802.11 Standards Explained: From 802.11b to Wi-Fi 7

Older and newer wireless routers side by side on a desk in a bright home office

The 802.11 standards are the IEEE rules that define how Wi-Fi works. The original IEEE 802.11 standard appeared in 1997 with a maximum of 2 Mbps. Since then, the IEEE 802.11 working group has added amendments, each marked with one or two letters: 802.11b, a, g, n, ac, ax, and be are the ones that set Wi-Fi speeds, and 802.11bn is the next one in development.

Since 2018, the Wi-Fi Alliance has also used simpler generation names. 802.11n is Wi-Fi 4, 802.11ac is Wi-Fi 5, 802.11ax is Wi-Fi 6 (and Wi-Fi 6E in the 6 GHz band), and 802.11be is Wi-Fi 7. The table below lists every major version with its year, band, maximum data rate, channel width, and key feature.

What is 802.11?

IEEE 802.11 is a family of standards for wireless local area networks (WLANs), developed by the IEEE 802.11 working group under the IEEE Standards Association. IEEE stands for the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. The 802.11 protocol defines the physical layer (how bits travel over radio waves) and the MAC layer (how devices share the air, join a network, and protect data). “Wi-Fi” is the Wi-Fi Alliance’s trademark for products that pass its interoperability tests based on these standards.

Each amendment is first published separately and later folded into a consolidated edition of the base standard, such as IEEE 802.11-2020. That is why you see both names: the amendment letter (802.11ax) and the year of the roll-up edition.

How the 802.11 protocol works

All 802.11 networks share the same basic architecture. Devices (stations) connect to an access point, which together form a basic service set identified by the network name, or SSID. The MAC layer uses three frame types:

  • Management frames: beacons that announce a network, plus probe, authentication, and association frames used to join it
  • Control frames: acknowledgments and request-to-send and clear-to-send messages that coordinate access to the air
  • Data frames: the actual traffic

Because only one device can transmit on a channel at a time, 802.11 uses a listen-before-talk method (CSMA/CA). Each new standard mainly changes the physical layer: the modulation, the channel width, and the number of antennas. Newer standards such as 802.11ax and 802.11be also change how airtime is shared, so several devices can be served in one transmission.

802.11 standards table

Standard Wi-Fi name Year Band Max data rate Channel width Key feature
802.11 none 1997 2.4 GHz 2 Mbps 22 MHz First wireless LAN standard
802.11b none (Wi-Fi 1, unofficial) 1999 2.4 GHz 11 Mbps 22 MHz First mass-market Wi-Fi
802.11a none (Wi-Fi 2, unofficial) 1999 5 GHz 54 Mbps 20 MHz OFDM, first use of 5 GHz
802.11g none (Wi-Fi 3, unofficial) 2003 2.4 GHz 54 Mbps 20 MHz OFDM in 2.4 GHz, compatible with 802.11b
802.11n Wi-Fi 4 2009 2.4 and 5 GHz 600 Mbps 20, 40 MHz MIMO, up to 4 spatial streams
802.11ac Wi-Fi 5 2013 5 GHz 6.9 Gbps 20 to 160 MHz 256-QAM, downlink MU-MIMO
802.11ax Wi-Fi 6 / 6E 2021 2.4, 5 GHz (6E adds 6 GHz) 9.6 Gbps 20 to 160 MHz OFDMA, 1024-QAM, Target Wake Time
802.11be Wi-Fi 7 2024 2.4, 5, 6 GHz about 46 Gbps 20 to 320 MHz Multi-Link Operation, 4096-QAM
802.11bn Wi-Fi 8 expected around 2028 2.4, 5, 6 GHz similar to Wi-Fi 7 up to 320 MHz Ultra High Reliability

Years refer to IEEE approval of each amendment to the original standard. Products often shipped earlier, based on drafts, and Wi-Fi Alliance certification sometimes started before the final standard. The maximum data rate is a theoretical peak with all spatial streams and the widest channel. Real devices reach a fraction of it.

