If you want the best, you want the Asus AC3100 PCIe Wireless Adapter. While it’s not nearly as portable as some of the other wireless adapters, it will keep you running at peak performance. Not to mention, it looks FREAKIN’ cool!

And finally, for both price and budget, you can’t beat the Inamax USB AC1200 USB 3.0 Dual-Band Wireless Adapter. While there is a cheaper option on our list, we think the small price difference is worth paying.

If you want a great wireless adapter, that isn’t a PCI/PCIe option, then the Netgear Nighthawk AC1900 A7000 WiFi USB Wireless Adapter is your best bet. The Nighthawk series can’t be beat for price and quality.

How we Picked

Ever wanted to take your computer somewhere, but can’t because you’re tied to the modem/router?

After today, that shouldn’t be a problem anymore. When you install a wireless adapter, you really open up your options to move around.

But we also understand that finding the right wireless adapter can be frustrating. There are hundreds of options, and everybody is saying that theirs is the best. In fact, they spend millions to make sure you trust them over everyone else.

But which wireless adapter is truly right for you?

Well, we’ve put together a list of wireless adapters that we trust will meet all of your needs and your budget requirements. And if you need even more information, we’ve included a buyer’s guide and a frequently asked questions section below.

Asus AC3100 PCIe Wireless Adapter

Specs:

• 802.11ac AC3100
• 5GHz at 2100Mbps + 2.4GHz at 1000Mbps
• 4 Antennas

For the gamer, this is one of the best wireless adapters you can get. It connects to your computer using an open PCIe slot and has plenty of onboard heatsinks to keep your card from overheating. With an AC3100 rating, you won’t have to worry about lag from your wireless connection (if your router isn’t the problem).

Asus has been around for quite some time. In that time, they’ve gotten pretty good at providing quality components at reasonable prices. And the Asus AC3100 is a shining example of this.

Starting off, this is an AC3100 wireless adapter. The Asus AC3100 achieves this by utilizing both the 2.4GHz (1000Mbps) and the 5.0Ghz (2100Mbps) bands. For gamers, this is an absolute dream. You really shouldn’t have to worry about ping spikes anymore.

The Asus AC3100 comes with FOUR antennas for maximum coverage and reception. Plus, because the antenna adapter uses R-SMA antenna connectors, you can use other antennas if you so choose.

PCIe cards like this often heat up with all the work that they are doing, but Asus absolutely loaded this wireless adapter with heatsinks (it almost looks like a heatsink with a few antennas attached).

Being that the Asus AC3100 is built for speed, you’ll be glad to know that it can handle up to Gigabit connections like a champ. Most users report that it can cleanly reach 800+ (up/down) consistently. Of course, you’ll need to make sure that your modem/router is capable of providing those speeds as well.

Of the complaints we’ve seen from customers, most were in relation to external circumstances such as inconsistent ISP speeds, lower speed modem/router, and incompatible operating systems (Linux).

But all in all, the Asus AC3100 is no slouch and should not be regarded as such. It’s loaded with features, power, and range. And Asus made sure to add other features in as well, including MU-MIMO and beamforming. For anyone who needs an ultra-fast wireless connection, you can’t really go wrong with this option.

Rosewill RNX AC1900PCE Wireless Adapter

Specs:

• 802.11ac AC1900
• 5GHz at 1300Mbps + 2.4GHz at 600Mbps
• 3 Antennas

For the gamer that needs a lot, but wants to spend less, this is a great option. This is another PCIe option with plenty of onboard heatsinks to make sure you don’t get slowed down from an overheated wireless adapter. With an AC1900 rating, you’ll be able to do most everything you want without any lag issues.

Rosewill has started becoming quite the household name. In the past few years, they’ve gotten really good at making high-quality components just like the RNX AC1900.

The RNX AC1900 is built for speed by utilizing the 2.4GHz (600Mbps) and the 5.0GHz (1300Mbps) bands. While it doesn’t reach the same speeds as the Asus 3100 PCIe Wireless Adapter above, it is still a formidable foe. Again, this is easily enough for gaming if your router can hold up.

The RNX AC1900 comes with three antennas for long range and reliable connectivity. And, you can connect other antennas if you need to increase your range and/or power requirements.

As we stated earlier, PCI/PCIe cards tend to get hotter from heavier use and being installed inside of an enclosure (i.e. your computer). But Rosewill made sure that the RNX AC1900 has plenty of heatsink surface area to keep your card cool.

Users of the RNX AC1900 have reported that this is one of the most reliable cards they’ve used. The signal strength and quality are exceptional, with 99.99%+ connection stability. In most cases, the speed doesn’t appear to drop until is has to pass through multiple barriers (i.e. three or more walls). And if you’ve got a Gigabit service provider, you should easily see 800Mbps+ connections consistently (if your ISP and router/modem support those speeds).

