Please recommend a router without need for a cloud account

Any system capable of running OpenWRT.

https://openwrt.org/supported_devices

You might find / inquire about specific devices at the OpenWRT subreddit:

https://old.reddit.com/r/openwrt/

The Turris Omnia is priced above your preferred range, but is effectively a small server and has excellent capabilities. It runs a specifically-tuned and live-upgradable version of OpenWRT:

https://www.turris.com/en/omnia/overview/

None of my TPLink, Netgear, or ASUS routers have ever needed a cloud account - I guess this is a new/regional thing?

I use Mikrotik hAP2 (~£60/$80) - if you are comfortable with that sort of thing, otherwise I guess anything that supports OpenWRT as others have said.

Have you got examples of ones that need a cloud account? I'm intrigued now

Bought a netgear router and a tplink repeater within the last year. All the cloud account crap is only required to use the mobile apps. However they all offer web interfaces directly at their ip addresses. Just use that and bypass all the dark patterns.

It sucks that companies feel the need to cloudify everything.

Get a separate router and AP. Router hardware is stable , but wifi tech improves every 5 years . Router/firewall config is also more complicated so you want more control and stability.

For The router get a mikrotik or ubiquiti. Then you can run small- business APs from Ubiquiti and TP link for example. Or convert an older router into AP with open source firmware .

For small family home deployments I've always used ASUS stuff flashed with AsusWRT-Merlin - https://www.asuswrt-merlin.net/ - has been super stable and I've never required anything other than a local account to set them up.

Ubiquiti's EdgeRouter X is relatively inexpensive, has plenty of features, and does not require a cloud account of any sort.

Any router (or routerboard) that supports Mikrotik: https://mikrotik.com/

You don't have to buy from them the hardware.

I used to use OpenWRT (which is also a nice second option), but the robustness and flexibility of mikrotik is fantastic.

I have been using Netgear WNDR3700 and similar routers for years with no problems and no cloud account. I keep one as a spare for family in case someone's gets knocked out by a power surge, or the power supply dies, or whatever. Had that happen several times. I've never had one be "flaky": they either work or don't.

I buy them at Goodwill for $5-10 whenever I see them there, which is fairly often.

They have two main features I like:

- separate main and guest networks. I put all my non-computer stuff like phone, TV, Roku, Tivo, etc on the guest network. There is a setting to isloate the guest network from the main network on separate vlans.

- they have a QOS setting for uploads (I only have 1Mbit up), so when I do online backups with HashBackup (I'm the author), the router will use the full upload bandwidth if there are no other connections uploading, but if there are other connections needing to upload, the router splits the capacity between the active connections. Without QOS, it was impossible to have an interactive ssh session during a bulk upload. With QOS it works fine.

You can buy these on eBay for $15-25. Get one with free shipping so that if you have trouble and have to return it (unlikely with a high feedback seller), you don't have to pay for shipping.

I would look for hardware that can run Opnsense or OpenWRT

See e.g. https://old.reddit.com/r/OPNsenseFirewall/comments/lemj0r/ha...

and https://openwrt.org/toh/start

I don't know, how much they cost in US, but here are couple of solutions:

1. EdgeRouter X (ER-X) or EdgeRouter Lite (ERLite-3).

2. more userfriendly UniFi Security Gateway (USG) with controller (UCK) or UniFi Dream Machine (UDM)

- it propose creating cloud account, but __do not__ require it.

3. use devices capable to run OpenWRT or buy some hardware like Supermicro Embedded Solutions (later I can share models list) to run pfSense/OPNSense or VyOS.

4. other MikroTik soulutions (but I don't like them so my knowledge is not up to date; I don't know which solutions are good for you).

https://www.gl-inet.com/products/gl-b1300/ No bs openwrt router has DoH and optional PoE support. Cheap

Synology RT2600 is quite cool, I adore it. It has also a free site to site vpn feature where you can connect various subnets over the internet if you have several lines/homes.

It can segment traffic by people (you record which MAC is who, segment away by theme, etc), host a custom DNS server very well, has nice firewalling features and there s no mandatory cloud account. I ve made a few custom scripts for it, and its linux base is good enough (old kernel a little bit). I paid around 300 USD for it I think, for 2 of them, and it's the best router I ever had, OpenWRT included.