Why real throughput is lower than the rated speed

A common misunderstanding is to treat the rated maximum as the speed you will see. Actual throughput on a Wi-Fi network is usually about half of the link rate or less, for several reasons:

  • Most phones and laptops have two antenna streams, not the four or eight used for the headline figure.
  • Protocol overhead, acknowledgments, and waiting for a free channel use part of the airtime.
  • All devices on one access point share the same bandwidth.
  • Distance and walls force the connection to slower modulation.
  • Your internet plan limits anything that leaves the home network.

Channel width has the biggest single effect. Doubling the width roughly doubles the data rate, but wider channels overlap more easily with neighboring networks, and interference can cancel the gain.

Wi-Fi generation names

In October 2018, the Wi-Fi Alliance introduced generation numbers so that buyers no longer had to decode letters. The official names are:

  • Wi-Fi 4: 802.11n
  • Wi-Fi 5: 802.11ac
  • Wi-Fi 6: 802.11ax in 2.4 and 5 GHz
  • Wi-Fi 6E: 802.11ax extended into 6 GHz, certified since January 2021
  • Wi-Fi 7: 802.11be, certified since January 2024
  • Wi-Fi 8: 802.11bn, still in development

The Wi-Fi Alliance did not assign official numbers to 802.11b, a, and g. The labels Wi-Fi 1, 2, and 3 are common but informal.

802.11a, b, and g specs

These three amendments built the first generation of home and office Wi-Fi.

802.11b

802.11b used the 2.4 GHz band with DSSS and CCK modulation, reaching 11 Mbps. Its low cost made it the first widely adopted Wi-Fi standard, and the 2.4 GHz band gave it good range through walls.

802.11a

802.11a was approved at the same time but used the 5 GHz band and OFDM, reaching 54 Mbps. It had less interference but shorter range, and early hardware was more expensive, so it saw more use in businesses than in homes.

802.11g

802.11g brought OFDM and 54 Mbps to the 2.4 GHz band while staying compatible with 802.11b devices. When 802.11b and 802.11g clients shared a network, protection mechanisms slowed everyone down, a pattern that repeated with later mixed networks.

802.11n: MIMO arrives

802.11n, approved in 2009, was the first standard to use multiple antennas for multiple data streams (MIMO), combined with 40 MHz channels in both 2.4 and 5 GHz. It raised the ceiling from 54 Mbps to 600 Mbps. The Enhanced Wireless Consortium contributed to the draft that became 802.11n. For the details, see our pages on IEEE 802.11n and the 802.11n standards.

Wireless access point mounted on the ceiling of a bright open-plan office

802.11ac vs 802.11ax

802.11ac (Wi-Fi 5) and 802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6) are the two standards most people still use at home, so the differences matter in practice.

Feature 802.11ac (Wi-Fi 5) 802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6)
Bands 5 GHz only 2.4 and 5 GHz, plus 6 GHz for Wi-Fi 6E
Highest modulation 256-QAM 1024-QAM
Max theoretical rate 6.9 Gbps 9.6 Gbps
Multi-user access Downlink MU-MIMO OFDMA plus uplink and downlink MU-MIMO
Battery saving Basic power save Target Wake Time
Interference handling Standard BSS coloring for overlapping networks

For a single device close to the router, the gain from Wi-Fi 5 to Wi-Fi 6 is moderate, roughly 20 to 40% on the same channel width. The larger benefit comes when many devices share the network. OFDMA splits a channel into small resource units so the router can serve several devices in one transmission, which reduces waiting and latency in busy homes.

802.11be and 802.11bn

802.11be (Wi-Fi 7), approved by the IEEE in September 2024, adds 320 MHz channels in the 6 GHz band, 4096-QAM, and Multi-Link Operation, which lets a device use several bands at once. For a detailed comparison with Wi-Fi 6, read Wi-Fi 7 vs Wi-Fi 6.

