How to configure wireless on Mikrotik router

Setting up a wireless network on a MikroTik router allows users to connect wirelessly with robust performance. It provides security and management features. MikroTik’s RouterOS offers advanced wireless configuration tools that can be tailored for both home and enterprise environments.

In this guide, you’ll learn how to set up a wireless access point (AP) on a MikroTik router. You will use both the Winbox GUI and the Command Line Interface (CLI).

⚙️ Step-by-Step: Configure Wireless on MikroTik Router

🔍 Prerequisites

• MikroTik router with built-in wireless interface (e.g., hAP series)
• Winbox installed or terminal access (SSH or WebFig)
• Basic knowledge of Wi-Fi SSIDs, channels, and security

🖥️ Option 1: Configure Wireless via Winbox (GUI)

1. Open Winbox and Connect

• Connect to your MikroTik router using Winbox via MAC address or IP.

2. Enable the Wireless Interface

• Go to Wireless from the left menu.
• Double-click your wireless interface (e.g., wlan1).
• Check “Enabled” at the top if it’s disabled.

3. Set Wireless Mode

• In the interface settings, go to the Wireless tab.
• Set Mode to ap bridge (for access point mode).
• Choose the Band (e.g., 2GHz B/G/N or 5GHz A/N/AC depending on your device).
• Set Frequency (auto or a fixed channel depending on environment).
• Name your SSID (e.g., Mikrotik-WiFi).
• Click Apply and OK.

4. Configure Wireless Security (WPA2)

• Go to Wireless → Security Profiles.
• Click the “+” to add a new profile.
• Name it (e.g., home_wifi).
• Set Authentication Type to WPA2 PSK.
• Enter your Wi-Fi password in the WPA2 Pre-Shared Key field.
• Click OK.

5. Assign the Security Profile

• Go back to Wireless → Interfaces → wlan1 → Wireless tab.
• Select your newly created security profile from the dropdown.
• Click Apply and OK.

6. Bridge Wireless and LAN (if needed)

• Go to Bridge → Add a new bridge if one does not exist.
• Add both ether interfaces and wlan1 to the bridge under Bridge → Ports.

Now we have set up wireless, at (wlan1) we can rename later as here wlan1-Wifi

💻 Option 2: Configure Wireless via CLI

# Enable wireless interface
/interface wireless enable wlan1

# Set up wireless AP mode, SSID, and frequency
/interface wireless set wlan1 mode=ap-bridge ssid="MyWiFi" frequency=2412 band=2ghz-b/g/n

# Create security profile
/interface wireless security-profiles add name=home_wifi authentication-types=wpa2-psk wpa2-pre-shared-key="YourPassword123"

# Apply security profile to wlan1
/interface wireless set wlan1 security-profile=home_wifi

# Add wlan1 to bridge
/interface bridge add name=bridge1
/interface bridge port add interface=wlan1 bridge=bridge1
/interface bridge port add interface=ether2 bridge=bridge1

🎯 Final Thoughts

When we have already configured, we can test connecting to our phone. SSID = MikroTik-WiFi

MikroTik routers offer powerful wireless capabilities that can be easily configured for secure, high-performance networking. You can deploy in a small office or at home. Setting up wireless via Winbox or CLI gives you full control over your Wi-Fi environment.

🔗 Looking to buy MikroTik products?
If you’re planning to upgrade your router or expand your network, consider buying through our Amazon affiliate store. You’ll find a curated selection of MikroTik routers, access points, and accessories. Your purchase helps support our content at no extra cost to you.