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.
Hi. I would like your advice on TP-Link Archer AX10, is it a better choice over tp-link archer a9 for unifi 500mbps.
Yup, Archer AX10 is a better product than Archer A9.
I’m currently on Unifi 500 mbps using Unifi provided router D-Link DIR 842 found to be too many blind spots on wifi, it also keep disconnected and not stable. Not much issue connecting to LAN. Need coverage of at least 2,500 sq ft. I plan to change to Asus RT-AX88U. It is a good choice and fully compatible with Unifi for 500 mbps as I may in future upgrade to 800 mbps?
ASUS RT-AX88U is a great router but you may want to take a look at mesh WiFi system.
Hi there, I live on a two-story house and I’m currently on Unifi 300mbps and using the unifi stock router (i believe it is the TP-Link Archer AC1200). Why do I sometimes get lag spikes or high latency in online games. Is it due to bandwidth issue or coverage issue???
It is due to router issue, upgrade to a better wireless router.
Hi Alvyn,I’m user of Unifi Lite 10 Mbps.Currently using TM provide modem and router Netis brand.
What is your suggestion to upgrade the router performance?
I got survey and they recommended Tp Link VR400.
Or can I only purchase new router let say Archer C6 connect with current modem+router?
Need your expertise .Too bad my area no Fiber connection yet
If you know how to switch the NETIS to bridge mode then you can buy another router and add on. If not, buy a modem+router combo.
Thanks for you guidance.
Hi, currently i am having a tp link archer 1200 with the 300mbps unifi plan, and when i am at second floor of double storey terraces, the 5ghz wifi will not be able to found, may i know what urs recommendation of router which is able to provide 5ghz wifi on second floor of a double storey terraces? Now my router is set at the first floor
Deco M5 twin pack, replace the existing C1200 with that.
Hi. What is your router(s) recommendation (Price below RM1k) for 3 storey terrace – 3000 sqfts? Main internet point is on ground floor. I dont know whether to buy asus or tp link mesh. It’s better buy 2 routers setup such asus ac67u or triple tp link deco m5 which more or less same price? Or just buy a new an AX router that capable to cover for whole house (if such router exist)? U can recommend any router. Thanx a lot.
Get Deco M9 Plus 2 pack and you should be pretty satisfied. ASUS RT-AC67U performs poorly compared to the Deco M9 Plus.
Hi, I am about to look for a replacement for modem. Currently im using Dlink-615 from unifi which is absolute useless. I am looking for something got good coverage for my 1600sq ft condo and also good wifi speed. Because currently the modem i use, when i use eternet cable, the speed can go up to 100mbps. But when wifi, it is only 6-7mbps which is sad. I have about 10-15 devices connecting everyday including a cctv, is it hard to set up the cctv? they are connected through two wireless linkpoints. Please recommend me a good modem which is… Read more »
I would recommend you to get the TP-Link Deco M5 mesh WiFi. It is a great product.
I just bought a Tenda AC11 router from Shopee to replace the stock Archer C5 router from TM. Unfortunately he couldn’t connect eventhough username and password to ISP is correct. TM customer service it could be due to VLAN tagging 500 for internet and 600 for HyppTV. I even add VLAN ID 500 and 600 in the IPTV Tenda setup screen under Advanced but it just couldn’t work. Will buying a 5-port TP-Link Easy Smart Switch solve all the problems of being a Router? Otherwise I only can use this AC11 as an Universal Repeater at the 2nd living hall… Read more »
I have heard from my other readers new firmware do not support HyppTV that well. Try to return the Tenda.
I am not interested in the HyppTV (using EVPAD) but I want AC11 to work as a router replacing my TP-Link Archer C5. Will the Smart Switch help?
Yes
Hi, is tp link n300 compatible for unifi.
Which model?
Hi! is Totolink T10 support hyptv? im planning to use mesh wifi system, but didn’t sure which product support hypptv n unifi. Right now im on unifi plan with hypptv, can u suggest me for affordable mesh wifi that support hypptv?
Hello, Alvyn. I bought a TP-Link C2300 based on your recommendation last time and I love the speed and range it offers. Thank you very much for that.
I’d like to ask one question about the router. Does it have IPv6 firewall? If it doesn’t, is it still advisable to use IPv6 on UniFi? Thank you.
I don’t really normal users to use IPV6 now. It doesn’t have any benefit and I believe TM IPV6 routing still have issues ocassionally.
I have purchased a xiao mi router AC2100,the router does’t not support TM Unifi …