In this review, we look at eight Android Wi-Fi stumbler and analyzer apps for less than $10. All are available on the official Google Play store. We compared the products based on their GUI, features and functionality.
All the Wi-Fi apps we tested will show you a list of nearby service set identifiers (SSIDs) or access points along with basic details like the channel it’s operating on and signal strength. All the apps give you the signal strength in the negative dBm values and have some sort of visual representation on what I call a signal bar indicator. Some of the apps offer further network details, such as the access points vendor, media access control (MAC) and IP addresses.
The three most feature-rich apps we reviewed are WiFi Overview 360 Pro, WiFi Data+, and WiFi Analyzer Pro. (Watch of each product.)
WiFi Overview 360 Pro is packed with unique features, like the ability to prioritize your device’s network list, widgets for your device’s home screens, and the network tools Ping and Trace. It also gives you a couple of different types of strength values, gauges, and indicators. Our only gripe concerns the graphs showing the signal over time of each access point. You can’t view a single signal graph with all the access points; each access point has its own small graph. Plus the signal line resets when you access another tab.
WiFi Data+ also offers more than just a basic Wi-Fi stumbler. It gives the IP address and other details for your current Wi-Fi and Internet (WAN) connection. It’s one of the few that makes sharing or saving the captured data easy as well. The biggest improvement would be offering separate graphs for 2.4 and 5 GHz; right now both bands show the signal strength over time for the access points on the same graph.
WiFi Analyzer Pro also provides network details on your current connection and the AP. But what we found most convenient is that you can identify overlapping access points on the signal line graph and you can pause the scanning of the app. However, it’s network list could use improvements to be more user-friendly.
WiFi Insight has a solid look and feel, with thorough help and documentation. Plus, it’s unique roaming graph can help you evaluate hand-offs between access points. However, it’s uncommon channel usage graph might be considered a drawback.
WiFi Analyzer is a more basic Wi-Fi stumbler, but offers a shortcut to quickly take screen shots in order to save the data. The biggest differentiator is that this app doesn’t age out the access points that are no longer detected, which can be useful in situations where you want to track all access points in a larger area. Additionally, unlike most other apps, access points from both bands appear on the same line graph showing the signals over time. This could actually be a pro or con, depending upon your network environment and personal preferences.
insider is a pretty basic, but solid, Wi-Fi stumbler app. It’s filtering capabilities can be convenient when working with a lot of access points, which may justify the near $10 price tag.
WiFi Scanner is a fairly basic app as well, concentrating more on the graphs. In addition to providing the two typical graphs, it offers a noise graph to visually show the amount of interfering access points on the channels. However, this app lacks access point details (like MAC address) and also SSID labels for the access points on the graphs.
Though WIFI Scan Pro needs much improvement and full 5 GHz support before we can recommend this app, it’s the only one here that allows you to generate PDF reports and offers host scanning.
Net results
| Product | Price | Pros | Cons |
|---|---|---|---|
| inSSIDer | $9.99 | Can filter APs upon several criteria. Group by ESSID or radio. | No details on current Wi-Fi connection |
| WiFi Analyzer | $2.75 | Quick screen shot feature. Keeps old APs in list. | Can’t view separate graphs for each band’s line graph. |
| WiFi Analyzer Pro | $2.75 | Signal graph can show only overlapping APs. Can pause scanning. | Network list could use improvements. |
| WiFi Data+ | $1.29 | Gives IP details for the device, AP, and WAN. | Can’t view separate graphs for each band’s line graph. |
| WiFi Insight | $1.49 | Thorough help and documentation. | Uncommon channel usage graph. |
| WiFi Overview 360 Pro | $1.80 | Unique features and extras. Prioritize networks | Line graph of signal over time resets. |
Here are the individual reviews of the Android Wi-Fi stumbler and analyzer apps:
inSSIDer
inSSIDer is from MetaGeek, which offers additional software and hardware products for professional-grade Wi-Fi troubleshooting, optimizing, and surveying. They provide similar Wi-Fi software under the inSSIDer name for Windows and Mac computers as well, priced at $19.99. The Android edition is currently available for $9.99 on Google Pay, which has a 4 out of 5 star rating from 384 users. We evaluated version 4.0.2.9.
