TP-Link Archer AX72 AX5400 Dual-Band Wi-Fi 6 Router Review

If you’re keen to bring Wi-Fi 6 to the entire three- or four-bedroom in your home, the TP-Link Archer AX72 AX5400 router very well deserves your consideration. It is a hell of a deal for $129.99.
8.7/10 (Expert Score)
Product is rated as #20 in category TP-Link WIFI 6 Router Review

TP-Link Archer AX72 AX5400 router is a high-performance dual-band Wi-Fi 6 router that delivers strong coverage and terrific performance, with multi-gigabit, parental controls and network security.

TP-Link Archer AX72 Router
1

TP-Link Archer AX72 Router Pros and Cons

Archer AX72 Pros and Cons
Positive
  • Good throughput and signal strength
  • HomeShield security services
  • Includes HomeShield parental control and security app
  • Easy to install and manage
Negatives
  • HomeShield Pro requires a subscription
  • Not the fastest file-transfer performance

TP-Link AX5400 WiFi 6 Router (Archer AX72 Pro) Multi Gigabit Wireless Internet Router, 1 x 2.5 Gbps Port, Dual Band, VPN Support, Guest Network, MU-MIMO, USB...

4.0
$139.99 $199.99
in stock
Amazon.com
Amazon price updated: August 20, 2025 2:57 pm
2

TP-Link Archer AX72 Router Design

Archer AX72 Design

The TP-Link Archer AX72 router sports a familiar-looking design, you have the grille separated by two smooth black panels on top, and the usual seven LED lights, which show power, status for two radio bands, internet, Ethernet, USB, and WPS connectivity. It is enclosed on three sides with six non-detachable adjustable antennas. The rear of it has up to three 1Gbps LAN ports, one 1Gbps WAN/LAN port and one 2.5Gbps WAN/LAN port. On the right of the device you have the LED indicator, Wi-Fi, WPS, reset and power buttons, and a USB 3.0 Type-A port.

TP-Link Archer AX72 Router

The TP-Link Archer AX72 AX5400 router comes with two mounting holes on the bottom, so it can be wall-mounted, or even ceiling-mounted. No screws in the package though. The default wifi name and password are printed on the bottom of the router.

TP-Link Archer AX72 Router USB

Inside the Archer AX72’s case we find high-quality components, which is impressive given that there are no corners cut in terms of components, despite the friendly price point. It comes with a proper sized heatsink to dissipate heat. After putting the product through it’s stress test, the router is barely warm to the touch.

3

TP-Link Archer AX72 Router Feature

Archer AX72 Feature
  • AX5400 WiFi 6 with Dual-Band: The Archer AX72 Pro provides up to 4804 Mbps WiFi 6 speeds on 5 GHz and up to 574 Mbps on 2.4 GHz. And an Stutter-free streaming of 8K/4K video online gaming and more.
  • 2.5 Gbps Ethernet Port: the AX72 Pro comes equipped with 1 x 2.5 Gbps WAN/LAN port, 1 x gigabit WAN/LAN port and 3 x gigabit LAN ports, fulfilling all your expansion needs.
  • Maximized Coverage: 6 x high-performance antennas boost WiFi signals throughout your home and Beamforming technology detects devices to concentrate signals towards them, providing a strong and reliable WiFi to every corner of your house.
  • Fast and Efficient: MU-MIMO and OFMDA technology works to boost throughput and efficiency of your WiFi network. MU-MIMO communicates with your router to provide multiple data streams simultaneously, greatly increasing the number of connected devices and OFDMA enables sharing a single data stream between multiple devices to further enhance the efficiency of each data stream.
  • Remote Access with VPN: Allow devices in your home network to access remote VPN servers without needing to install VPN software on every device, support VPN server and VPN client
  • TP-Link HomeShield: TP-Link’s premium security services keep your home network safe with cutting-edge network and IoT protection. Free features: 1. Basic Network Security Security Scan IoT Device Identify 2. Basic Parental Controls 3. Quality of Service 4. Basic Weekly/Monthly Reports. Head over to the TP-Link website for all of the details.
  • COMPATIBILITY: Works well with Amazon Alexa and the Google Assistant – Control your home network using voice commands. Make your life intelligent and easier with Amazon Alexa support.
4

