The TP-Link Archer 8 Ultra and the ASUS ROG Rapture GT-BN98 Pro are the first two Wi-Fi 8 flagships you can actually order, and they disagree on almost every design choice that isn’t the radio standard. One is a tall, internal-antenna tri-band box with an SFP+ port; the other is a two kilogram quad-band gaming router with eight external antennas and a published CPU and memory spec. Which one fits depends more on your wired network and your firmware habits than on Wi-Fi 8 itself.
We built this comparison from the TP-Link and ASUS spec pages, the first independent reviews and the regional store listings as of early October 2026. Neither router is on sale in the US yet, so we also cover where each one can be bought, what the Wi-Fi 8 features do at launch, and the Wi-Fi 7 twin of each router that you can order today. For the background on the standard itself, start with our Wi-Fi 8 vs Wi-Fi 7 explainer.
Archer 8 Ultra vs GT-BN98 Pro at a glance
| TP-Link Archer 8 Ultra | ASUS ROG Rapture GT-BN98 Pro | |
|---|---|---|
| Class | BN19000, tri-band | BN30000, quad-band |
| 2.4 GHz | 1376 Mbps | 1376 Mbps (4×4) |
| 5 GHz | 5764 Mbps | 5764 Mbps (4×4) |
| 6 GHz | 11528 Mbps | 2 x 11529 Mbps (4×4 each) |
| Processor and memory | Not published | 2.6 GHz quad-core, 2 GB RAM, 256 MB flash |
| 10G ports | 2 (one is an SFP+/RJ45 combo) | 2 RJ45 (one WAN/LAN, one LAN) |
| 2.5G ports | 4 LAN | 4 (one WAN/LAN, three LAN) |
| 1G ports | 1 LAN | 1 LAN |
| USB | 1 x USB 3.0 | 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 1, 1 x USB 2.0 |
| Antennas | 18 internal | 8 external |
| Size and weight | 226 x 98 x 245.6 mm, weight not listed | 350 x 350 x 221 mm, 2.07 kg |
| Mesh | EasyMesh | AiMesh only |
| VPN server | OpenVPN, WireGuard, L2TP, PPTP | WireGuard, OpenVPN, IPSec, PPTP |
| US availability | None announced | Expected mid to late October 2026 |
Specs come from the TP-Link Archer BN800 spec page and the ASUS GT-BN98 Pro spec page. Both routers use Broadcom Wi-Fi 8 silicon; Tom’s Guide names the BCM6718 in the ASUS, and TP-Link has not named the exact part.
Radios and bands
The per-band rates are identical because both use 4×4 radios at the same channel widths. The difference is the count. The GT-BN98 Pro adds a second 6 GHz band, and on the North American Pro model that band sits partly in the UNII-8 spectrum that most other regions haven’t opened, which is why the plain GT-BN98 sold in Europe and Asia swaps it for a second 5 GHz band instead. Two 6 GHz bands matter when you want one for clients and one for a mesh backhaul, or when a busy house has many 6 GHz devices.
The Archer 8 Ultra keeps the more common tri-band layout and hides 18 antennas inside the case, with antenna modes for multi-floor coverage and range. The ASUS uses eight large external antennas that cannot be removed. For a router on a shelf in a living room the TP-Link is the easier one to live with; the ASUS needs a desk-sized footprint.
Wired ports and the SFP+ question
Both routers give you two 10G ports, four 2.5G ports and one gigabit port, so on paper the wired side is close. The detail that separates them is the Archer 8 Ultra’s combo port, which takes either an SFP+ module or an RJ45 cable. That lets you feed it from a fiber ONT or a DAC to an SFP+ switch without a media converter, although only one side of the combo works as the WAN at a time. The GT-BN98 Pro is RJ45 only.
Put simply, the TP-Link fits a homelab built on SFP+ switches and the ASUS fits one built on 10GBASE-T. If you are still choosing, our 2.5GbE and 10GbE switch guide and 10GbE NIC guide cover both routes. The ASUS also adds a second USB port and WAN or LAN link aggregation, and lists dual WAN and VLAN support on its spec page; TP-Link doesn’t list VLAN support for the Archer 8 Ultra.
Firmware, VPN and mesh
The ASUS runs ASUSWRT 6.0 with AiProtection, ad and tracker blocking and VPN Fusion, none of which needs a subscription. It can act as a WireGuard, OpenVPN, IPSec or PPTP server. TP-Link runs its own firmware with WireGuard, OpenVPN, L2TP and PPTP servers, and its HomeShield security suite has paid tiers. Neither router is a candidate for open firmware. Asuswrt-Merlin has said it will not support any Wi-Fi 8 model, and there is no upstream Linux driver for the Broadcom Wi-Fi 8 radios, so OpenWrt is not realistic on either.
Mesh is a real fork in the road. The Archer 8 Ultra supports EasyMesh, the vendor-neutral standard, so it can in principle mesh with other EasyMesh gear. The GT-BN98 Pro is AiMesh only, which works well inside the ASUS ecosystem and nowhere else; HighSpeedInternet lists the missing EasyMesh as one of its few complaints. If you already run AiMesh nodes, the ASUS slots straight in.