After you open the app, the first tab shown is ESSIDs. There you see a list of all the access points grouped by the radios, which you can also group by ESSID. Details for each access point include the signal strength in negative dBm values and also a small signal indicator, channel, MAC address (when grouped by radios), and supported security protocols. You can also filter the access point list (and consequently, the channel usage graphs) by defining an SSID, MAC address, channel, or signal.
On the Details tab, you can drill down on any network you’ve selected from ESSID tab. It includes the same basic details shown on the ESSID tab, but also a line graph showing access point signal strength over time. If you had grouped by Radio, you’d also see some interference analysis, such as number of overlapping or co-channel access points and recommended channels. If you had grouped by ESSID and multiple access points or radios broadcasting the same SSID, you’d see them all listed and graphed on the Details tab.
On the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz tabs you’ll find a channel usage graph for the respective frequency band. If grouped by Radio, the access points are labeled the MAC addresses, or if grouped by ESSID, the access points are labeled with their SSID.
On the app menu, you’ll only find a shortcut to opt-in or out of the anonymous usage reporting. There’s no option to save or export the results, nor does it allow you to pause the scanning to temporally save the data. We also didn’t find any in-app help or any documentation online specifically for this app. There’s a pretty consistent look and feel between the different platforms but as the feature comparison shows, there are some differences.
WiFi Analyzer
WiFi Analyzer (not related to the next app) is the ad-free edition of WiFi Analyzer Lite. It is developed by Martin Hloušek, who offers a few other apps as well. Consider trying the free edition before purchasing the AD-free edition, currently running for $2.75 on Google Play. Both editions have an average of 4 out of 5 stars, but the ad-free edition has received ratings from 127 users, while the free edition has from 1,183 users. We evaluated the ad-free edition, version 2.3.
When you open WiFi Analyzer, you see the list of access points, from both the 2.4 and 5 GHz bands. By default, the access point list is sorted by best to worse signal, but in the app settings you can also sort by SSID or BSSID. For each access point, you find a signal indicator and negative dBm value, channel, MAC address, supported security protocols, and vendor name. We noticed it showed more access points than most of the apps we tried, which is likely because it doesn’t filter out any of the access points with very faint signals, like most others do and it keeps access points in the list even after no signal is detected. Furthermore, the signal bar indicators also include a line to represent the highest signal detected for that particular access point.
Clicking a network from the list pops-up with the optimize option. Access points that you mark as optimize will be excluded from the channel scoring graph. The idea here is that you could mark your own access points or perhaps temporary access points that won’t be broadcasting later.
There’s no traditional save or export feature, but the app does offer a quick screen shot feature. From the menu, you simply tap Screenshot. Although it doesn’t say where they’re saved on the phone, we found ours at DCIM100MEDIATiny WiFi Analyzer.
There aren’t any buttons or tabs in the app for navigating to the other screens. You swipe the screen to do so. The first screen shown when you swipe to the left is a listing of all 2.4- and 5-GHz channels. Indicators are shown for each channel, scoring how free the channels are from detected signals.
Another swipe to the left takes you to a signal graph showing the negative dBm signal values for each access point in the 2.4 GHz band. The next left swipe shows a similar graph for the 5-GHz band.
There’s one more screen offered by the app, but it’s a right swipe from the default screen showing the network list. This screen shows a graph of the negative dBm signal strength over time from each access point.
The app has a Settings screen that you can access via its menu. We found some convenient functionality, such as being able to disable the lock screen and change the sorting of the network list. However, there is no in-app help nor could we find any documentation online, but there is a closed Google+ group you can join where perhaps you might find help if needed.
WiFi Analyzer Pro
WiFi Analyzer Pro (not related to the previous app) is the ad-free edition of WiFi Analyzer. It is developed by Zoltán Pallagi, who offers a few other network-related apps as well. You might try the free edition before purchasing the Pro edition, currently running for $2.75 on Google Play. The Pro edition has about an average of 4 ½ out of 5 stars from 68 users, while the free edition has 4 starts from 2,834 users. We evaluated the Pro edition, version 1.3.0.
