How many devices can I have on my AT&T WiFi?
Here are the different home internet plans offered by AT&T Internet, which allow for multiple device connectivity with varying capabilities. Well, let us now discover how many devices one can connect to AT&T WiFi at the same instance. The short answer is: it depends. Unfortunately, AT&T does not have an exact rule that limits the number of devices on a given WiFi network, but there are some general rules to consider.
The number of devices your AT&T WiFi can support depends primarily on three factors
1. Your AT&T Internet Plan Speed
Well-developed connection speed means one can connect more than one device to the internet at a given period. Typically, AT&T Internet basic packages (10Mbps and below) can accommodate 5 to 10 gadgets. Faster plans over 25Mbps can support more than 20 devices. The fast-speed AT&T fiber Internet starting from 100 Mbps to 1 Gbps can handle over 50 devices without any lag.
2. Type of Devices Connecting
Non-voice devices such as tablets, smart speakers, and smart lights are not resource hogs on the wireless network like devices that stream videos or games. This way, your WiFi can accommodate more lighter usage devices. You will also want to balance the device types and it is ideal to have all the devices in different types.
3. Wireless Router Capabilities
WiFi devices: Your AT&T WiFi router and range extenders also determine the total WiFi device capacity. Different routers, which support 802.11ac have enhanced simultaneous streaming compared to the older routers. Some routers support MU-MIMO and they offer dedicated stream lanes for each connected device. It also helps to extend the coverage with mesh systems or range extenders which also give more bandwidth to share.
How to Get the Most Connected Devices Out Of Your AT&T WiFi
Based on the 3 key factors above, here are some best ways to maximize your AT&T WiFi device capacity without sacrificing speed.
- Thus, even an initial plan of AT&T Internet is quite sufficient for such functionality as web browsing, messaging, etc., covering 5-10 devices.
- For moderate household usage which involves video and music streaming a AT&T Internet plan of 25-50 Mbps is sufficient to cater for up to 15-20 devices.
- Include other devices such as a WiFi range extender to cover more areas and support more devices throughout the whole house.
- This means that for low power consumption, IoT devices should be connected to 2.4GHz while 5GHz should be reserved for high power consumption activities like video streaming and gaming.
- This means that if your WiFi router has MU-MIMO, your devices most used for bandwidth demands should also have MU-MIMO to avoid WiFi problems.
- To support 50+ connected devices, and multiple users streaming and gaming at once, upgrade to AT&T Fiber today with speeds of up to 1Gbps+.
- The Per Device Bandwidth or the Quality of Service can be adjusted through your router’s management interface. Reduce video quality or resolution to cut high-bandwidth processes when necessary.
As a last point, it must be mentioned that even though it becomes clear that AT&T WiFi is capable of supporting 50-100+ devices it is not always convenient to use them when connected to the network. This is so because many connections result in competition for bandwidth that at times slows down speeds.
When considering AT&T Fiber Plans, consider what you consider a ‘good connection’. The largest amount of data will be required in a small household for standard web browsing and light streaming which will be manageable with 10-15 Mbps speeds and with a range of 5-10 devices. Multitasking families watching TV and computer simultaneously will need higher speeds of 100 Mbps+ for 15-20 devices to avoid constant pausing. However, when the number of connected devices increases, even when connected to Gigabit AT&T Fiber, the availability of bandwidth is slowed down, and users become unhappy.
Upgrade to faster, more reliable AT&T Fiber Internet today! Call us at +1 844-905-5002 and get connected with speeds that keep you ahead.