The only thing I miss from openwrt is the custom vlan joining on optic fiber relay you can do with them to bypass your ISP fiber modem and just use an optical to eth converter. But that's not a huge overhead these days. Doubled the speed when the ISP's crappy boxes couldnt cool well enough for 500Mbps 10 years ago :D

The big advantage, for me, of Synology routers, over OpenWRT and its alternatives (I rmb one called Tomato something) is that it's so much clearer and easier to use quickly and climb from there. With OpenWRT in my old memories you were thrown in a discouraging mess that made me struggle a bit to find simple features (but it has them all).

I spend a LOT of time trying different routers. I've pretty much settled on the Asus routers - 58U, 88U. Out of the box they're pretty good, but once you load them with the Asus Merlin firmware, they're rock solid.

I've visited a lot of homes to help troubleshoot internet connections, and the ones I've converted to this combination have gone silent (much more stable connections/wifi).

Go to goodwill or Craigslist, there are a lot of routers, like 1080p monitors, the world doesn't need any more low or mid range routers purchased new. Save a bit of waste from going to a landfill.

FritzBox 7530. That's all I use. Cons: A bit above your stated price point; not sure what international availability is like.

https://www.amazon.de/-/en/Router-Supervectoring-Server-Suit...

There's a few other router recommendations in these discussions from the past week:

- Hidden Networks in TP-Link Routers https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29641868

- MikroTik RouterOS v7 stable released https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29473704

Asus has been good for me. You could see what modern models are supported by asuswrt merlin or tomato firmwares.

http://freshtomato.org/

https://www.asuswrt-merlin.net/

Linksys Velop can be set up without a cloud account:

https://www.linksys.com/gb/support-article?articleNum=226218

Aruba Instant On might be possible too, but I am not sure.

OpenWRT is definitely the single best option, however there is very limited support for the WiFi6 routers. If you're upgrading to 6 or 6E, as I was this last month, I found few options for OpenWRT.

However, I already operate OPNSense as my primary router, and all WiFi "routers" on the network act as Access Points and do no routing. OPNSense provides granular control over the network, and offers all the services you would expect in at least a SMB-grade edge device (arguably enterprise), including routing, firewall, DHCP, DNS, IDS/IPS, etc.

Even in AP mode (routing disabled), the new WiFi COTS routers seem to phone home. My guess is a combination of checks for patching and some telemetry. I just block those lookups at the DNS layer for that device, which was effective enough at preventing the traffic. If I have to, I'll block outbound from that device specifically, though I admittedly haven't played around with the after-effects since its sort of the gateway for that specific NIC interface.

Turris Omnia [0], although if you can you might want to wait for the 2022 model [1].

Alternatively, build your own out of Turris MOX modules [2].

[0] https://openwrt.org/toh/turris/turris_omnia [1] https://forum.turris.cz/t/turris-omnia-2022/15995 [2] https://www.turris.com/en/mox/overview/

Here is a company that offers refurbished routers with DDWRT installed https://www.flashrouters.com .

Note -- I didn't realize this when I originally bought mine -- they bundle support in with the starting price, and you have to have 3 months of support minimum, after which you can cancel. So assume you have to pay an extra 60-90 dollars on top of the hardware price.

But then you own a router with open source firmware that you can manage locally.

It really depends on the functionality and performance you want. Given the price range the performance side will be on the low end.

I would recommend moving up your price-point (if at all possible) and buy something slightly more capable that will last, potentially, longer.

Protectli [0] and Qotom [1] are popular among the OPNsense[2] / PFsense[3] / Untangle[4] firewall distros with respect to small form factor devices.

If all you want is a cheap "router" with a bare bones feature set for Internet edge routing I'd recommend a Ubiquiti EdgeRouter X [5]. At $59 it's the best piece of hardware you're likely to get for the money with total control and less big-brother.

If you can't find one email me at my HN username at counterbrea dot ch. I have a few different unused EdgeRouters I could send you for the cost of shipping.

