Almost every laptop made in the last fifteen years has Wi-Fi and Bluetooth built in, so it is fair to ask why anyone would buy an adapter for either. The answer is that built-in radios break, get old, or simply are not good enough for the job in front of them. A small adapter that plugs into a USB port can bring an older laptop up to date, rescue one whose wireless has failed, or reach a router that the built-in aerial cannot. This guide explains when an adapter is worth it, what the Wi-Fi and Bluetooth names on the box mean, how to set one up, and where to put it so it works well.
When a laptop needs one
A USB Wi-Fi adapter
A USB Wi-Fi adapter gives a laptop a second Wi-Fi radio. It is worth having when:
- The built-in Wi-Fi has stopped working. A failed Wi-Fi card inside a laptop can be awkward or expensive to replace. A USB adapter gets it back online in minutes.
- The laptop is old. An older laptop may only support older Wi-Fi standards, or only the 2.4 GHz band. An adapter with a newer standard can make better use of a modern router.
- The signal is weak. Laptops have small aerials hidden in the lid. An adapter with a larger aerial, or one on a short cable that can be moved, often holds a better signal in a room far from the router.
- The laptop runs a system its Wi-Fi card does not support well. This happens with some older laptops after a change of operating system.
An adapter will not make your broadband faster than the line coming into the house. If every device in the house is slow, the problem is the connection or the router, not the laptop.
A USB Bluetooth adapter
A Bluetooth adapter adds Bluetooth to a laptop that has none, replaces Bluetooth that has failed, or brings an older version up to date. Older Bluetooth can be the reason headphones drop out, a mouse lags, or newer devices will not connect at all. It is also a cheap fix for a desktop computer with no Bluetooth, if you are setting one up beside the laptop.
Signs the built-in wireless is the problem
Before buying an adapter, it is worth checking that the laptop is really the weak link. Some signs that it is:
- other devices in the same spot, such as a phone, get a good Wi-Fi signal and speed while the laptop does not;
- the laptop cannot see the 5 GHz version of your network, only the 2.4 GHz one, which points to an older Wi-Fi card;
- Wi-Fi or Bluetooth has vanished from the laptop's settings altogether, or switches itself off;
- a new pair of headphones or a new mouse will not pair, while it pairs with a phone straight away.
If every device in the house struggles in the same spot, the answer is more likely a better position for the router, or a mesh system or extender for the house, than an adapter for one laptop.
When a cable is better
For a laptop that sits on the same desk every day, a wired connection is often better than any wireless adapter. An Ethernet adapter plugs into a USB port and takes an Ethernet cable from the router, giving a steady connection that does not drop when someone turns on the microwave. Many docking stations include an Ethernet socket too.
Wi-Fi standards in plain words
Wi-Fi has gone through several generations. The Wi-Fi Alliance, which certifies Wi-Fi products, gave them simple numbers so they are easier to tell apart. The engineering names, which begin 802.11, still appear on boxes and in settings screens, so it helps to know both.
| Name | Engineering name | Bands |
|---|---|---|
| Wi-Fi 4 | 802.11n | 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz |
| Wi-Fi 5 | 802.11ac | 5 GHz |
| Wi-Fi 6 | 802.11ax | 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz |
| Wi-Fi 6E | 802.11ax | Adds 6 GHz |
| Wi-Fi 7 | 802.11be | 2.4, 5 and 6 GHz |
What the bands mean
The bands are the radio frequencies Wi-Fi uses. As a general rule, 2.4 GHz reaches further and passes through walls better, but it is crowded, because neighbours' Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and some household appliances share it. 5 GHz carries more data but fades faster through walls. 6 GHz is the newest band, with much more room and far less traffic, but the shortest reach of the three. Wi-Fi 5 adapters are usually dual band, using Wi-Fi 4 for the 2.4 GHz part.
Wi-Fi 6, 6E and 7
Wi-Fi 6 was designed to cope better with many devices on one network, which suits a modern home full of phones, televisions and speakers. The Wi-Fi Alliance describes Wi-Fi 6E as Wi-Fi 6 extended into the 6 GHz band. In the UK, Ofcom allows Wi-Fi in the 6 GHz band.
Wi-Fi 7 is the newest generation. The Wi-Fi Alliance lists its main changes as wider channels of 320 MHz, available only in the 6 GHz band, a feature called Multi-Link Operation that lets a device use more than one band at the same time, and a denser way of packing data, which it puts at around 20 per cent faster than Wi-Fi 6 for that part alone.
What this means when choosing
Wi-Fi works at the best standard that both ends share. A Wi-Fi 7 adapter connected to a Wi-Fi 5 router works as Wi-Fi 5. So look at your router first; its model and its Wi-Fi standard are usually on a label underneath, or in your broadband provider's information. Microsoft's own guidance says that to use Wi-Fi 6, 6E or 7, both the adapter and the router need to support it.
