House → Shed
Getting Internet From Your House to Your Shed
She-shed, man-cave, backyard office — get Wi-Fi out there without burying a cable.
Sheds tend to be close — under 100 ft, often visible from a kitchen window — and used for a specific activity: crafting, workshop, home office, gaming, reading. What sheds have in common: the owner usually doesn't want to spend a weekend digging.
Good news — you rarely need to. At these distances, a cheap UniFi LiteBeam pair or even a pair of TP-Link CPEs delivers plenty of throughput for whatever's happening in the shed. If the shed is close enough that your existing Wi-Fi almost reaches, a mesh extension might even work (though we'll tell you when it won't).
The key question: is this shed actively used for several hours a day (treat it like an ADU and do a proper install), or is it an 'occasional streaming in the shed' situation (mesh extension is fine)?
What you'll typically use it for
- Backyard home office or studio
- Craft or hobby space with streaming video
- Gaming setup
- Guest sleep-out with Wi-Fi
- Garden-shed security camera
What to think about
- Under 50 ft with line of sight, mesh may be enough — test first before buying PtP gear
- If the shed has an outlet, powerline is tempting but usually disappoints outdoors
- Sheds with metal roofs block Wi-Fi from outside — you'll need an AP inside
- For a real office in the shed, treat it like an ADU and do a proper install
Best solutions for this scenario
Ranked by typical best-fit for this kind of building and distance.
- 1Point-to-Point Wireless BridgeA pair of directional radios, one on each building. The default answer for distances where running a cable is impractical.
- 2Mesh Wi-Fi ExtensionExtend an existing Wi-Fi network into a nearby building. Works if it's close enough. Often it isn't.
- 3Powerline AdaptersCarry ethernet over the electrical wiring. Cheap and easy, but only works reliably when both ends are on the same panel.
Gear commonly recommended here
Ubiquiti LiteBeam 5AC Gen2 (LBE-5AC-Gen2), 2-Pack w/ Surge Protectors
Cheapest legitimate UniFi PtP pair. Dish form factor, 23 dBi gain.
Entry-level airMAX dish radio. 23 dBi gain at a price below the NanoStation. Not as fast or as well-specced as the NanoBeam, but plenty for a home internet connection. This listing bundles 2 units and 2 Ubiquiti Ethernet Surge Protectors — the most cost-effective way to buy a complete UniFi PtP kit.
Best for: Budget UniFi install up to ~5 km with good line of sight.
- Cheapest UniFi-ecosystem PtP
- Surge protectors included
- Good gain for the price
- Older chipset than NanoBeam
- Single-chain radio
- Band
- 5 GHz
- Gain
- 23 dBi
- Range
- Up to 5 km
- PoE
- 24V passive (included)
Ubiquiti UniFi 6 Lite Access Point (U6-Lite)
Default UniFi AP for inside the barn.
Standard 802.3af PoE Wi-Fi 6 access point. Once your bridge brings ethernet into the barn, plug this into a PoE switch or injector and you have fast Wi-Fi over the whole building. Manage via any UniFi controller (Cloud Gateway, UDR, Self-Hosted).
Best for: Indoor Wi-Fi coverage in the destination building.
- Wi-Fi 6
- Standard 802.3af PoE
- UniFi controller (free) for config
- Not outdoor-rated
- PoE injector sold separately
- Wi-Fi
- Wi-Fi 6 (AX)
- PoE
- 802.3af
- Ports
- 1x GbE
TP-Link AV1000 Powerline Adapter Kit (TL-PA7017P)
Last-resort option when the outbuilding shares an electrical panel.
Powerline adapters carry ethernet over the electrical wiring. Real-world throughput on a single-panel setup is typically 50–200 Mbps. Rarely works well between buildings on separate subpanels or across a utility transformer. Includes pass-through outlets.
Best for: Short hops where both buildings are on the same breaker panel.
- No cables to run
- Cheap
- Plug-and-play
- Pass-through outlets
- Breaks across separate electrical panels
- Throughput is unpredictable
- Not a true substitute for point-to-point