[0] https://protectli.com/ [1] https://www.qotom.net/product/list-58.html [2] https://opnsense.org/ [3] https://www.pfsense.org/ [4] https://www.untangle.com/ [5] https://store.ui.com/products/edgerouter-x

I am very happy with the ThinkPenguin mini router.

https://www.thinkpenguin.com/gnu-linux/free-software-wireles...

It uses LibreCMC--a really well supported Libre branch of OpenWRT.

https://librecmc.org/faq.html

Everything just works, and there are regular updates patching vulnerabilities.

I messed with OpenWRT on consumer gear for years. I hated the hardware. So many had "all the features" (802.11 coolest, gigabit NICs), but didn't have enough actual compute power/memory to get the performance out of them, or the NICs were "gigabit". OpenWRT works, but turned into a hobby in itself and I just don't have the patience for that anymore.

Since 2017 I've run pfSense and love it. Originally started on a fanless x86 machine with good NICs (until it eventually committed suicide), and now run an actual NetGate appliance. The appliance is even nicer to me, since FreeBSD/ARM isn't a likely drive-by target for a 0-day.

No cloud. Real OS, good feature set, regular updates, great performance.

Unfortunately I haven't found an access point I love without cloud accounts. Running Uniquiti APs now. I do like that they hand off devices between each other well, push IoT to 2.4Ghz and real stuff to 5GHz, etc. I'd never run their router exposed to the internet, but.. yeah.

I've been pretty happy with MikroTik routers. I have an extra HapAC2, if you cover shipping it is all yours (I'm based in US).

IF you're willing to do the work, an option would be get an HP T730 from eBay, add a low profile Intel quad port I340 or I350 adapter and perhaps add a little more RAM (depending on the T730 you get 4GB-8GB is more than sufficient), and then install pfsense, opnsense, DD-WRT, openwrt or anything else on it. You will have a great little router/firewall that is much more capable than almost anything else in this price range.

NOTE: this is effectively a thin client PC, so you can try different router/firewalls to pick which works best for you. There are also commercial options that people prefer such as Untangle, Sophos and so on. Sophos even has a free home version.

There are other alternates to HP T730, but you may have to look around.

It should come to around ~$100-$120 depending on luck, since it's eBay.

I have this, no cloud needed, OpenWRT compatible if you wish to use that https://www.tp-link.com/us/home-networking/wifi-router/arche...

Never needed one for my Asus.

I wouldn’t trust the people in the reviews know what they’re talking about.

I just bought a new Netgear router, I’ll be returning it, but it doesn’t require a cloud account.

Outside of Google Nest or Eero I don’t think many require a cloud account unless you want particular features like remote management, etc.

ASUS. Runs WRT. No account needed. Not a Chinese company.

Protectli boxes running OPNsense seem good. A bit more expensive though.

I advocate separating APs and WiFi from router.

I am using Ubiquiti Unifi hardware.

You can run it without cloud account if you wish so. You do not loose any very important functionality.

In particular the Cloud Key actually does not require cloud to function, it is actually a webapp running locally that lets you manage your local infrastructure.

I bought the TPLink Archer A7 and did not need a cloud account for it: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B079JD7F7G/

The Unifi Dream Machines allow you to set them up without a cloud account since the latest update: https://community.ui.com/releases/UniFi-OS-Dream-Machines-1-...

The Dream Router falls within your price range but is hard to get ahold of right now: https://eu.store.ui.com/products/dream-router-ea

Should be able to set it up and manage it over the local network via their mobile apps or via browser.

Take a look at TPLink equipment. They support cloud accounts, but they're not required. And their equipment is fairly good in my experience. I use the Archer C20 in my house, but in the $40-100 range I'd take a look at the Archer AX20.

Any random Linux distro or Free/OpenBSD install doesn't need an account of any kind. Unless you need an awkward modem which is hard/costly to get (e.g. cable internet, VDSL2+), almost everything can be a decent router. Commercial routers often have some kind of hardware offloading for routing built into their SoCs, but you don't really need that per se at residential internet speeds (<=1 GBit/s).

I'd recommend to separate router and wifi AP because this lets you pick the optimal place for the wifi AP regardless of where the internet cable is. Somewhat more costly but likely worth it for anything bigger than a three-room flat.

