Unifi Router Buyer's Guide in 2021
If you use Unifi at your home, you are probably not so happy with the speed and stability of the WiFi network. That’s because TM is still a business and they cannot give an expensive router while remain profitable. But, luckily, TM doesn’t stop you from buying your own router.
While the router provided by TM isn’t too bad, they have slower CPU and weaker WiFi coverage. This means they aren’t very good if you stay in a bigger home or if you have more WiFi devices at home. Thus, in this article, I will show you some WiFi routers that I’ve tested that will recommend for you to upgrade your home WiFi router.
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⚠️ This guide is only intended for Unifi Fibre users!
Table of Contents
Unifi Fibre Equipment Overview
All Unifi Fibre installation come with 2 devices which is the fibre modem and WiFi router. The Fibre modem comes with lifetime warranty from TM and it is non-user replaceable. But, don’t worry as the WiFi router rarely breaks down and it performs well. What we will be focussing is the WiFi router part which will impact all your home networking performance.
Unifi Router Brands
Once you purchased the new router, please request your Unifi login ID and Password from TM. You will need them when configuring your new router. Once you got everything ready, remove your old wireless router and connect the new router to the ONU. You have to reconfigure your new wireless router. The process depends on the brand of the router but generally, you just need to insert the PPPOE ID and password and select the Unifi profile on the router.
TP-Link Unifi Router
TP-Link routers are fully compatible with Unifi. TP-Link offers really good value for money as their routers are usually cheaper while delivering the same level of performance compared to their competitors. They offer a 3 years warranty on all their networking products.
You can refer to my guide on how to setup TP-Link Unifi router here.
| Model | WiFi Specification | Suggested Plan | Beamforming | MU-MIMO | Maximum NAT speed | Retail Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Archer C5400X Gaming | AC5400 | 800Mbps | ✔ | ✔ | 941Mbps | RM1499 |
| Archer C5400 | AC5400 | 800Mbps | ✔ | ✔ | 941Mbps | RM949 |
| Archer C4000 | AC4000 | 800Mbps | ✔ | ✔ | 941Mbps | RM999 |
| Archer C3150 | AC3150 | 800Mbps | ✔ | ✔ | 941Mbps | RM799 |
| Archer C2300 | AC2300 | 800Mbps | ✔ | ✔ | 941Mbps | RM639 |
| Deco M9 Plus Mesh | AC2200 | 500Mbps | ✔ | ✔ | 800Mbps | RM999 |
| Archer A10 | AC2600 | 800Mbps | ✔ | ✔ | 941Mbps | RM639 |
| Archer A9 | AC1900 | 500Mbps | ✔ | ✔ | 941Mbps | RM439 |
| Archer C9 | AC1900 | 500Mbps | ✔ | – | 941Mbps | RM469 |
| Deco M5 Mesh | AC1300 | 500Mbps | ✔ | ✔ | 800Mbps | RM439 |
| Deco M4 Mesh | AC1200 | 300Mbps | ✔ | ✔ | 800Mbps | RM399 |
| Archer C7/ A7 | AC1750 | 500Mbps | – | – | 800Mbps | RM312 |
| Archer C6/ A6 | AC1200 | 300Mbps | ✔ | ✔ | 941Mbps | RM209 |
| Archer C1200 | AC1200 | 300Mbps | – | – | TBD | RM279 |
Do note that HyppTV do not work on their Deco mesh series of products but Internet is working properly.
Asus Unifi Router
Asus is another well known brand in the wireless router industry. They are slightly more expensive but they have really solid performance and the AsusWRT firmware offers the most comprehensive set of features. Asus also pioneer their AiMesh technology which allows you to use several compatible Asus routers to form a high performance mesh network. Asus routers come with 3 years of warranty in Malaysia.
You can refer to my guide on how to setup Asus Unifi router here.
| Model | WiFi Specs | Suggested Plan | AiMesh | BF | MU-MIMO | Maximum Internet Speed | Price Range |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RT-AX88U | AX6000 | 800Mbps | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | 941Mbps | Unreleased |
| Asus ROG Rapture GT-AC5300 Gaming | AC5300 | 800Mbps | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | 941Mbps | RM2489 |
| RT-AC5300 | AC5300 | 800Mbps | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | 941Mbps | RM2209 |
| RT-AC88U | AC3100 | 800Mbps | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | 941Mbps | RM1809 |
| Asus Blue Cave | AC2600 | 800Mbps | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | 941Mbps | RM1099 |
| RT-AC68U | AC1900 | 500Mbps | ✔ | ✔ | – | 850Mbps | RM1039 |
| Lyra Trio Mesh | AC1750 | 500Mbps | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | 850Mbps | RM1579 |
| Lyra Mesh | AC2200 | 500Mbps | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | 850Mbps | RM999 |
| RT-AC66U B1 | AC1750 | 300Mbps | ✔ | ✔ | – | 941Mbps | RM859 |
| RT-AC1300UHP | AC1300 | 300Mbps | ✔ | ✔ | ~500Mbps | RM569 | |
| RT-AC58U | AC1300 | 300Mbps | ✔ | ✔ | ~500Mbps | RM479 | |
| RT-AC1200G+ | AC1200 | 100Mbps | – | – | ~400Mbps | RM449 |
D-Link Unifi Router
You probably heard of D-Link before as they are one of the oldest brand selling networking gear in Malaysia. They also produce some really great networking equipment. New D-Link routers are fully compatible with Unifi. They are also rather affordable while delivering good performance.