TP-Link Archer AX72 Router Specifications

Archer AX72 Specifications
BrandTP-Link
Model NameArcher AX72 Pro
Processor1 GHz Dual-Core CPU
Standards and ProtocolsWi-Fi 6
IEEE 802.11ax/ac/n/a 5 GHz
IEEE 802.11ax/n/b/g 2.4 GHz
WiFi SpeedsAX5400
5 GHz: 4804 Mbps (802.11ax, HE160)
2.4 GHz: 574 Mbps (802.11ax)
Special FeatureWPS
Frequency Band ClassDual-Band
Wireless Communication Standard802.11ax
Compatible DevicesPersonal Computer
Frequency5
Recommended Uses For ProductHome, Gaming
Included ComponentsPower Adapter, RJ45 Ethernet Cable, Wi-Fi Router Archer AX72 Pro, Quick Installation Guide
Connectivity TechnologyWi-Fi, USB, Ethernet
5

TP-Link Archer AX72 Router Performance

Archer AX72 Performance

The TP-Link Archer AX72 AX5400 router is Wi-Fi 6E and the Wi-Fi performance on this router is really good. In my testing with the iPhone 12 Pro on a 1Gbps network, I got reliably above 800Mbps with no issues whatsoever.

Archer-AX72 router 2.4GHz Wifi performance

I then tested long-range speed. When I tested the Archer AX72 on my laptop that has an Intel AX200 Wi-Fi 6 card, the router did extremely well with excellent Wi-Fi speeds. Sure, it’s slightly slower than the costlier Archer AX73, but the two are not that far away from each other in terms of performance. Then I will try testing the 2.4GHz. As with the 5GHz test, the Archer AX72 actually did quite well on the 2.4GHz WiFi with good speeds and stability at weak signal spots. Because I am on a WiFi 6 laptop, my legacy laptop would struggle a great deal.

Archer-AX72 router 5GHz Wifi performance

Lastly, I checked out how well it passed files. On this test, the Archer AX72 delivered routing performance on par with an average router at 42MBps for reading and writing. Its 47 MBps (write) and 48 MBps (read) scored by the Synology WRX560, though the triangles were wider. The TP-Link Archer AX3200 wrote at 51 MBps, read at a rate of 54 MBps, and the ASUS GS-AX5400 downed both graphs for write and read tests at rates of 69 MBps and 85 MBps, respectively.

6

TP-Link Archer AX72 Router Hardware

Archer AX72 Hardware

TP-Link Archer AX72 AX5400 router is based on Qualcomm IPQ0518 SoC with 64-bit ARM A53 dual-core 1GHz CPU, and a dedicated single-core NPU to handle some networking tasks. It also comes with 512MB of RAM.

Wireless 2.4GhzWi-Fi 6 up to 574Mbps (40Mhz 2×2)
Wireless 5GhzWi-Fi 6 up to 4804Mbps (160Mhz 4×4)
WiFi FeaturesOFDMA, MU-MIMO, Beamforming, WPA3, OneMesh
CPUQualcomm IPQ0518 SoC with 512MB RAM
Ethernet Ports1x Gigabit WAN port + 4x Gigabit LAN port
USB1x USB 3.0 port
7

TP-Link Archer AX72 Router Verdict

Archer AX72 Verdict
8.7Expert Score

If you’re keen to bring Wi-Fi 6 to the entire three- or four-bedroom in your home, the TP-Link Archer AX72 AX5400 router very well deserves your consideration. It is a hell of a deal for $129.99. Installation is easy and can be completed in a couple of minutes. Room for improvement in file transfer speeds, but throughput and signal strength were both top notch and it includes free (at least partially free) parental controls and network protection, plus a multi-gig WAN/LAN port.

Design
8.6
Features
8.7
Performance
8.7
Value
8.7
Price
8.8

TP-Link AX5400 WiFi 6 Router (Archer AX72 Pro) Multi Gigabit Wireless Internet Router, 1 x 2.5 Gbps Port, Dual Band,...

$139.99 $199.99 in stock
AmazonNoApi Amazon.com
Last update was on: August 20, 2025 2:57 pm

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