished reliably.

We kept 80 MHz on 6 GHz, reduced 5 GHz to 40 MHz to cut overlap with a nearby office AP, and labeled final node locations for future service.

Placement rules of thumb

Mount or place high on open shelves; avoid behind TVs
Center of home where possible; avoid corners/closets
Keep 1–2 rooms of separation for mesh nodes
Use Ethernet for backhaul where feasible

How to test room‑by‑room

Use the same device and test server, then record near/mid/far results in each room. Compare before/after small placement changes. Focus on consistency and upload stability for calls.

Run each test twice and average. Flag rooms where upload or jitter dips; that’s where placement or backhaul changes pay off most.

Room	Near	Mid	Far	Notes
Living room	—	—	—	TVs and cabinets often block signal; raise node
Office	—	—	—	Watch for metal desks; prefer corridor placement
Bedroom	—	—	—	Doors and mirrors can change results between runs

Measurement protocol (repeatable results)

Test on a single device on 5 GHz and 6 GHz separately when supported. Disable VPNs and background sync. Use the same server, run two passes per spot, and average.

Record download, upload, and jitter. Favor stable upload and low jitter for video calls. Note wall materials between node and test spot.

Wired vs wireless: where each fits

Evaluation thresholds (what good looks like)

>= 300 Mb/s down and >= 100 Mb/s up with jitter < 10 ms in busy rooms
>= 150 Mb/s down and >= 50 Mb/s up in far rooms behind one wall
If upload or jitter dips below targets, re‑place node or wire backhaul

Pro tip: Calls and uploads are the canary — prioritize their stability over peak download numbers.

Apps and tools we use

Speed tests: Ookla, Fast.com, or local iPerf server
Wi‑Fi scan: Airport Utility (iOS), WiFiman/NetSpot (Android/desktop)
Logging: spreadsheet with room, near/mid/far, notes, and after‑move retests

iPerf local testing (optional but precise)

For LAN throughput independent of ISP, run an iPerf server on a wired computer and point your test device at it over Wi‑Fi. This isolates placement effects from internet variability and makes before/after comparisons clearer.

Troubleshooting patterns

Near‑room strong but mid/far collapse → backhaul hop is wireless; wire it or reduce channel width
Spiky results across the home → too‑wide channels or overlapping nodes; tune power and placement
Good download but poor upload → interference or contention; move node and retest