Linksys WRT3200ACM is what i recommend. supports openwrt. my 3200 is at my parents being used as an AP only. their router is a Cisco 1921 with zone based firewall and some poe 3750 switches.

My setup here is a Cisco ASA 5512x firewall, catalyst 3750GBe poe switch, WLAN2504 controller and several CAP3702 APs. this requires quite a bit of experience to setup, but works very well. the wlan controller and two APs will probably cost about $300. that alone could be used behind your ISP modem if desired. i’ve got gigabit fiber up/down from ATT and use their modem but pass thru the IP to my asa.

https://openwrt.org/toh/views/toh_available_16128?dataflt%5B...

Enjoy.

MikroTik hAP AC2 is decent. Supports a boatload of features and doesn't really support a cloud account (it'll phone home with it's serial if you use their builtin DDNS feature though).

Routes 1G, wifi is only 2x2 MIMO though so you won't get "amazing 9999 Gbit wifi) which you'll never get in real life anyways because of airtime congestion.

They have a noob UI, "pro" UI and CLI.

Both UI and CLI has all features (9x%, some features are hidden from gui while in beta).

Can't go wrong with MikroTik. I set my family/friends up with these along with a current gen access point. Been running strong for 8 years or so.

GL.iNet routers (https://www.gl-inet.com/products/) have been on my radar for a long time for similar reasons. No experience with their products yet, but they do look impressive with much more positive reviews than I could ask for.

What about a linux box with Smoothwall, and a switch? If you’re unhappy about cloud routers (as I am) perhaps build your own.

My TP-Link router asks you to make a cloud account but you don't need one to to use the web interface at 192.168.0.1

You can't really go wrong with Mikrotik.

They are affordable and have a lot of powerful features.

I have been using the "hAP ac" (2.4/5ghz) model for ~5 years now, and some other 2.4ghz model for another 5 years before that. Whenever I need to upgrade, I'll go with them.

I have an asus AX3000 bought last year. I don’t remember there being any cloud account associated with it, but it is out of the price range ($150) you’re asking for.

It could be the budget options are reducing prices in exchange for the ability to gather data, similar to smartTVs

Thanks everyone for making recommendations. I never expected so many answers :D Happy holiday!

Edgerouter X

MikroTik has some fantastic products in your price range. Could wholeheartedly recommend them myself. https://mikrotik.com/products

Used Ruckus AP/router from eBay. Ridiculous reliability and performance for a home setup. Downsides are missing the absolute latest tech, it being EOL gear, and no warranty if it somehow dies.

What other requirements do you have? Wireless? How fast is the connection? How many devices will be on it, and what kind of performance do they require? Is this for you, or your Grandma?

Not quite and off-the-shelf product, and also largely out of stock, but many people like to get a PC Engines APU2 and run OPNSense or OpenWRT on them.

Note for ddwrt enthusiasts that some gigabit or faster routers (eg asus) will perform an order of magnitude slower than with the stock firmware.

>need a cloud account to access the management page

Do they? Zyxel don't, Huawei don't, Netgear don't, Asus don't etc etc..

Microtek hands down the best value for money.

Anything listed here: https://ryf.fsf.org.

https://www.pfsense.org

How about a custom built solution?

Protectli Vault FW4B - 4 Port with OpenBSD and a Ubiquiti AP.

My Arris modem/router combo didn't need a cloud account.

Normally I go to eBay and search openwrt, there are several models

Mikrotik HAP AC2. Great value, great power, easy setup.

OpenWRT also great option.

how comfortable are you with swapping the firmware out? DD-WRT or Tomato (or any of the other options) should all be local only.

OP obviously used a new throwaway (presumably one-time use) account. Does anyone know what might be the reason for this?

EdgeRouter-X

Mikrotik

Mikrotik.

Ideally you should get one wired router, Cisco and Juniper are famous. Depending on your configuration, you might want one 24-port switch as well. 10GE support is going to be a nice future proofing but adoption is still lagging. Add as many wireless APs as necessary per each 10-20ft radius to cover and you're good. ok I'm 82.5% joking. I'm not doing anything fancy as that, just an EdgeRouter X and a whatever AP.

Are you sure it's cloud account? All routers need ID and password but usually it's local and only ever stored on router itself.