In 2018 the industry association WiFi Alliance introduced new designations to be used for wifi products to signal capabilities.
It might be worth pointing out that the wifi standards themselves have not changed their names. The committee that develops Wi-Fi standards is still called IEEE 802.11, and the standards they provide will continue to have catchy, but precise names like "802.11ax".
WiFi Alliance does not control these standards, only their own product certification programs. By introducing generational names for wifi, they wanted to give more user friendly designations to the products that support these standards. Products that support 802.11ax are called Wi-Fi 6, which is thus considered to be the sixth generation of wifi.
Generational names and standard names are now used interchangeable, and it is still not wrong to say "ax" or "ac" about what is supported by a product, although it is increasingly common to mostly refer to generations.
The idea is also that new products should now be able to actively show the user what version of Wi-Fi technology is available when connecting to a wireless access point. You'll not only get a Wi-Fi signal on the task bar of your phone or PC, but also a number that indicates the maximum performance and functionality you can expect from the connection.
| Generation / certification name | Technology standard | Frequency band | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wi-Fi 7 | 802.11be | 6 GHz 5 GHz 2.4 GHz | In development. The standard is not done, and the certification program has not started. |
| Wi-Fi 6 | 802.11ax | 5 GHz and 2.4 GHz | Currently the latest standard. Wi-Fi Alliance started product certification of Wi-Fi 6 in September 2019, the final standard was approved in May 2021. Read more in Wi-Fi 6: What can we expect from 802.11 ax |
| Wi-Fi 6E | 802.11ax | 6 GHz 5 GHz 2.4 GHz | Introduced with the Wi-Fi 6 certification, exclusively for products that support Wi-Fi on the 6 GHz frequency band. Read more here: Wi-Fi 6E: 6 GHz Internet |
| Wi-Fi 5 | 802.11ac | 5 GHz | This designation does not distinguish between the first ax products and the latest round that includes newer technologies, known as Wave 2. |
| Wi-Fi 4 | 802.11n | 5 GHz and 2.4 GHz |
WiFi Alliance about Wi-Fi 6: https://www.wi-fi.org/discover-wi-fi/wi-fi-certified-6
Article by Jorunn D. Newth
