NETGEAR RS100 vs. RS200 vs. RS300: Which Should You Buy?

Buy the NETGEAR Nighthawk RS100 if you want a low-cost Wi-Fi 7 router for a smaller home that doesn’t need multi-gig LAN ports or USB. Pick the RS200 if none of your devices can use 6 GHz Wi-Fi and you want a stronger 5 GHz radio on paper, a 2.5 Gbps LAN port and USB. Pay extra for the RS300 only if you own Wi-Fi 6E or Wi-Fi 7 phones, laptops or tablets that can use its 6 GHz band; without them, most of what it adds goes unused.

This comparison is based on NETGEAR’s US product pages, firmware notes and retailer listings checked on October 29, 2026. We haven’t tested these routers ourselves.

The short version

Specs side by side

*NETGEAR’s US RS300 page doesn’t list per-band rates; these come from Adorama’s product listing.

All speed figures are maximum wireless link rates. NETGEAR’s footnote says they are “derived from IEEE 802.11be specifications” and that actual throughput and coverage will vary. Your devices will see less, and your internet plan sets the ceiling for anything online.

What actually separates them

The 6 GHz band is the RS300’s main reason to exist

The RS300 is the only one of the three with a 6 GHz radio, and NETGEAR’s footnote is blunt: “Clients must support 6GHz band.” It also notes the “6GHz band is limited to indoor range.” If your phones and laptops are Wi-Fi 6 or older, they will never connect at 6 GHz. Our Wi-Fi 6E vs. Wi-Fi 7 guide explains which devices can.

Where 6 GHz helps is in crowded places like apartment buildings, where the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands are shared with neighbors’ networks. The RS300 was our pick for that case in our best router for an apartment guide.

On paper, the RS200 has the stronger 5 GHz radio

This is the comparison’s least obvious point. NETGEAR lists the RS200’s 5 GHz radio as 4x4 with a 5.8 Gbps maximum at up to 160 MHz. Adorama’s listing shows the RS300’s 5 GHz radio as 2x2 at 2.9 Gbps, with its 5.8 Gbps radio on 6 GHz instead. So if every device in your home uses 5 GHz, the RS200 has more 5 GHz radio streams on paper than the more expensive RS300.

How much that helps depends on your devices and how many are active at once; extra streams on the router don’t make a single device faster than its own Wi-Fi hardware allows. But for a household without 6 GHz devices, it’s a reason to pick the RS200 over the RS300, not just to save money.

Ports: count the wired devices you have

All three have a 2.5 Gbps internet port, so all three can take more than a gigabit from a modem or fiber box. The difference is on the LAN side:

• The RS100 has four gigabit LAN ports and no listed USB port. All three have four LAN ports; the RS100’s are all gigabit, which is enough for a desk with a PC, console and NAS.
• The RS200 has one 2.5 Gbps LAN port and three gigabit ports, plus USB 3.0.
• The RS300 has two 2.5 Gbps LAN ports and two gigabit ports, plus USB 3.0.

A 2.5 Gbps LAN port matters mainly if your plan is faster than a gigabit or you copy large files to a NAS, and only if the computer, switch or NAS on the other end can use it. Our guide to multi-gig routers helps you check.

Coverage and device counts are manufacturer claims

NETGEAR lists the RS100 at up to 2,000 sq ft and both the RS200 and RS300 at 2,500 sq ft. Treat these as best-case figures: walls, floors and where you place the router matter more. The RS200’s device count is unclear: its NETGEAR page says “Supports 100+ connected devices” in one place and “Up to 80 Concurrent devices” in another; the 2024 launch announcement listed 80.

NETGEAR’s own launch table in September 2024 rated the RS200 as best for internet plans “up to 500Mbps” and the RS300 for “up to 1Gbps.” That’s NETGEAR’s sizing guidance, not a hard limit, and we didn’t find a comparable rating for the RS100. As the entry model, with fewer radio streams than the RS200, it’s the one we’d be least inclined to pair with a gigabit-plus plan.

Features they share

All three have a quad-core 2.0 GHz processor, secure remote access to your home network (NETGEAR lists VPN for the RS100 and RS300), and an optional NETGEAR Armor security subscription (powered by Bitdefender) with a trial included. NETGEAR’s product pages for these models don’t mention Multi-Link Operation (MLO), the Wi-Fi 7 feature that can combine bands; see our Wi-Fi 7 MLO explainer for what it does.

The most recent RS100 firmware we found, 1.1.6.16, was released January 27, 2026; it “Added IoT network function,” added an internet port link speed option and “Fixed various security issues.” Our guide on checking whether a router still gets security updates shows how to check any model.

Prices we checked

On October 29, 2026:

• RS100: $149.99, in stock, at B&H. It launched at $149 in March 2025, according to Notebookcheck.
• RS200: We couldn’t confirm a current US price; the retailer pages we tried either didn’t load or didn’t list a price. NETGEAR’s launch MSRP in September 2024 was $229.
• RS300: $299.99 at Adorama, listed “On Backorder” with expected availability of November 25, 2026, and $299.99 at P.C. Richard & Son, which didn’t show stock status and offers a possibly lower price after you enter a name and email.

Prices change often, so check before you buy. If the RS200 costs close to the RS300 where you shop, the decision comes down to whether you have 6 GHz devices.

Sources and verification