Australia ranks third in Asia-Pacific for Wi-Fi 7, but most homes are a generation behind
Ookla's Q3 data puts Wi-Fi 7 at about 8.6 per cent of Australian Speedtest connections, and many newer phones are still held back by older routers.
Australia sits third in the Asia-Pacific for Wi-Fi 7 adoption, according to an Ookla report covered by WhistleOut. The figures come from Speedtest use during the third quarter of 2026.
Wi-Fi 7 made up about 8.6 per cent of Australian connections. Wi-Fi 6 and 6E accounted for 51.4 per cent, Wi-Fi 5 for 27.6 per cent, and older generations for 12.5 per cent. Singapore led the region, with Wi-Fi 7 at 34.1 per cent of samples.
Where homes lose speed
The more useful number may be the mismatch between phones and routers. Around 30 per cent of Australian smartphones that support Wi-Fi 6 or newer were connecting over Wi-Fi 5. In Singapore that figure was 9.7 per cent. In Indonesia it was 79.9 per cent.
Australia’s median fixed download speed was 180.57 Mbps. The report found that Australian homes moving to Wi-Fi 5 saw median downloads rise 204 per cent, while those moving to Wi-Fi 6 or newer saw a 527.1 per cent rise.
What it means
With NBN Co reporting that 37 per cent of services were on 500 Mbps or faster plans by June, the home router is increasingly the slowest part of the connection. Anyone paying for those tiers should check what their router supports before blaming the network.