EU buying advice. Not sure which router to buy?

Keenness8518 · 2025-04-09T11:56:09.357Z

Hello, I am currently at the work to upgrade my ISPs router and always want to run openwrt (for the privacy/security aspects. I have already read a lot of blog posts and documentation about what hardware and routers are optimal for me; however, I can not decide on which router is the perfect fit for me.

How fast is your internet connection?* around 300 mbits, however, for a single device around 200 mbits is plenty.
Do you need Wi-Fi? * Yes, wifi is a must (wifi 6 would be nice)
Do you need Gigabit Ethernet?* Yeah around 4 ports should be sufficient, however, if the device has not 4 ports i can always use a switch.
Do you need USB ports? How many? USB 2.0 or 3.0?* No.
How many family members/devices must the router support?* Concurrently around 4-8 devices will access the router
What other services do you want?* I always wanted to host a wiregurad/openvpn sever, so it would be neat to have that option. A good range would also be nice.

My price range would be under 75€, of course cheaper would be better (The device should also be available in Germany/Austria/Europe). I have already looked into some routers like the Cuby X6 and the TP-link ax23. Because I am new to openwrt I am not sure how the support for routers looks like (if once they have been supported they are supported for the rest of time or if support is dropped at some time) but I also want to make sure that the router is supported for 5 - 7 years. Also I am a developer and have experience, therefore, I am not afraid to get my hands dirty by accessing the linux shell (but the install should not be painstakingly difficult). Thx for reading and for the advice

frollic · 2025-04-09T12:00:12.819Z

T-56 from wifilinks ?

with AX23 you could be getting the currently unsupported v2.

brada4 · 2025-04-09T12:01:34.431Z

Try to find glinet or cudy mt79 for close to gigabit wg speed

openwrt.org

[OpenWrt Wiki] Table of Hardware: Ideal for OpenWrt + Wifi6 (802.11ax) supported

Otherwise mt7621 like rt-ax53 or archer ax23 (v1 - in store check that box has no V2 printed) will do unaccelersted wg at 50Mbps or accelerated ipsec at 300Mbps.

Keenness8518 · 2025-04-09T12:05:45.137Z

frollic:

T-56 from wifilinks

I can not really find the device only (maybe it is not avaliable in my region). Do you mean this device: https://openwrt.org/toh/zyxel/t-56. Sounds not that bad, however, it has only wifi5.

And thx for the ax23 advice

frollic · 2025-04-09T12:07:33.861Z

Keenness8518:

Sounds not that bad, however, it has only wifi5.

no, it doesn't.

Keenness8518 · 2025-04-09T12:09:55.212Z

sry, yes got the wrong model. At my region the router goes for around 89€ which is a bit out of range for me.

frollic · 2025-04-09T12:10:48.644Z

Keenness8518:

At my region the router goes for around 89€

if EU is your region, you're wrong, again.

brada4 · 2025-04-09T12:17:10.689Z

Forty bucks

https://www.mediamarkt.de/de/product/_cudy-wr3000-ax3000-wi-fi-6-mesh-router-gigabit-wlan-router-145403773.html

Since you are secretive about your place youll need to browse local shops yourself.

Keenness8518 · 2025-04-09T12:17:41.110Z

Sry again, then I most likely i have got the worng device, can you share a link?

frollic · 2025-04-09T12:18:24.269Z

tried "T-56 wifilinks" at your local search engine ?

Keenness8518 · 2025-04-09T12:20:58.169Z

Seach with duckduckgo, now i switched to Google and now i have found it sry for the confusion. Thx

Keenness8518 · 2025-04-09T12:22:13.803Z

Exactly the shop I was looking for thx for the advice

brada4 · 2025-04-09T12:28:04.441Z

quick compat list

openwrt.org

[OpenWrt Wiki] Cudy

even quicker (click google drive)

Cudy

OpenWrt-Software-Download

Warnungen Auf dieser Webseite wird die Software von Geräten aufgeführt, die das OpenWrt-System unterstützen. Bitte beachten Sie vor dem Herunterladen und Installieren der Software, dass es sich bei OpenWrt Project um ein Linux-Betriebssystem für...

Keenness8518 · 2025-04-09T12:37:04.013Z

Thx, these also look great. Thx for the tp link advice.

Dante · 2025-04-09T13:57:09.639Z

For references there are a few recent discussions already:

Interesting low-cost routers - 2025 Hardware Questions and Recommendations

Feel free to discuss modern low-cost routers that can be flashed with OpenWrt. Summary

Best Newcomer Router - 2025 Hardware Questions and Recommendations

The world moves on, and the recommendations in Best "newcomer router" - 2024 have evolved, too. The next post lists the current winners. I'll keep it updated as I get new recommendations. My criteria remain the same: inexpensive, easy to flash, full ability to fight bufferbloat, etc. These are the critical characteristics: Supports official STABLE OpenWrt 23.05.x. No snapshot builds. I will update this when 24.10 ships. Clear one-step installation instructions, without warnings, in the Table …

Future-proof router advice in EU Hardware Questions and Recommendations

I've recently bought a TP-Link Archer AX23 (without too much investigation beforehand). I was pointed out that this device isn't that future-proof. And since I'm also looking for a new switch/AP I've decided to use the AX23 for that. So I'm looking for a new router. To answer the usual questions: ISP connection: 400 Mbit up and down Wi-Fi needs: both 2.4GHz and 5GHz need for Gigabit Ethernet: yep. Working with a NAS and video files need for USB ports: nope Family members/devices: There are 5 …

ed8 · 2025-04-09T14:29:18.781Z

Some options in the <100€ category

mt7986 - Asus RT-AX59U
mt7981 - Cudy WR3000S / M3000
mt7981 - D-Link M30 Aquila Pro AI