Wi-Fi Coverage & Capacity Planner

Project name Engineering profile Wi-Fi generation Design band Channel width Spatial streamsReference PHY: — Radios/AP on band

RF Coverage · Inputs

Indoor loss uses a log-distance model referenced to 1 m free-space loss, with wall/floor loss and fade margin added.

All power, RSSI, wall-loss, efficiency and user defaults are editable engineering presets, not universal standards.

Center frequency

MHz

Total project area

m²

Floors

Path-loss exponent n

RF Link Budget

AP transmit power

dBm

Client transmit power

dBm

AP antenna gain

dBi

Client antenna gain

dBi

AP cable loss

Client RF loss

Client target RSSI

dBm

AP receive target RSSI

dBm

Fade margin

Design-radius cap

Layout efficiency

Roaming overlap allowance

Obstacle losses

Light walls

Loss/light wall

Medium walls

Loss/medium wall

Heavy walls

Loss/heavy wall

Floor penetrations

Loss/floor

RF Coverage · Results

Coverage AP count—

Design coverage radius: —

RF-model radius—

Downlink radius—

Uplink radius—

AP EIRP—

Client EIRP—

Downlink path-loss budget—

Uplink path-loss budget—

Total obstacle loss—

1 m free-space loss—

Effective area per AP—

APs per floor—

Area per floor—

Engineering judgement

Channel Plan · Inputs

Enter the locally usable inventory in 20 MHz equivalents. The tool creates channel groups; it does not replace local channel, DFS, AFC or power-rule review.

Example: 2.4 GHz commonly starts with three 20 MHz reuse groups; edit 5/6 GHz inventory for local rules and equipment.

Available 20 MHz channel equivalents

×20 MHz

Channel Plan · Results

Reusable channel groups—

—

Channel reuse pressure—

APs per channel group—

Planned channel width—

Channel inventory input—

AP	Floor	Channel group

Engineering judgement

Methodology and engineering boundaries

Bidirectional coverage budget

The planner calculates AP downlink and client uplink path-loss budgets separately and uses the smaller radius, avoiding false coverage based only on high AP power.

Log-distance path loss

The model starts with free-space loss at 1 m, extends it with 10n·log10(d), then adds obstacle loss and fade margin.

Capacity discounting

Reference PHY rate is multiplied by protocol efficiency, usable airtime and client capability mix to produce planning throughput.

Combined AP and channel plan

Final AP count is the maximum of coverage, throughput, associated-client and minimum-AP constraints, then rotated across floors and reusable channel groups.

Frequently asked questions

Why use the smaller uplink/downlink radius?

Client transmit power is often lower than AP power. Hearing the AP does not guarantee that the AP can reliably hear the client.

Why not use PHY rate directly for capacity?

PHY rate is a physical-layer ceiling; protocol overhead, contention, retries, client capability and airtime utilization reduce usable throughput.

Are default wall losses reliable?

Material, thickness, angle and band cause large variation. Defaults are only for early estimates and should be calibrated with predictive and on-site measurements.

Must Wi-Fi 7 use 320 MHz?

No. 160 MHz or narrower channels can provide better reuse in dense sites. Plan 320 MHz only in 6 GHz where local rules and equipment support it.

Why is channel inventory editable?

Country, indoor/outdoor mode, DFS, low-power indoor, standard-power and AFC rules differ, so inventory must match deployment location and certification.

Wi-Fi Coverage & Capacity Planner

RF Coverage · Inputs

RF Coverage · Results

Engineering judgement

Capacity & AP Count · Inputs

Capacity & AP Count · Results

Engineering judgement

Channel Plan · Inputs

Channel Plan · Results

Engineering judgement

Combined Plan

Engineering judgement

Methodology and engineering boundaries

Bidirectional coverage budget

Log-distance path loss

Capacity discounting

Combined AP and channel plan

Frequently asked questions

Planning history

Continue the engineering workflow

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