Wi-Fi 8 features at launch
Neither router ships with the full Wi-Fi 8 feature set. TP-Link says the Archer 8 Ultra launches with unequal modulation, the new intermediate MCS steps, improved LDPC coding and non-primary channel access, and that dynamic subchannel operation, enhanced long range, distributed resource units and the multi-AP coordination features follow by firmware. ASUS does not publish a comparable split. Every one of those features also needs a Wi-Fi 8 client to do anything, and no laptop or phone is sold as one yet.
Measured performance so far
Only the ASUS has independent numbers. Tom’s Guide measured 2.300 Gbps at 15 feet and 799.7 Mbps at 75 feet with a Wi-Fi 7 laptop, against 2.580 Gbps and 528.3 Mbps for the Wi-Fi 7 GT-BE19000AI. That is slower up close and noticeably stronger at range. The same review measured 4.492 Gbps over a 15 ft Cat 7 wired link and a peak power draw of 28 W.
There’s no independent test of the Archer 8 Ultra yet, and TP-Link had not shown real product photos at pre-order. Its figure of up to 30 to 33% more throughput than Wi-Fi 7 is a TP-Link lab claim. We would wait for review units before reading anything into it.
Price and where to buy
| Archer 8 Ultra | GT-BN98 Pro | |
|---|---|---|
| UK | GBP 899.99 list (pre-order discount offered) | Not listed |
| Germany | EUR 799.90 (EUR 699.90 pre-order), ships from November | Plain GT-BN98 only, about EUR 960 |
| Canada | Not listed | CAD 1,299.99, shipping now |
| US | No date; blocked pending FCC conditional approval | Expected mid to late October, about $899.99 |
The FCC’s March 2026 decision stops new foreign-made consumer routers from being authorized without conditional approval, and TP-Link says only that it is working with regulators. ASUS has FCC approval for the GT-BN98 Pro, according to Dong Knows Tech, and has said US details will be announced shortly; the $899.99 figure comes from reviewers, not an official US price. Neither router has an Amazon US listing yet, so check back once they do.
TP-Link Archer 8 Ultra
The Archer 8 Ultra is the better fit for an SFP+ network, a shelf placement or an EasyMesh setup.
Its compact, internal-antenna case and the SFP+ combo port are the two things the ASUS can’t match. The catch: TP-Link has not published the processor or memory, there is no independent review yet, and US buyers have no date at all. Not on sale in the US; pre-order in the UK, Germany, the Netherlands and Australia.
ASUS ROG Rapture GT-BN98 Pro
The GT-BN98 Pro is the pick if you want the most radio hardware and an ecosystem you already know.
Two 6 GHz bands, published hardware specs, subscription-free security and the only independent test results so far make it the safer bet today. The catch: it is big, it is AiMesh only, Merlin won’t support it, and the expected US price sits about $200 above its Wi-Fi 7 twin. On sale in Canada; US launch expected later in October.
The Wi-Fi 7 twins you can buy today
Each Wi-Fi 8 router has a direct Wi-Fi 7 predecessor with the same band layout, and both are on Amazon US now. With no Wi-Fi 8 clients on the market, they deliver most of the same experience for less.
ASUS ROG Rapture GT-BE98 Pro
The GT-BE98 Pro is the same quad-band, two 6 GHz band design on Wi-Fi 7, and it is supported by Asuswrt-Merlin.
Dong Knows Tech’s hands-on found little difference between the two with current clients, and Merlin support is a point in the older router’s favour. Pass on it if you want to own Wi-Fi 8 hardware for the long run. About $650 to $700, check the live price.
TP-Link Archer BE800
The Archer BE800 is the tri-band Wi-Fi 7 router the Archer 8 Ultra replaces, and it is still sold in the US.
It matches the Archer 8 Ultra’s BN19000 tri-band layout and 10G wired speeds at under half the UK list price. Look elsewhere if you want Merlin or OpenWrt: it runs TP-Link’s stock firmware only, and the advanced HomeShield features are paid. About $500, and stock was thin when we checked.
Which one fits your network
- SFP+ switch or fiber ONT at the edge: Archer 8 Ultra, for the combo port.
- 10GBASE-T throughout: GT-BN98 Pro, or the GT-BE98 Pro if you do not need Wi-Fi 8 yet.
- Existing AiMesh nodes: GT-BN98 Pro.
- Mixed-vendor or EasyMesh mesh: Archer 8 Ultra.
- Custom firmware or Merlin scripts: neither; stay on a Merlin-supported Wi-Fi 7 ASUS.
- US buyer who needs a router this month: one of the Wi-Fi 7 twins above.
We plan to update this comparison when the GT-BN98 Pro reaches US retailers and when the first Archer 8 Ultra review units ship, and to test both against a real Wi-Fi 8 client once one is on sale. If your router mainly feeds a wired homelab, putting the routing on a dedicated firewall box and the Wi-Fi on separate access points keeps either choice easy to replace later.