After opening the app, you find three tabs. The first tab shown is the Dashboard, containing many different details of your current Wi-Fi connection. First are the gauges showing link speed and access point latency, signal strength bar, and signal quality stars. Next are the basic network details, such as the access point’s MAC address and channel and your device’s IP and MAC addresses. Next are the access point details: IP address, supported security protocols, and vendor. The last section had DHCP details, giving you the access point’s IP, netmask, DNS, and lease time settings.
On the Networks tab, you see a line graph showing the signals of access points in the negative dBm values. By default, it only shows access points that are overlapping on the channel of the access point you’re currently connected to, which can be convenient if you’re trying to evaluate interference. You can always tap the checkbox to see all access points. Below the graph are the same exact network, access point, and DHCP details for your current connection shown on the dashboard tab.
On the Channels tab, you see a graph of the channels and the signals of all access points, which you can switch between the two frequency bands. For 5GHz, you can also hide the less-popular DFS channels. Below the graph are again the same network, access point, and DHCP details for your current connection shown on the dashboard tab.
On the bottom of the app are some buttons that are always shown. Pause and Resume allow you to toggle the scanning on and off. The Analyze button pops up with a report showing if the current connection has passed or failed some criteria, which can help during troubleshooting a network or to proactively run at any time.
The Networks button brings up a pop-up window with a list of all the networks and their details, including the signal, channel, MAC address, supported security protocols, and vendor.
The app has a Setting page, where you can define the refresh time during scanning and hostname for the DNS resolving. There is no real saving or exporting, but you can pause scanning to temporarily keep the captured data for reference until the app is ended. There is also no in-app help, but we did find some unofficial documentation online.
WiFi Data+
WiFi Data+ is by Propane Apps, which offers a couple of other Android apps. On Google Play, this app is currently priced at $1.29. They offer a free edition of this app as well, but it has ads and lacks some features, such as external (WAN) IP reporting. The Plus edition has an average rating of 4 ½ out of 5 stars from 58 users, while the free edition has 4 starts from 1,246 users. We evaluated the Pro edition, version 3.0.2.
After opening the app, you’ll see the Connection tab. There you see the network details of your current mobile data or Wi-Fi connection, including the access point’s SSID, MAC and IP addresses, and vendor. Device details include the MAC, IP, and DNS addresses and link speed.
On the External tab, you find the IP address and other details on your device’s current Internet (WAN) connection, whether via mobile data or Wi-Fi.
On the Access Points tab, you see a list of all the access points, which you can sort by name, channel, security, and signal. For each access point, it gives the SSID, MAC Address, channel, signal in negative dBm, signal represented on a small signal bar indicator, and the supported security protocol (WEP, WPA, or WPA2). Tapping on a network brings up it’s network details, which includes the same info on the main list, plus the detected access point vendor and the exact security capabilities (such as WPA2-PSK or WAP2-EAP).
On the Channels tab is a channel usage graph showing the signal strengths of each AP, which you can toggle between the 2.4- and 5-GHz bands.
On the Signal tab is a line graph showing the signal strength of each access point over time. Though the color-coding legend isn’t visible by default, you can tap the Nets List shortcut to see it. You can tap a name from that list to highlight or only show it on the signal graph.
In the upper-right of the app, there are always a few buttons or shortcuts. The first is an On/Off button that enables/disables the device’s Wi-Fi capability. The second shortcut takes you to the Settings screen, where you can change the app theme, enable/disable screen lock, status bar, auto Wi-Fi on and off when starting and closing the app. The third button provides exporting functionality by allowing you to share or copy the data from each of the app’s tabs.
WiFi Insight
WiFi Insight is the only app from RidgeSoft. It’s currently $1.49 via the Google Play store and has nearly a 5 out of 5 star rating from 31 users. We looked at version 1.0.2.
The app opens to the Overview page where you see a table of the amount of networks, access points, and services detected in total and for 2.4GHz and 5GHz separately. Under that is a list of the network names and their basic info: frequency band, signal level shown in a simple bar graph and the negative dBm value, and the amount of services. On the top of the page, you can filter both the table and list based upon the network name, channel/band, and a particular access point.
The Networks page offers the same network list as the Overview page, but you can tap a network to view additional info on the bottom. That includes the MAC address, channel number, vendor, network type, and supported security protocols. If the network contains more than one access point with that same network name, the additional info on the bottom is shown for each individual access point. You can also filter the list by the channel/band and a particular access point.