802.11bn (Wi-Fi 8), also called Ultra High Reliability, does not aim for a higher peak rate. Its goals include more throughput at weak signal, lower worst-case latency, and fewer dropped packets when roaming between access points. Draft 1.0 was completed in 2025, and final IEEE approval is expected around 2028. Any product sold as Wi-Fi 8 before then is based on a draft.

802.11 channels by band

Each band is divided into numbered channels. The number of usable channels depends on the band and on national rules. In the United States:

  • 2.4 GHz: channels 1 to 11, spaced 5 MHz apart. Because a channel is about 20 MHz wide, only channels 1, 6, and 11 do not overlap.
  • 5 GHz: channels 36 to 165 (plus 169 to 177 in the newer UNII-4 range on supported equipment), spaced 20 MHz apart. Channels 52 to 144 require Dynamic Frequency Selection (DFS) to avoid radar.
  • 6 GHz: 1,200 MHz of spectrum with room for 59 channels at 20 MHz, 7 at 160 MHz, or 3 at 320 MHz.

Wider channels combine several 20 MHz channels into one. They carry more data but leave fewer non-overlapping options. On 5 GHz, most homes do best with an 80 MHz channel on a block that nearby networks do not use.

Other 802.11 amendments you may see

Not every amendment is about speed. Some add features that routers and devices list in their specifications:

  • 802.11e: quality of service, which prioritizes voice and video traffic
  • 802.11h: DFS and transmit power control for 5 GHz
  • 802.11i: the security framework behind WPA2
  • 802.11k, 802.11v, 802.11r: help devices find and move between access points, used by mesh systems
  • 802.11ad and 802.11ay: short-range, very fast links in the 60 GHz band
  • 802.11ah: long-range, low-power links below 1 GHz, marketed as Wi-Fi HaLow
  • 802.11p: communication between vehicles

The IEEE 802.11 working group publishes the current status of all projects on its official site. For a shorter overview of how these standards relate, see our page on WLAN standards.

Security across Wi-Fi standards

Security is defined separately from speed. The original 802.11 standard used WEP, which is broken and should not be used. The 802.11i amendment led to WPA2, and WPA3 is the current Wi-Fi Alliance security certification. WPA3 is mandatory for Wi-Fi 6 certification and for any use of the 6 GHz band. An older router may run a newer standard’s speeds but still offer weaker security options, so check the settings and use WPA3 or WPA2 with AES.

How to know which Wi-Fi standard your device supports

  • Windows: run netsh wlan show drivers and look for “Radio types supported”, or check the network adapter name in Device Manager.
  • macOS: hold the Option key and click the Wi-Fi icon to see the PHY mode of the current connection.
  • Android and iPhone: look up the model’s technical specifications, which list the Wi-Fi generation or the 802.11 letters.
  • Router: the label or specification sheet shows the Wi-Fi generation, and the admin page often shows which standard each connected device is using.

Backward compatibility

Each new standard can talk to older devices in the same band. A Wi-Fi 7 router serves Wi-Fi 4 and Wi-Fi 5 clients, but each device runs at its own maximum. You can mix different standards on one Wi-Fi network. Two limits apply: 802.11a and 802.11ac devices cannot use 2.4 GHz, and only Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7 devices can use 6 GHz.

Quick reference

  • 802.11 is the IEEE family of WLAN standards. Wi-Fi is the certified product name.
  • Wi-Fi 4 = 802.11n, Wi-Fi 5 = 802.11ac, Wi-Fi 6 and 6E = 802.11ax, Wi-Fi 7 = 802.11be, Wi-Fi 8 = 802.11bn.
  • Maximum rates grew from 2 Mbps (1997) to about 46 Gbps (Wi-Fi 7), but real devices reach far less.
  • Channel width grew from 20 MHz to 320 MHz, and the 6 GHz band added the most room.
  • To find out what your device supports, check its specifications for the 802.11 letters or the Wi-Fi generation number.