Windows matters too. Microsoft says Wi-Fi 7 is available from Windows 11 version 24H2, while Windows 10 supports Wi-Fi 6. A Wi-Fi 7 adapter on an older version of Windows will not use its newest features. For most homes, an adapter that matches the router's standard is the sensible choice, rather than the newest one on offer.
The USB port it plugs into
A fast Wi-Fi adapter needs a fast USB port. USB 2.0 carries 480 megabits a second, which can hold back a quick Wi-Fi 6 or Wi-Fi 7 adapter. Use a USB 5Gbps port or faster for those, which usually means a blue USB-A port or a USB-C port. The guide to USB-C explains the speeds. A laptop with only USB-C ports can use a USB-A adapter with a small USB-C to USB-A adapter.
Security
Microsoft notes that newer adapters and routers support WPA3, the newer form of Wi-Fi security. If your router offers WPA3, an adapter that supports it is worth choosing.
Bluetooth versions and what they change
Bluetooth is the short-range radio that connects a laptop to headphones, mice, keyboards, speakers, controllers and phones. Like Wi-Fi, it has been through many versions, numbered from 1 up through 4 and 5 to 5.4 and beyond. Most adapters on sale now are Bluetooth 5 or later.
Classic Bluetooth and Bluetooth Low Energy
There are two kinds of Bluetooth radio inside most devices. Classic Bluetooth is the older kind, long used for streaming music to headphones and speakers. Bluetooth Low Energy, often written LE, was added in version 4 and uses very little power, which is why it suits mice, keyboards, fitness bands and other small battery-powered devices. Most laptops and adapters handle both.
What Bluetooth 5 added
The Bluetooth Special Interest Group, which looks after the standard, describes two headline changes in Bluetooth 5, both for Bluetooth Low Energy: an option that gives twice the speed, and an option that gives four times the range. Both ends need to support the option for it to be used, and in daily use the device maker decides which it uses. In practice, Bluetooth 5 adapters connect more reliably to modern low-energy devices than older ones.
LE Audio and Auracast
Later versions brought new ways of handling sound. The Bluetooth group explains that LE Audio, a new way of sending sound over Bluetooth Low Energy, rests on a feature introduced in Bluetooth 5.2, and uses a new sound format called LC3. Auracast is the part of LE Audio that lets one device broadcast sound to many listeners at once. Both need support at both ends, in the adapter, the laptop's software and the headphones, so check all three before buying for these features.
The number on the box
The version on an adapter is the newest it supports. Which features a connection actually uses depends on the device at the other end and on the laptop's own software, so a new adapter brings a new device's features only when everything in between supports them too.
Older and newer together
Bluetooth devices of different versions usually work together, using only the features that both support. A Bluetooth 5 mouse will generally connect to a Bluetooth 4 laptop, but without the newer features. If headphones keep dropping out, or a new device will not pair, an up-to-date adapter is often the cheapest thing to try. The guides to choosing a wireless mouse and to microphones and headsets explain the choice between Bluetooth and a USB receiver for those devices, and there are Bluetooth mice, Bluetooth keyboards and headsets with a microphone that work with any up-to-date adapter.
Setting one up
Check what you have first
It helps to know what the laptop already has before choosing an adapter. On Windows, right-click the Start button and open Device Manager: the Wi-Fi card is listed under Network adapters, and Bluetooth has its own heading. The command Microsoft describes below also shows which Wi-Fi standards the card supports. On a Mac, hold the Option key, open the Apple menu and choose System Information, then look under Network for Wi-Fi and under Hardware for Bluetooth. Write down what you find, and compare it with the router and the devices you want to connect.
Wi-Fi on Windows
On a Windows laptop, most adapters install themselves: plug it in and wait a minute while Windows finds the driver, the small piece of software that lets it use the adapter. Some adapters need a driver from the adapter maker's website or a disc in the box; follow the instructions that come with it. If the laptop has no working internet to download a driver, download it on another computer and copy it across on a USB stick, or connect the laptop by cable for a few minutes.
Once it is installed, the adapter shows in the Wi-Fi list as a second connection. If the laptop's built-in Wi-Fi still works, you may want to switch it off so Windows always uses the adapter. Microsoft explains a way to check what a Wi-Fi adapter supports: open Command Prompt, type netsh wlan show drivers, and read the line called Radio types supported. 802.11ax means Wi-Fi 6 or 6E, and 802.11be means Wi-Fi 7.
