Neither Asus RT-AC88U AC3100 nor Asus RT-AC86U were recommended by experts this month
On 2 Apr 2024 (25 days ago) we went through 71 Router expert endorsements , however neither Asus RT-AC88U AC3100 nor Asus RT-AC86U were included in any of those recommendations. Since neither Router received a single endorsement, as far as expert recommendations go, it's technically a tie. We do, however, recommend taking a look at TP-Link Archer AX50 or other critically acclaimed Routers of this month.
For reference, TP-Link Archer AX50 received 3 endorsements this month, from Laptop Mag (12 Apr 2022), Business Insider (18 Apr 2022) and Lifewire (13 Mar 2024).
Curious to see this month's entire Routers ranking? It's here
Asus RT-AC88U AC3100 
Asus RT-AC86U Customers like Asus RT-AC86U way more
At ReviewFinder we prefer to focus on professional product reviews, because customer reviews can be disproportionately affected by unrelated factors such as delivery, specific seller listing problems, and, of course, fake reviews. With that said, below is the summary of consumer sentiment.
Asus RT-AC86U
CS of 10 is similar to a 4.8 star review, CS of 0 is similar to a 2 star review.
Asus RT-AC86U, the pricier option, tends to get more favorable reviews than Asus RT-AC88U AC3100.
As can be seen in the chart above, median best-selling router receives a consumer score of 7.8 (good). Asus RT-AC86U ranks higher than that and Asus RT-AC88U AC3100 ranks lower than that.
| Asus RT-AC88U AC3100 | |
| Asus RT-AC86U |
In comparison:
8.7 Great
|
| Median best-selling Router |
Asus RT-AC86U is more popular than Asus RT-AC88U AC3100
It's fairly safe to say that Asus RT-AC86U is a more popular router than Asus RT-AC88U AC3100, based on its 4,000+ reviews. Popularity is determined based on product sales. Note that older and cheaper products tend to sell more.
To consider
| Table: Top compared alternatives for Asus RT-AC88U AC3100 and RT-AC86U | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Synology WRX560 | $220 |
We don't yet have enough review information for Synology WRX560 N/A
| 2 expert recommendations | |
 | Asus ZenWiFi AX XT8 | $259 | 2 expert recommendations | ||
 | Netgear Nighthawk Pro XR1000 | $200 |
7.0 Good
| 2 expert recommendations | Cheaper |
 | Netgear Nighthawk RAXE500 | $493 |
In comparison:
Netgear Nighthawk RAXE500 ranks #49 out of 157. Very high levels of customer satisfaction. Go to rankings 8.3 Great
| 3 expert recommendations | |
| Rank | Change | Price | Router | Digital Trends  | Tom's Guide  | Laptop Mag  | TechRadar  | Business Insider  | T3  | How To Geek  | Wirecutter  | Lifewire  | PCMag  |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | - | $95 |  TP-Link Archer AX50 | - | - | 3 | - | 2 | - | - | - | 2 | - |
| 2 | - | $298 |  Netgear Nighthawk RAXE300 | 1 | - | - | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 3 | - | $50 |  Google Nest WiFi | - | - | 2 | 4 | 5 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 4 | +1 | $259 |  Asus ZenWiFi AX XT8 | - | - | - | 1 | - | - | 4 | - | - | - |
| Show all rows | |||||||||||||
Expert reviews [17]
- with a score: 9
- without a score: 8
| Highest score by TechRadar | 100 |
| Average score based on 17 reviews | 86 |
| Lowest score by Gadget Review | 73 |
Score distribution:
| 80-100 | |
| 60-80 | |
| 40-60 | |
| 20-40 | |
| 0-20 |
- 1024 Qam technology 80 percent faster 5 GigaHertz at up to 2100 Mbps, 66 percent faster 2. 4 GigaHertz at up to 1000 Mbps; utilities: firmware restoration
- 33 percent greater 2. 4 GigaHertz coverage with a 4 transmit, 4 receive (4T4R) antenna design, able to reach our widest ever coverage up to 5000 square feet
- Read more
- Connector Type : USB.Antenna: External detachable antenna x 3. Internal antenna x 1..Memory : 256 MB Flash, 512 MB RAM
- Dual-band (2.4 plus 5 GHz) AC2900 wireless router with the latest 802. 11AC MU-MIMO technology for data transfer speeds up to 2900 Mbps
- Read more
Asus RT-AC88U AC3100 is a popular option on the higher end of the price range. It's in the top 3 bestselling routers and has dozens of popular alternatives in the same price range, such as Synology WRX560 or Arris Xfinity TG862G-CT .
Asus RT-AC88U AC3100 is $73.41 more expensive than the average router ($146.58).
Asus RT-AC86U is a very popular and one of the more expensive options. It's in the top 3 bestselling routers and has dozens of popular alternatives in the same price range, such as Linksys AC1900 or Netgear Orbi LBR20 .
Asus RT-AC86U is $103.41 more expensive than an average router ($146.58).
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