There have been a few complaints from Linux users primarily and it being incompatible with most of the OS’es. It also appears that the Windows Founders Edition 1709 update can cause a few problems (which can be rectified) with connection stability.

While the RNX AC1900 is not an ASUS AC3100, it is a great budget option that will handle most of your wireless needs without any issues. And Rosewill did manage to slip in some other nice features including beamforming and MU-MIMO to make sure that the decision between our number 1 and this one was a little harder than it should be.

TP-Link Archer T6E AC1300 And TxE Series Wireless Adapter

Specs:

• 802.11ac AC1300
• 5GHz at 867Mbps + 2.4GHz at 400Mbps
• 2 Antennas

For someone on a budget, who wants a little more speed and reliability than a USB wireless adapter can offer, the T6E AC1300 will fit the bill perfectly. It’s not as fast as the first two options, but it’s not a snail either. And it has a small footprint which will work great in Micro-ATX builds.

TP-Link is another company that is making a good name for themselves in the component industry. They find a way to squeeze high-quality parts into the most budget-conscious components.

The T6E AC1300 is a dual-band wireless adapter with speeds of 867Mbps on the 5GHz band and 400Mbps on the 2.4GHz band. While it will work for most applications, gamers might not get the same stable experience that they would from one of the two previously mentioned options above, but on shorter distances it should still be fine.

The T6E AC1300 uses two antennas, both externally attached to help communicate with your wireless router/modem. If you need to connect a different antenna, you can by simply swapping out to the desired antenna(s) you want.

One thing we would like to point out is the heatsink. For such a small wireless adapter, TP-Link found a way to include a large, efficient heat sink to keep heat from becoming an issue. This is good as this will likely be installed in a lot of Micro-ATX type installations.

Most users have reported that the 2.4GHz band absolutely rocks over long distances and through walls. Users who are capable of 100Mbps+ report still being able to achieve speeds of 85Mbps+ (when using a 100Mbps+ connection) even when stretched all across their home or across different floors. But the 5GHz band is a little spottier (which is to be expected – faster, not built for distance or obstructions) providing about 50% of the data speeds provided at the modem/router.

Some users have experienced issues when attempting to install this card. It seems that TP-Link does not include the drivers with the card (odd). Most users don’t have any issues, but some do as the drivers might need to be downloaded first (you can download them here). To be sure, go to the TP-Link website and make sure you’ve downloaded the drivers before attempting to install the new card.

For those looking for a smaller footprint and a lower price point, the T6E AC1300 is perfect. While it doesn’t have certain features such as MU-MIMO and/or beamforming, it has enough speed to work for most gamers and for everyone else.

TRENDnet AC1900 TEW-809UB Wireless Adapter

Specs:

• 802.11ac AC1900
• 5GHz at 1300Mbps + 2.4GHz at 600Mbps
• 1 to 4 Antennas

Looking for something that doesn’t go inside of your computer? Then you’ll love the AC1900 TEW-809UB. It connects using a USB cable and works with FOUR antennas to give you great range and reliability, all without having to open up your case.

TRENDnet has been building quality wireless components for years now and the AC1900 TEW-809UB is no exception.

The AC1900 TEW-809UB is one of the biggest USB wireless adapters we’ve seen, but for good reason. It is built to be bigger, better, and faster than other wireless options, even holding its own against PCI/PCIe options. It is a dual-band wireless adapter kicking out 1300Mbps at 5GHz and 600Mbps at 2.4GHz. For gaming, this could be a fairly reliable option – especially for a USB connection.

The AC1900 TEW-809UB has the ability to use up to four antennas, depending on your needs. Of course, we’re going to recommend you use all of them (because why not?) as it’s already built for it and it just makes connections more reliable. If you do need to remove the antennas, you can be simply unscrewing them and setting them aside (you will lose range and reliability with each antenna you remove).

Users have reported that the AC1900 TEW-809UB is able to provide reliable connections at 150ft+ through walls (concrete and/or metal) and floors. Speed wise, it can easily make those long, high-def video downloads (2k and 4k) seem short.

It seems that TRENDnet also doesn’t include the drivers with the wireless adapter (is this a new trend?). Because of this, users were forced to download drivers from the manufacturers website if it wasn’t automatically detected. There doesn’t seem to be any compatibility issues with either Windows or Linux, but the OSX operating system seems problematic.

For a USB wireless adapter, the AC1900 TEW-809UB is a BEAST! It’s crazy that TRENDnet was able to pack so much into the TEW-809UB. It’s fast, it’s reliable, it does not have to be installed in your computer. People report that it’s not OSX compatible, though we didn’t test this out ourselves.