Bluetooth on Windows
A Bluetooth adapter usually installs the same way. If the laptop already has Bluetooth built in, two Bluetooth radios in one Windows laptop tend to clash, so the adapter's instructions will usually tell you to switch the built-in one off in Device Manager first. Once the adapter is working, add your devices in Settings, under Bluetooth and devices. If Bluetooth gives trouble, Microsoft's guide to fixing Bluetooth problems suggests uninstalling the adapter in Device Manager and restarting, so Windows can reinstall the driver, and getting the latest driver from the maker if that fails.
Macs, Chromebooks and Linux
Every current Mac has Wi-Fi and Bluetooth built in. Many USB Wi-Fi adapters do not work with recent versions of macOS, because they need software that has not been made for them. If you need one for a Mac, check that the listing names your version of macOS, not just "Mac". Chromebooks and laptops running Linux each have their own support for adapters, so check the listing names your system before buying.
Placement and range
Where an adapter sits makes more difference to how well it works than most people expect.
Getting the Wi-Fi signal
- Clear space between it and the router helps most. Walls, floors, metal, mirrors, fish tanks and large appliances all weaken Wi-Fi. Even turning the laptop round can change the signal.
- A larger aerial helps. Small adapters that barely stick out of the port are neat but have tiny aerials. Adapters with a fold-out aerial, or on a short cable, usually do better in a room far from the router.
- Stand the aerial up. If the adapter has an aerial that turns, try it upright first, then at an angle, and watch the signal bars.
- Use the right band for the room. In the same room as the router, 5 GHz or 6 GHz will usually be faster. Two or three walls away, 2.4 GHz may hold a steadier connection.
Keep 2.4 GHz adapters away from USB 3 ports
Intel published a study showing that USB 3 ports, devices and cables can give off radio noise in the 2.4 GHz band, the band used by Bluetooth, many wireless mouse receivers and 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi. In its tests, this shortened the range of wireless devices nearby. If a Bluetooth adapter or a 2.4 GHz receiver works badly next to a busy USB 3 port, such as one with an external drive plugged into it, move it to a port further away, or put it on a short USB extension cable so it sits away from the laptop and in clearer view of the device.
Bluetooth range
The Bluetooth group explains that Bluetooth range depends on the design of both devices, and can be anything from under a metre to more than a kilometre for specialist equipment. Ordinary headphones, mice and laptops are designed for short distances, and walls, people and other radios cut it further. If a device keeps dropping out, move it closer, take the adapter off the back of the laptop and put it where the device can see it, or use an extension cable.
Hubs and docks
Adapters usually work through a USB-C hub or USB-A hub, which can also move them to a better spot on the desk. A fast Wi-Fi adapter shares the hub's link with everything else plugged in, so for the best speed, plug it straight into the laptop. The guide to USB-C hubs and docks explains how a hub shares its connection.
Questions people ask
Will a USB Wi-Fi adapter make my internet faster?
Only if the laptop's own Wi-Fi was the slow part. It cannot make the broadband line or an old router faster. If other devices in the same room get good speeds and the laptop does not, an adapter is likely to help.
Why is my Wi-Fi adapter slower than the figure on the box?
The figure on the box is the most the adapter can manage in ideal conditions, with a router of the same standard close by and nothing in the way. Walls, distance, other networks, the router's own limits and the broadband line all bring real speeds well below it.
Can I use a Wi-Fi 6 or Wi-Fi 7 adapter with an older router?
Yes. It works at the best standard the router supports, so you will not get the newer features until the router is upgraded too.
Do I need a Bluetooth adapter if my laptop already has Bluetooth?
Usually not, unless the built-in Bluetooth has failed, is an old version that a new device needs, or keeps dropping out where an adapter in a better spot would not.
Why does my Bluetooth mouse lag when an external drive is plugged in?
Intel found that USB 3 ports and devices can give off radio noise in the 2.4 GHz band that Bluetooth uses. Move the adapter or receiver to a port further from the drive, or onto a short extension cable.
Can I leave a small adapter plugged in when I pack the laptop away?
The smallest adapters barely stick out and are designed to stay in. Anything larger is better taken out before the laptop goes into a bag, because a knock on it can bend the adapter or damage the laptop's port.
Can one adapter do both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth?
Some adapters combine both in one. Check that the listing names both and that it supports your operating system.
Can I use a Bluetooth adapter for a game controller?
Many controllers connect over Bluetooth, but some use their own receivers. Check the controller's own instructions. The guide to gaming on a laptop covers PC controllers and headsets.
Where to go next
All the adapters are in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth adapters: USB Wi-Fi adapters and Bluetooth adapters. For a wired connection, there are Ethernet adapters and Ethernet cables. Delivery is included in every price and tracked to your door. Other guides that help:
- How to choose a wireless mouse: receiver or Bluetooth
- Microphones and headsets: wired or wireless for calls
- USB-C explained: ports, cables and speeds
- How to choose a USB-C hub or docking station: more ports for a laptop
