Why are my speeds slow in one area or on one device?

Wifi speeds are affected by many factors, such as your internet connection, the number of connected devices, device hardware, and your home’s physical environment. If you are experiencing slow speeds with one device, or in a particular area of the home, but not in other locations or with other devices, you can isolate the issue to the device or the eero in that location, rather than the network as a whole.

What affects speeds in one area or on one device?

Wifi signals get weaker with distance and when passing through objects like walls, floors, and large appliances. The more material between your device and the nearest eero, the more your speeds can be affected.

Common factors include:

• Distance between your device and the nearest eero

• Walls, floors, and large furniture between your device and the eero

• Building materials (concrete and brick reduce signal more than drywall or wood)

• Nearby appliances or electronics that can cause interference

• Your device's wifi capabilities (older devices may not support faster speeds)

• Other devices on your network using bandwidth at the same time

Before you troubleshoot

Before testing speeds, turn off SQM (Smart Queue Management) if it's enabled. SQM manages traffic to reduce buffering, but it can limit speed test results and make it harder to identify the actual issue.

1. Open the eero app, and tap Settings.

2. Tap Network settings.

3. Tap SQM.

4. Toggle SQM off.

Note: You can turn SQM back on after troubleshooting.

Slow speeds on a single device (wireless)

1. Check which eero your device is connected to. Open the eero app, find your device, and confirm it's connected to the nearest eero.

2. If your device isn't connected to the closest eero, turn wifi off on your device, wait 5 seconds, then turn it back on. This encourages your device to reconnect to the nearest eero.

3. If your device still connects to a farther eero, forget the network on your device and reconnect.

4. Make sure your device supports the speeds you expect. Older devices or devices with older wifi standards may not be capable of the same speeds as devices with newer wifi standards..

5. Check if other devices on your network are using a large amount of bandwidth. Activities like downloading games, syncing cloud storage, or streaming on multiple devices can reduce available speeds.

6. Try testing speeds on a different device in the same location. If the second device gets faster speeds, the issue is likely with the original device's wifi capabilities.

Note: If your device connects well in other areas of your home but struggles in one spot, the problem is likely environmental rather than device-related. See the section below.

Slow speeds on a single device (wired)

If a device is connected to your eero with an Ethernet cable and getting slow speeds:

1. Check your Ethernet cable type. Cat5 cables are limited to 100 Mbps. Most Cat5e cables support up to 1 Gbps. If your device and eero support faster speeds, you may need a Cat6 or higher cable.

2. Try a different Ethernet cable. Damaged cables can reduce speeds even if the connection appears active.

3. Try a different Ethernet port on your eero (if available).

4. Connect the same cable and device to a different eero to rule out a hardware issue with a specific port.

5. Test with a different device using the same cable and port. If the second device gets expected speeds, the issue may be with the original device.

Note: If your device's Ethernet adapter only supports 100 Mbps, speeds will be limited regardless of your cable or eero model.

Slow speeds in one area of your home

1. Check the placement of the eero covering that area. Make sure it isn't in an enclosed space like a closet, cabinet, or behind large furniture.

2. Look for potential sources of interference near the eero, such as microwaves, baby monitors, cordless phones, or other wireless devices.

3. Try moving the eero to a more open location with fewer walls and obstacles between it and the area where you need coverage.

4. If you have a wireless eero (not connected by Ethernet), make sure it's receiving a strong signal from the rest of your network. A wireless eero that's too far from other eeros generally can’t transmit consistent strong speeds.

5. Test speeds standing next to the eero. If speeds are fast next to the eero but slow in the area you need coverage, there may be too many obstacles between the eero and that location.

6. If speeds are still slow, swap that eero with one from a location that's working well. The results tell you whether the problem follows the eero or stays in the location.

7. If moving the eero doesn't help, you may need an additional eero to improve coverage in that area.

Note: External walls are generally thicker and use denser materials than interior walls. If you're trying to get coverage outside or through an exterior wall, speeds may be significantly reduced.

If speeds are still slow

If you've tried the steps above and speeds haven't improved:

1. Restart the eero covering that area in the eero app.

2. Run a speed test using a different speed test server. Try at least two different servers (such as speedtest.net and fast.com) and run 2–3 tests on each to get a reliable average.

3. If the issue persists across multiple devices and locations, the problem may be network-wide rather than isolated. See Why is my entire eero network slow?