MCS Index
Data rates for every 802.11n, ac, ax and be MCS with up to four spatial streams. Pick a cell to see how its rate is calculated, or enter a device's link rate to find the MCS behind it.
How to use this tool controls and what to look for
Choose a generation and a channel width, then pick any cell in the table to see how its data rate is calculated.
Controls to change
- Wi-Fi generation: choose 802.11n, ac, ax or be, or All.
- Channel width or RU: pick 20 to 320 MHz. Tick Include OFDMA RUs to list resource units too.
- Guard interval: compare the short and long guard intervals.
- Spatial streams: show 1 to 4 streams.
- Compare across: lay the table out by streams, widths or guard intervals.
- Link rate (Mbps): type the rate a device reports to find the MCS behind it.
What to look for
- Each MCS is a modulation plus a coding rate. Going up the table packs more bits into each symbol.
- Doubling the channel width or the streams roughly doubles the rate. The MCS alone changes it much less.
- A "—" marks a combination the standard doesn't define.
- A single link rate can match several MCS, stream and width combinations. Use what you know about the device to narrow it down.
About this tool
The MCS index sums up how a Wi-Fi link sends data: which modulation and which coding rate. This table gives the data rate for every 802.11n, ac, ax and be MCS with up to four spatial streams, for every channel width and guard interval. Pick a cell to see how its rate is calculated, or enter the link rate a device reports to find the MCS behind it.
What you'll learn
- What an MCS index stands for: a modulation and a coding rate
- How a data rate is calculated from data subcarriers, bits per symbol, coding rate, spatial streams and symbol time
- How the tables differ between Wi-Fi 4, 5, 6 and 7
- How to work back from a device's link rate to its MCS
Common questions
What does MCS 11 mean in Wi-Fi 6?
1024-QAM with 5/6 coding. With two spatial streams on an 80 MHz channel it gives 1201 Mbps.
Why does my laptop show 866 Mbps?
That's Wi-Fi 5 at MCS 9 (256-QAM, 5/6 coding) with two spatial streams on an 80 MHz channel and the short guard interval.
What is the fastest Wi-Fi 7 data rate?
MCS 13 (4096-QAM, 5/6 coding) on a 320 MHz channel gives about 2.9 Gbps per spatial stream, or about 11.5 Gbps with four streams.
Free for private and educational use. This interactive model is a simplified teaching aid and may contain mistakes. It is provided as is, without warranty. Use it to understand the concepts, not as a substitute for a site survey, vendor documentation or professional design advice.