Your Slow WiFi May Be Your Neighbor's Fault

There is an unspoken etiquette among neighbors — you are friendly, but not too friendly, you share a polite nod in the mornings, occasionally feed each other’s cats while the other is out of town, and always pretend you didn’t see the other person rush naked from the bathroom to the bedroom. But there is a line, a point beyond which it’s every person for themselves, no matter your emotional or physical closeness. That line is WiFi.

This week, Business Insider shared a video that explains how your neighbor may be ruining your WiFi signal, and how you can fix it. According to the video, though your WiFi network (Khaleesi’s Kastle) may not be the same as your neighbor’s (Abraham Linksys) you may be sharing the same WiFi channel, and their devices could be interfering with yours. Fortunately, this is easy to fix, and the video walks you through how to do so on a Mac, iPhone, and PC.

On a Mac, you can scan for WiFi channels in your area, and your computer will recommend which ones are best to use. Once you have that, you can adjust your wireless setup through your IP address to change which WiFi channel you use. When you’re done, you’ll get less interference from the devices around you.

With that fixed, you can go back to having a pleasant, mutually-beneficial relationship with your neighbors, instead of cursing their existence every time your episode of Frasier won't load. Shared channels may not be the only reason your signal is weak, though. Here are some other reasons your WiFi may be slow.