TP-Link Deco M series (2018) vs NETGEAR Nighthawk AX12 RAX120

The TP-Link Deco M9 Plus is a great Wi-Fi Router for its $175 asking price.

The NETGEAR Nighthawk AX12 12-Stream WiFi 6 Router (RAX120), however, while a reasonable product for $451, doesn't stack up against its competitors quite as well. If you're considering Wi-Fi Routers in the $420 range, you might want to check out some better options.

The TP-Link Deco M9 Plus was loved by reviewers at PCmag, a highly trusted source that performs reliable in-depth testing. It did great in its "The Best Wi-Fi Mesh Network Systems for 2021" roundup where it was named its "Best for Connecting Smart Home Devices", which, in itself, makes it a product worth considering.

As for the NETGEAR Nighthawk AX12 12-Stream WiFi 6 Router (RAX120), it was really well-received by reviewers at PCmag, a reliable source that's known for conducting its own, high-quality, in-depth testing. It performed great in its "The Best Wi-Fi 6 Routers for 2021" roundup and was named its "Best for Busy Networks That Need Fast Throughput", which, on its own, makes it a product that warrants a closer look.

When we thoroughly analyzed their review scores, we learned that all of the sources that tested both Wi-Fi Routers, including PCmag, preferred the TP-Link Deco M9 Plus over the NETGEAR Nighthawk AX12 12-Stream WiFi 6 Router (RAX120).

We also took a look at which sources they managed to impress the most. The TP-Link Deco M9 Plus was liked best by PCmag, which gave it a score of 9, while the NETGEAR Nighthawk AX12 12-Stream WiFi 6 Router (RAX120) got its highest, 7, score from PCmag.

Lastly, we averaged out all of their review ratings and observed that the TP-Link Deco M9 Plus, with its 8.2 average, performed considerably better than most Wi-Fi Routers - the mean score for the product category being 7.4 out of 10 - while the NETGEAR Nighthawk AX12 12-Stream WiFi 6 Router (RAX120) managed an average of 7.0.

There's one caveat here - it might not be entirely justifiable to do a direct TP-Link Deco M9 Plus vs. NETGEAR Nighthawk AX12 12-Stream WiFi 6 Router (RAX120) review average comparison since they aren't priced the same and more expensive products tend to get higher review scores from some sources.