Find Your Cell Tower
One of the simplest and most helpful things you can do to improve cell reception is to find the location of your cell tower. When you know where the cell tower is located, you know which direction your signal is coming from. Knowing the origin of your cell signal can help you understand why you have poor reception, and how you may be able to improve it. Normally, that will be your carrier’s cell tower closest to your location. So, how do you find it? Go to our page Cell Towers. You can enter your location by street address, and the search engine will return a list of all towers within a 3-mile radius. The site also plots all the towers on Google Maps. For those towers that were registered with a street address, it will display the address.
Change Your Location
If you're at home, try different rooms to see if reception improves. If you're at work, move to different areas like the other side of the office or into a hallway. Cellular signals often fluctuate indoors, so experimenting with different locations can help you find better reception.
Find a Window
Building materials can obstruct cellular signals, but glass may allow signals to pass through more easily than concrete walls or a metal roof. For better reception, stand near a window and try your call. If you don't see much improvement at first, try another window. If you know the location of your carrier's nearest tower, find a window facing that direction.
Get Higher
Cell phone signals travel in a line-of-sight manner, meaning that any obstructions between you and the tower can weaken the signal. Increasing your elevation reduces the chance of obstructions affecting your reception. Try moving to the top floor of your home or office building. If you're driving, find a high spot to park and make your call.
Go Outside
Sometimes, the best solution is to step outside. As mentioned earlier, obstructions between you and the tower can degrade your reception. Exiting the building, even if it means taking the elevator down several floors or stepping out of your car, can significantly reduce these obstructions. While not always convenient, especially in bad weather or traffic, it may be necessary to get a better signal.
Ask Yourself These Questions:
1) When I'm indoors, do I experience dropped calls, poor audio quality, or delayed texts, emails, and voicemails?
2) When I go outside, do these issues improve? Do I maintain better connections, experience clearer call audio, or download files faster than when I'm indoors?
If you answered 'yes' to these questions, a cell signal booster could improve signal coverage in your home, office, or other building. However, there are other solutions to consider:
- Femtocell: This is a small, low-power cellular base station that connects to your broadband internet connection. It provides strong indoor cell coverage by routing cellular calls through your internet connection, effectively eliminating weak signal areas.
- Wi-Fi Calling: Many smartphones support Wi-Fi calling, which allows you to make and receive calls over your Wi-Fi network instead of relying on cellular signals. This is particularly useful in areas with poor cellular reception but strong Wi-Fi coverage.
- Signal Repeater: A signal repeater (or booster) amplifies weak cellular signals from outside and rebroadcasts them inside your home or office, improving coverage in areas with poor reception.
- DAS (Distributed Antenna System) Antenna: For larger buildings, a DAS can be installed to distribute cellular signals throughout the building. This system uses a network of antennas to enhance coverage in areas that would otherwise have weak or no signal.
If none of these solutions seem feasible, consider using Wi-Fi calling or getting a femtocell from your wireless carrier to improve your indoor coverage.