You can refer to my guide on how to setup D-Link Unifi router here.
| Model | WiFi Specification | Beamforming | MU-MIMO | Ethernet Port | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DIR-895L | AC5300 | ✔ | ✔ | 4 x Gigabit | RM1599 |
| DIR-882 | AC2600 | ✔ | ✔ | 4 x Gigabit | RM698 |
| DIR-878 | AC1900 | ✔ | ✔ | 4 x Gigabit | RM518 |
| DIR-867 | AC1750 | ✔ | ✔ | 4 x Gigabit | RM399 |
| DIR-868L | AC1750 | ✔ | – | 4 x Gigabit | – |
| DIR-842 | AC1200 | ✔ | ✔ | 4 x Gigabit | RM289 |
Other Brands (Tenda, Netgear and etc)
There are also other brands in the market and most if not all Enterprise level gear can be configured to support Unifi. But, we do not include them in this list as they may be harder to configure for most users.
Netgear is known for requiring manual setup of VLAN for it to work with Unifi.
Hello BlackTubi,
Would the Belkin F7D3302sa (please refer to the website below) wireless router be compatible to run on the TM Unifi service, do you know?
Andrew
Highly unlikely
D LINK Dir 878 is it compitible with unifi advance 50Mbps.
Yes, it is compatible
Hi, I’ve got a Linksys EA7500 but can’t seem to get it to work. Even after entering the user and password + selection PPPoE.
Any suggestions?
Hi, you will need to configure VLAN for Unifi to work.
Hi. Just installed unifi from TM at 30 Mbps and speed test says this being achieved. However when streaming TV via android it is worse than non fibre connection. Would cable connection help vs Wifi ?
Maybe you can try a direct LAN connection to the router and enable multicast.
Hi …
Is the ASUS AC5300 router compatible with Maxis Home Fibre? And will the DECT phone work with it as well?
Thanks
Hi,
Yes, it is compatible with Maxis Home Fibre. However, if you want to remain the Dect Phone, the Maxis provided router need to be retained as a VOIP bridge.
Hi, do all routers mentioned above support multiple static public IP’s? I am seeking a replacement router for our faulty router in office but from what I understand, not many routers support this (we have additional 5 public IP’s).
Unfortunately, it is very limited. You will have to contact TM to get their proprietary router. Alternatively, you can consider enterprise routers but they are difficult to configure.
Ok thanks then. Enterprise routers will be too expensive for us to purchase and maintain.
Hi Justin,
I have exactly the same problem as you had, 5 static public ip and a broken router. Please share which Model and Brand did you choose to solve your problem? Would you recommend the same for me?
Hi blacktubi i saw a TP Link AC1750 at lazada and do you think it can be use in Malaysia UniFi Or Maxis fiber? The firmware english or chinese version.
http://www.lazada.com.my/tp-link-ac1750-wireless-dual-band-gigabit-wi-fi-router-archer-c7-ac1750-networking-system-48060482.html?spm=a2o4k.search.0.0.cCATaH&ff=1
Thank you for your expert advice:))
Hi, this is the Archer C7 and it is compatible with Unifi
Hi.
Yesterday I installed unifi 30mbps in the living room. Which one router is ideal for 2 bungalows? These bunglow is connected.
It depends how big is the bungalow and your budget.
Hi, please advise if Asus AC1900p is compatible with unifi.
Thanks.
It should be compatible but it is untested.
Hi kelpa32,
My wife and I have the same problem. Seems to be an android phone compatibility problem with this particular model. Laptop works fine; although the upload speedtest is slow to start (there’s a delay then it picks up)
Tested on samsung S6 and Note Edge. 50mbps download speed (50mbps package) but 0.2-0.3 upload speed on speednet app.
Change encryption to AES from TKIP. Possibly the root cause
Hi. Got a free TP- Link Archer C5 with my Unifi 50mbps in a big house. I want to set up a VPN on the router and there doesn’t seem to be an option on the C5 router. So I reckon I would need to buy a new router. Is there any router that can work out of the box for that purpose? Would very much appreciate your recommendation. I prefer to keep my budget well below RM 1000 if that’s possible. Thanks
Hi Alex, I recommend Asus routers as they have the best VPN compatibility. The RT-AC68U fit your budget.
Hi blacktubi,
I just subcribed unifi lite about a month ago & would like to change the modem+router+wifi device. Can u recommend which one is unifi-compatible, budget <rm400.
The current unifi setup is zte model zxhn h267a, it's an all-in-one modem+router+wifi, no more separate modem & wifi router.
You will have to try VDSL modems router combo. I have set to try them but I will try soon.