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"Can WiFi really go that far?"

Yes — with the right equipment. Regular WiFi routers use omnidirectional antennas that spread signal in all directions. Point-to-point links use directional antennas that focus all their energy in a narrow beam, allowing connections over kilometers.

Products like Ubiquiti's airMAX or LiteBeam are designed exactly for this. They operate on unlicensed frequencies (5 GHz) and can link buildings hundreds km apart (or even more!) with a clear line of sight.

We recommend using the Ubiquiti Antenna Simulator to plan your links. It takes into account distance, terrain, and other factors to suggest the right antenna model and settings for your specific use case.

Play with it!

We strongly recommend you spend few minutes playing with this simulator. You just put point A and B you want to connect, the bandwith you would like and the simulator will take in account the orography, the altitudes, even the earth curvature. Then the simulator will give you a specific antenna model that will satisfy your network and site requirements.

A note on Ubiquiti

We are not affiliated in any case by the brand. They don't provide open source software and they are not 100% aligned with our principles on how to build networks. However, we told you that this is a 100% opinionated guide, and we believe Ubiquiti provide really good hardware and software at a very reasonable price (e.g., we have 60€ antennas working 24/7 for 6 years under the african sun in Senegal, and still working). So Ubiquiti deserves a place in this guide, and we strongly recommend you use the simulator and buy their great products.

Some general rules of thumb to take in account regarding to connecting points with radio links:

  • Line of sight — the antennas must "see" each other. Trees, buildings, and hills are your enemies.
  • Proper alignment — a few degrees off and you lose the connection
  • Height — mounting antennas on rooftops or poles makes a huge difference. That's usually the most time and resource consuming task when building radio links.

Work in Progress

This section will cover how point-to-point links work, how to plan them, and what equipment to use.

Guide reference

For detailed antenna setup instructions, see Guide — Antennas.