Everything is wireless these days, and you probably don’t think twice about connecting all your devices using Wi-Fi. The only problem is that Wi-Fi is terrible, and you should use Ethernet where you can. Except, you barely have any ports available—and they’re too far away! Time for a switch.

Most Mesh Routers Have One or Two Ethernet Ports

Like many people, I’ve made the jump to a mesh network in my home. Unlike a traditional router setup where you have one device that connects all your devices together, a mesh system consists of multiple identical router units that all act like one big network router. This means you can move around in your home and your devices will smoothly transfer from one mesh unit to the next.

The units themselves are connected using a wireless back channel that doesn’t conflict with regular Wi-Fi. For example, I use a budget TP Link Deco mesh system. The main unit that’s directly connected to my Gigabit fiber serves about 800Mbps of bandwidth, but I still get a very solid 200-400Mbps from other nodes in the network.

Each of these mesh units has two Ethernet ports. These are mainly meant to give you the option of using Ethernet backhaul instead of wireless backhaul, but you can also simply connect devices directly to them. For example, my PlayStation 5 is directly connected to the nearest mesh unit, because it significantly improves Remote Play performance. The other Ethernet port is occupied by my dedicated Plex server. Which means that I am now out of Ethernet ports, but I still have two more computers in my office that can benefit from a reliable and fast Ethernet connection. The answer was to buy a network switch.

Network Switches Are Dirt Cheap

A network switch is the simplest type of network device you can buy these days. Unlike a router, a switch doesn’t do any sophisticated network traffic management. All it does is make sure that packets go to the right MAC address. The unique address of a network adapter.

What this means in practice is that you can connected a network switch to any Ethernet port and multiply the number of Ethernet ports you have. So a five-port switch nets you four additional ports. Best of all, these devices are truly inexpensive. The TP-Link switch I bought cost less than $15, and there are cheaper options than even this.

Of course, make sure you buy a well-known brand with good reviews. Also, make sure it supports a fast enough connection for your needs, though for most people a Gigabit switch is probably enough for the time being.

There Are Many Devices That Benefit From Being Wired

I mentioned that my PlayStation 5 and Plex server both benefited immensely from being wired up, but just about any network device will perform better using a wired connection. I could improve things even more by switching to wired backhaul, and in that case a network switch is even more crucial, since one of the mesh unit’s ports will be taken up by the backhaul connection.

I was also able to hook up my smart TV and my Windows laptop, and in the case of the laptop my speed test numbers went from about 100Mbps to 200Mbps by switching away from Wi-Fi. It’s not just about pure speed either. My connection is more stable, website responses are snappy, and streaming services have zero hitches using an wired connection. While Wi-Fi is excellent these days, it’s still vulnerable to all sorts of disturbances that come and go, none of which will affect an Ethernet connection

By pairing your mesh router units with a small, cheap network switch and hooking up the biggest bandwidth hogs, you’re removing a lot of the wiring work that goes with a traditional home Ethernet setup. As long as your mesh system is arranged for optimal performance, you should get a good mix of performance and reliability, though you might want to use a single long Ethernet cable to connect key nodes in your mesh network together in the future.