Google Nest Pro WiFi review: Sometimes ‘meshy’

WiFi 7 is all the rage these days, but it’s not really an essential consideration in terms of networking practicalities. NBN speeds are, at best, poised to reach 2000Mbps, which should be comfortably tackled by WiFi 6 networking equipment and devices. If you want some of the perks of WiFi 7 without the corresponding premium RRP, WiFi 6E is a great mix of futureproofed features and affordability. With that in mind, it makes older mesh WiFi systems like the Google Nest Pro WiFi viable purchasing choices in 2025, despite being based on late-2022 tech.

If you have a John Hammond ‘spare no expense’ mentality to mesh WiFi systems, you can spend upwards of $4,000 for the latest, greatest tech. But for everyone else, price matters. Admittedly, the $349 RRP for a single Google Nest Pro WiFi unit is on the pricier side for 2022 tech. But the $699 RRP for a three-pack (the only other option) is great value, and particularly potent compared to the Nest Pro’s peers.

For three-pack WiFi 6E mesh WiFi systems, good luck finding anything for close to that $700 asking price. The Amazon Eero Pro 6E three-pack was the next cheapest at $949 RRP before pricing blows out: $2,099 for a Netgear Orbi AXE11000 two-pack or an eye-watering $2,799 for the three-pack version.

If you’re in the market for a new NBN plan, check out the popular picks below.

Realistically, if you buy a Google Nest Pro WiFi three-pack, you’re better off setting up all three out of the gate. Because of how I speed test the mesh WiFi systems—as an individual unit, then two, then three—my initial setup was focused on a single Nest Pro device. So, if you’re buying an individual unit, expect to be online in around 10 minutes.

It was technically 11 minutes for me, but that included a firmware update, which estimated five to 10 minutes of installation time, but was done in a couple of minutes. Setup is done via the Google Home app, and it’s very user-friendly wherein the prompts kick in after scanning a QR code on the Nest Pro. I also appreciated that the configuration detected that I was using a three-pack version and prompted me to set up the other two Nest Pro satellites (even though I didn’t at that stage).

Unfortunately, the Nest Pro is part of the mesh WiFi system trend that shuns web portals in favour of an app. On one hand, most users will happily get by with the monitoring and tweaking options available via the Google Home app. I was even able to do my usual new-router trick of changing IP addresses via the app which, outside of having to manually set the DHCP server range, meant the fixed-IP devices and software from my existing network had no issues getting online.

I do internet speed tests right after initial configuration to gauge speed potential, not just overall but also relative to wired and wireless performance in different parts of my apartment. While the front part of my apartment typically never has WiFi issues, the back part has issues with any networking equipment that can’t penetrate thick walls. Historically, I’ve had penetration issues with older WiFi routers and single-unit mesh WiFi systems, which tend to struggle in the back part of my apartment. Before testing, that’s exactly what I expected would happen with a single Google Nest Pro WiFi unit, albeit something that would improve with the second and third devices added to my home network.

All of my router internet speed tests are conducted with an Exetel NBN 100/20 FTTC apartment connection, using Ethernet for the first test then a Google Pixel 7 Pro for the WiFi tests (via WiFi 6). All of the tests below were done in the afternoon. Lower numbers are best for latency (measured in milliseconds), while larger numbers are better for download and upload speeds (both measured in megabits-per-second). Use the top line of results in the tables as an idea of best-case speeds at that time of day, then every line below as comparative. Signal strength according to Google is ranked from best to worst as excellent, good, fair and poor.

Before testing the Nest Pro units, I did a baseline speed test with my go-to WiFi 6 Synology RT6600ax router.

Note that the Synology router has failed that garage test every time, but it helps to highlight how WiFi 6E and 7 networking gear can better penetrate interference, like thick external building walls. After wrapping up the Synology speed tests, I then performed tests in the same areas with the Nest Pro in a single, dual and three-unit configuration.

It’s worth flagging from the outset that the Google Home companion app has an inbuilt speed test, which recorded 98.8Mbps downloads and 21.2Mbps uploads. I suspect those speeds are best-case results taken from the FTTC telecom pit, rather than what I can practically expect from home speeds. Testing with a single Nest Pro unit, I was surprised to see the speed tests failing in the study while the garage tests still registered comparatively decent results.

More surprising was how well the speeds held up with a single unit for the bathroom and bedroom tests. Still, the property fence and across-road results are quite low for download and upload speeds, albeit the latency remained consistent across WiFi bands and tests. Almost all issues disappear with a second Nest Pro, so much so that it’s a shame Google doesn’t offer a two-pack option for homes like mine.

The TV WiFi test was the only anomaly with 55ms latency, otherwise the study became a very usable WiFi space. It was also impressive to see the 5GHz band stretching across the road for that test, offering very healthy download and upload speeds. Practically speaking, the third unit felt like diminishing returns, with a 6Mbps dip in study download speeds and the return of disappointing 2.4GHz speeds for the last two tests even with bolstered signal strength. The big standout, though, is the garage speed tests with that third Nest Pro satellite flexing its speed potential and showing how those 2.4GHz results should look.

The big obvious versatility boon of a mesh WiFi system is expandability. While routers and (some) modem-routers may offer mesh expansion, those may be relegated to different compatible devices. But in mesh WiFi land, just buy another identical unit and you can expand. Google recommends up to five devices for wireless network expansion, which is plenty based on my tests.

If you want to add another Nest Pro unit or two after the fact (like I did), just head back into the Google Home app, head to the ‘Devices’ tab and tap that ‘Add’ button to get started. It does feel counterintuitive to have to plug in a Nest Pro unit before spinning it around to find the QR code needed for setup, but almost everything else is seamless. The only other minor wrinkle was the claim that my mesh connection wasn’t strong enough when the second unit was only five metres away from the main one in the same room.

It took around 10 minutes to set up each extra access point but given that also included a firmware update per device, that’s not bad for what’s intended as a set-and-forget network expansion. The biggest concern I had in terms of everyday internet usage was the lack of a clear Quality of Service (QoS) system. QoS is a great feature that, when it operates smoothly, automatically allocates finite internet bandwidth for priority tasks like streaming, voice calls and online gaming. There is something of a QoS setting in Google Home, but the phrasing suggests it’s temporary, per-device and, in practice, inconsistent in its effectiveness.