RSSI guide
Quick answer: for most homes, aim for about -67 dBm or better in offices, bedrooms, and living rooms. Around -70 dBm is borderline; worse than about -72 dBm often behaves like a Wi‑Fi dead zone.
Fast decision
-67 dBm or better? Usually fix placement first. -70 dBm to -72 dBm? Treat the room as borderline and test node placement. Worse than -72 dBm or still flaky with decent signal? Stop guessing and move to wired backhaul.
RSSI is a rough measurement of Wi‑Fi signal strength. It’s usually shown as a negative number (dBm). Closer to 0 is stronger. This is the fastest way to stop guessing about dead zones.
Quick targets
| RSSI | What it feels like | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| -45 to -60 | Strong, stable | You’re good; do not buy more gear for this room. |
| -60 to -67 | Usually fine for video calls and streaming | Minor placement tweaks only. |
| -67 to -72 | Borderline, especially through walls or on 5 GHz | Move the router/node halfway closer, then retest. |
| -72 to -80 | Unstable / dead zone | Use wired backhaul, a better node location, or a measured coverage upgrade. |
Why RSSI can be misleading
- Interference can ruin performance even with decent RSSI.
- 5 GHz drops faster through walls than 2.4 GHz.
- Backhaul matters: a node with good RSSI but bad backhaul is still flaky.