The Access Points page shows a similar list as the Networks page, but this one lists each access point individually on the main list. The same additional info on the bottom is also shown, but this one shows all the SSIDs broadcasting from the selected access point. From this page you can select an access point and click the edit (pencil) button to customize the name and vendor displayed for it throughout the app.
The Services page lists each access point with it’s network name along with the same additional info.
The Channels page shows a bar graph of the channel usage for both frequency bands and is switchable between showing the number of access points and number of services. The graph is unique in that it tries to distinguish between the number of tuned access points and overlapping access points, each represented by a different color on the bar graph.
The Signals page shows a moving line graph of the signals from the access points. There is also an access point list (the first being the currently connected one) along with details, such as the vendor, MAC address, channel, and signal bar and negative dBm values. Again, the graph and list can be filtered by network name, channel/band and a particular access point.
The Roaming page shows a similar signal graph and access point list as from the Signals page but only shows access points that you’ve recently roamed between. This allows you to evaluate how well the device roams, for instance if it’s sticking with access points too long when there’s an access point with a better signal or if it’s jumping around too much.
The only configurable option in the app is the Configure access points feature, which allows you to customize the name and vendor displayed for access points throughout the app. You can edit the saved access point details or manually add access points by selecting the Configure access points option from the main menu of the app or quickly add via the edit (pencil) button on the Access Points page.
WiFi Insight doesn’t offer any type of saving or reporting, nor does it allow you to pause the scanning. The Help page is pretty thorough. In addition to covering the features of the app, it explains some related wireless terminology and concepts.
WiFi Overview 360 Pro
WiFi Overview 360 Pro is developed by Andreas Kraemer at KAIBITS Software, which offers additional network-related and various other misc apps. This app is currently available on Google Play for $1.80 with an average over 4 out of 5 stars from 935 users. We reviewed version 2.54.01. There is a free edition as well with an average of 4 out of 5 stars from 10,749 users. However, it contains ads and lacks a couple features found in the Pro edition.
After opening the app, you’re taken to the Main tab. If currently connected to Wi-Fi, you’ll see the basic network details on the top: the SSID, IP address, and speed. Directly below that you find the amount of total access points, amount in 2.4 GHz and amount in 5 GHz. Next is a list of the detected access points along with their basic details: SSID, MAC address, supported security protocols, channel, signal in negative dBm values, and also a signal indicator bar. We should note that the security details on this network list don’t distinguish between the PSK and EAP/802.1X modes. You’ll just see WPA, WPA2, and/or WPS. However, clicking on a network will show that information along with shortcuts to connect to the network, and if already connected before, shortcuts to change the password, set priority, or delete/forget the network.
On the bottom of the Main tab, you find buttons to refresh the scan, set auto refresh interval, and sort by a few different criteria. Additionally, there’s a button to show all the networks saved by the device. You can then delete/forget those you choose or set the connection priorities of the networks, which are unique features when compared to the other apps we reviewed.
Clicking on the WLAN Info tab shows the details of your current Wi-Fi connection, including the signal strength in negative dBm and percentage values as well as represented a line graph and gage indicator. Other details include the access point’s MAC and DNS addresses, the device’s IP address, and even the external (WAN) IP.
On the Graphs tab you’ll find the details of your current on top and then below that a line graph for each access point’s signal strength over time. However, going to another tab in the app will reset the line graphs.
The Ch Check (Channel Check) tab shows the congestion ratings of the channels. On top you see what channel you’re currently connected to and its rating on the indicator bars and what the best or least congested channels are. Below that are the indicator bars for all the 2.4-GHz channels. You can click the 5-GHz button on the bottom to view those channels as well.
On the last tab, Ch Radar (Channel Radar) is a channel usage graph showing signal strengths of the 2.4-GHz band. You can click the 5-GHz button on the bottom to view that band too.
On the top-right of the main portion of the app are always two shortcuts. One is to the Wi-Fi signal Stability tool, which runs pings to the router and displays the results along with a signal strength gauge and indicator. You can also enable the beeping sound to help judge signal strength as you walk around. The second shortcut on the top-right is to the simple verify Internet tool that prompts you if an Internet connection is detected on the network you’re connected to.
