# WiFi Standards
WiFi 4 | WiFi 5 | WiFi 6 | WiFi 6e | WiFi 7 | |
Launch date | 2013 | 2019 | 2021 | 2024 | |
Standard name | 802.11ac | 802.11ax | 802.11ax | 802.11be | |
Notable additions | MU-MIMO | OFDMA TWT WPA3 Encryption + modulation + | MLO +Modulation +Max channel width | ||
Power and battery life | - | Supports TWT | |||
Security protocols | WPA, WPA2 | WPA, WPA2, **WPA3 (OWE)** | |||
Modulation | up to 256-QAM | up to 1024-QAM | up to 4096-QAM | ||
Beamforming | up to four antennas | up to eight antennas | |||
Subcarriers (Resource units) | - | Supports **OFDMA** | **OFDMA** | **OFDMA** | |
Multi-RU | - | No | No | **Yes** | |
MIMO | Added | ||||
MU-MIMO | up to 4x4 downlink unidirectional | up to 8x8 bidirectional | up to 8x8 bidirectional | up to 16×16 bidirectional | |
MLO (Multi-Link Operation) | - | - | - | Yes | |
Frequency bands | 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz | 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz | 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, 6 GHz | 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, 6 GHz | |
Channel width | 20, 40, 80, 80+80, 160 MHz | Same | Same | Up to 320 MHz | |
BSS coloring | - | Yes | |||
Latency | Reduced if all devices using the network are WiFi 6 and above, due to the above features. |