Is Ethernet Better Than Wi-Fi?
Ethernet is the better connection for speed, low latency and reliability, while Wi-Fi wins on mobility and convenience, so the right choice depends on the task. For many setups, the best answer is using both at once.
Speedify is an app that combines Wi-Fi, 4G/5G cellular, Ethernet, Starlink and satellite internet connections at the same time, so you can use Wi-Fi and Ethernet together for faster downloads and uploads, with automatic failover if one drops. On a single connection, Speedify works as an encrypted VPN and cannot make that connection faster. Here is how Wi-Fi and Ethernet compare, and when to use each.
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Wired Ethernet: Consistent Speed, Low Latency and Better Security
Wi-Fi and cellular networks now cover almost every square foot, but wired Ethernet still has real benefits for everyday users:
- Consistent speeds: wired Ethernet connections don’t fluctuate like Wi-Fi. Data flow remains solid from end to end. For example, a CAT 6A cable supports 10,000 Mbps (10 Gbps) over 100 meters (328 feet).
- Low latency: Ethernet has lower latency than Wi-Fi, because there is no wireless signal to transmit, contend for or retransmit. Latency matters for real-time applications like online gaming and video conferencing, where every millisecond counts.
- Higher security: thanks to its physical connection, wired Ethernet is more secure, making it harder to hack or interfere with than a wireless network connection like Wi-Fi.
Some of the most obvious downsides of wired Ethernet are:
- Cluttered setup: again, due to its wired nature, you have to plan for routes for the wires through your home, office or studio, linking the modem(s) / router(s) with your devices.
- More expensive: for a wired Ethernet setup the cost can be higher if you add all the cables, fixtures and other needed physical components when installing the whole network where you need it.
Wi-Fi: Mobility and Convenience Without Cables
Wi-Fi is the most popular way to get online at home, because almost every router is also wireless, and Wi-Fi lets you work from the couch or the yard with a laptop. The benefits of Wi-Fi:
- Mobility: Wi-Fi is available nearly everywhere and allows mobility. You can stream music or watch Netflix on your laptop or tablet while moving around.
- Convenience: Wi-Fi needs no cables, which suits laptops, phones and tablets, and devices far from the router, like smart TVs.
- Accessibility: Wi-Fi is supported by all new household devices that have access to the internet.
On the other hand, there are also some shortcomings to using Wi-Fi, which you might encounter depending on what you’re doing online:
- Inconsistent and slow speeds: a wireless signal is easily obstructed, which makes its speed unreliable. If the Wi-Fi signal has to pass through several walls, performance drops sharply, especially on the 5 GHz band. In residential areas, the many Wi-Fi networks around you also interfere with each other and cause performance problems.
- High latency: transmitting a wireless signal involves extra steps that add milliseconds to latency, and an obstructed signal adds more on top of the connection’s ping.
- Dropped connections: at the edge of a Wi-Fi network the signal becomes inconsistent, and even though your device shows one or two bars, the connection is close to unusable.
When to Choose Wi-Fi and When to Choose Ethernet
Wi-Fi works for most everyday uses. When you need a reliable connection, use wired Ethernet if it is available.
Real world situations for using Wi-Fi include:
- when you’re on the move
- when you’re working remotely
- when you’re streaming music / videos.
Ethernet is best used when:
- live streaming online
- gaming online
- transferring large files online quickly.
Use Wi-Fi and Ethernet Together with Speedify
Sometimes neither wired Ethernet nor Wi-Fi is reliable enough on its own. If both come from the same internet provider, an outage or slowdown at that provider hits both at once.
A dropout or a lag spike is a serious problem when you’re live streaming, playing games online or working remotely on conference calls, where you can’t afford to lose connectivity or suffer high latency and low speeds.
Speedify is an app that combines all of your internet connections to keep you online when it matters most. On a computer, you can combine your wired Ethernet connection with your Wi-Fi connection for a faster, more reliable and encrypted connection, and if one drops, traffic moves to the other. For best results, get the two connections from two different providers, so that if one fails, Speedify keeps you online on the other.
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