IEEE 802.11
| IEEE 802.11 | |
|---|---|
| Wireless LAN Medium Access Control (MAC) and Physical Layer (PHY) Specifications | |
| Status | Active |
| First published | 18 November 1997 |
| Latest version | IEEE 802.11-2024 28 April 2025 |
| Organization | IEEE |
| Committee | IEEE 802.11 Working Group |
| Series | IEEE 802 |
| Domain | Wireless local area networks |
IEEE 802.11 is part of the IEEE 802 set of local area network (LAN) technical standards, and specifies the set of medium access control (MAC) and physical layer (PHY) protocols for implementing wireless local area network (WLAN) computer communication. The standard and amendments provide the basis for wireless network products using the Wi-Fi brand and are the world's most widely used wireless computer networking standards. IEEE 802.11 is used in most home and office networks to allow laptops, printers, smartphones, and other devices to communicate with each other and access the Internet without connecting wires.
The standards are created and maintained by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) LAN/MAN Standards Committee (IEEE 802). The base version of the standard was released in 1997 and has had subsequent amendments. While each amendment is officially revoked when it is incorporated in the latest version of the standard, the corporate world tends to market to the revisions because they concisely denote the capabilities of their products. As a result, in the marketplace, each revision tends to become its own standard. 802.11x is a shorthand for "any version of 802.11", to avoid confusion with "802.11" used specifically for the original 1997 version.
The IEEE 802.11 family uses various radio frequencies, including, but not limited to, 2.4-, 5-, 6-, and 60-GHz bands. Although IEEE 802.11 specifications list channels that might be used, the allowed radio frequency spectrum varies significantly by regulatory domain.
The protocols are typically used on a network stack in conjunction with IEEE 802.2, and are designed to interwork seamlessly with Ethernet, and are very often used to carry Internet Protocol traffic. IEEE 802.11 is also a basis for vehicle-based communication networks with IEEE 802.11p.