I let my router auto-pick my Wi-Fi channel for a month, and it chose badly almost every time

I recently conducted a month-long experiment with my ASUS RT-AX88U router, allowing it to automatically select Wi-Fi channels. Initially, the router consistently chose busy channels, such as channel 6 (sometimes 7) for 2.4GHz and channel 36 for 5GHz. This behavior was a result of the router's default settings, which only counted neighboring networks rather than assessing their actual usage.

To verify this, I utilized NetSpot, a Wi-Fi survey tool, and compared the results with a Wi-Fi analyzer app on my phone. Over the month, I observed that the router tended to select non-overlapping channels 1, 6, or 11 on the 2.4GHz band, but still fell into the overlap zone between two neighboring networks on channel 6. On the 5GHz band, the router chose the widest channel width by default, which, while delivering great throughput, exposed it to more interference and potential radar detection.

Consequently, I decided to manually set my router to non-overlapping channels 1, 6, or 11 on the 2.4GHz band and an 80MHz channel on the 5GHz band, as opposed to relying on the router's auto-selection. This decision led to improved stability and reduced 4K stream drops. While automatic channel selection can be a reasonable default for those unfamiliar with router settings, my experience highlights the importance of conducting a proper site survey before selecting channels to ensure optimal network performance.