Which channel is better for wifi 5GHz?

[niceguy1234]

Assuming there is no interference, or no other people are using 5GHz in your area, is it better to use the lower band (36,40,44,48) or use the upper band (149,153,157,161)?

[WestCoasterBC]

Lower channels have higher transmit power. The frequencies that are lower, penetrate walls and obstructions more easily. Depending on your router you might need to use a higher channel to get larger transmit power.

Juat pick a channel with the best signal strength then pick the lowest channel.

[niceguy1234]

I tested it last night.  My modem is the new T3200M from Telus.  My iPhone is 3 ft away from the modem using 5G connection

channel 44: download 33Mbps  upload: 22 Mbps

channel 161: download 50Mbps  upload: 18 Mbps

Upper channels give stronger signal in close range.

[WESTLOCK420]

Get a free wifi scanner app for your phone, use it to see which channels are the most congested. Try to pick a channel with the least congestion. 

[bryanleon23]

What happens when the clear channels are not showing up in my settings?

Get a free wifi scanner app for your phone, use it to see which channels are the most congested.

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[Tornado15550]

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@bryanleon23 wrote:

What happens when the clear channels are not showing up in my settings?

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These channels are known as DFS channels. These channels are automatically selected by the router because the spectrum that they reside in is shared by radar systems. The T3200M scans the environment and if the channel is being used by a rader, it will automatically either adjust the broadcast power or switch over to a different channel. Since the spectrum is shared, you cannot "select" one channel from the list of DFS channels. You need to let the router choose one for you. Hope this makes sense.