There’s shortcuts to more tools on the menu, accessible by tapping in the upper-left. Other than those that lead to tools we already discussed, there’s a tool to set shortcuts for quickly connecting to networks and a tool to manually enter network details, for instance for hidden SSID networks. Also accessible via the menu are ping and trace tools, settings, and help.
In addition, it offers five customizable widgets you can place on your Android home screen(s) to quickly see the signal strength of your current connection and toggle Wi-Fi on/off.
WIFI Scan Pro
WIFI Scan Pro is developed by OTH, which offers two other Android apps as well. It only has two user ratings, averaging at about 2 ½ out of 5 stars. However, their free edition that has ads, shows a 4 out of 5 star rating from 2,305 users. We reviewed the Pro edition, version 2.0.
The app opens to the Nets tab, which shows a list of the access points along with their basic details: SSID, signal strength bars, and supported security protocols. Clicking on a listing will then show its MAC address, channel, and signal level in negative dBm values.
You can export the network list by generating a PDF report, by clicking Save from the app menu. For each access point the report contains the SSID, channel, signal strength in negative dBm values, and supported security protocols. Although it would be nice to see the IP and MAC addresses, they aren’t included.
The Plot tab shows a channel usage graph displaying the signal strength in negative dBm values of the access points. However, unfortunately, we found this graph to be inaccurate and unreliable. The graphic is supposed to be only for the 2.4 GHz band, but the 5 GHz access points are placed randomly on the channels. Thus if any 5 GHz access points are near, the graph won’t be correct. The developer says they are planning to fix this soon by adding a separate graph for 5 GHz.
You can export the channel usage graph along with the network list by generating a PDF report. Like when exporting on the Nets tab, you’d click Save from the app menu. The PDF report will contain an image of the current channel usage graph along with the same access point details when exporting the network list alone.
The Discover tab provides a host or port scanning that’s supposed to list the devices detected on the network. However, during our evaluation sometimes it would only detect the router and/or not detect all the devices. Additionally, it only provided the IP addresses of detected devices, whereas it’s supposed to provide the IP address and hostname to give you a clue as what the device actually is.
The Ping tab provides a simple ping tool. After entering an address and clicking the scan button on top, it reports “Fail” or comes back with standard ping results.
On the app menu, you’ll find the Save shortcut for Nets and Plot tabs and you’ll also see the Connection info shortcut. It takes you to a screen with the details of your current connection: SSID, access point MAC address, signal strength in negative dBm, link speed, and then your device’s MAC and IP addresses. We didn’t find any in-app help or online documentation, besides a quick overview of the app on their website.
WiFi Scanner
WiFi Scanner is the only app offered by Jason Mirwald on the Google Play store. It only has four user ratings, averaging at about 3 ½ out of 5 stars. We reviewed version 2.0.
After opening the app, you see a graph showing signal strength for access points, represented with a curve or arch to show the channel-widths and possible overlapping, on the 2.4-GHz band. You can tap the 5-GHz tab to view the channels on that band as well. By default, all access points have a green signal line, but if you monitor a particular access point it will be white and if you manually add any access points they will be red. However, unfortunately there are no labels to identify the SSIDs of the access points, on this or any other graph offered by the app.
Then for each band there are two additional sub-tabs, Noise and Time, you can tap on. The Noise sub-tab shows a bar graph of the signal levels and number of access points using subcarriers. In other words, it shows how many access points are on the same or overlapping channels and their signal strength. If any particular access point is being monitored, it will appear with a white rectangular shape. This Noise graph gives you a good idea of the amount of congestion on the channels and bands.
The Time sub-tab shows a line graph of the signal over a period of time from the access point (shown in green) you’re currently monitoring and any other access points (shown in red) that could be interfering. This can help you judge if and how much interference there is with your network.
On the bottom of the app are always three buttons. The left one is how you can start or pause scanning, the middle Monitor button takes you to a screen where you can select the access point you’d like to monitor, and the Add AP button allows you to manually add access points. You’d want to manually add access points for those hidden SSIDs you know exist but the device isn’t recognizing.
This WiFi Scanner app doesn’t offer any real saving or exporting, but you can pause scanning to temporally keep the captured data for reference until the app is ended. There is no in-app help nor could we find any documentation online.
