Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes ProCon History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture Money Videos
Science & Tech
verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style

What’s the Difference Between Bluetooth and Wi-Fi?

verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
Written by
Kara Rogers
Kara Rogers is the senior editor of biomedical sciences at Encyclopædia Britannica, where she oversees a range of content from medicine and genetics to microorganisms. She joined Britannica in 2006 and...
Kara Rogers
Fact-checked by
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Smart city and connection lines. Internet concept of global business in Sydney, Australia. Concept for wifi or bluetooth
© Prasit photo—Moment/Getty Images

If you have a smartphone, laptop, tablet, or similar device, it is probably equipped with both Bluetooth and Wi-Fi wireless capabilities. But what exactly are Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, and how do they differ?

Bluetooth, developed in the late 1990s, is a technology designed to enable short-range wireless communication between electronic devices, such as between a laptop and a smartphone or between a computer and a television. Bluetooth works by using radio frequencies, rather than the infrared spectrum used by traditional remote controls. As a result, Bluetooth eliminates the need not only for a wire connection but also for maintaining a clear line of sight to communicate between devices.

Wi-Fi is similar to Bluetooth in that it also uses radio waves for high-speed data transfer over short distances without the need for a wire connection. Wi-Fi works by breaking a signal into pieces and transmitting those fragments over multiple radio frequencies. This technique enables the signal to be transmitted at a lower power per frequency and also allows multiple devices to use the same Wi-Fi transmitter. Initially developed in the 1990s, Wi-Fi has undergone several standardization processes, approved by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), to allow for greater bandwidth in data transfer.

Although both are wireless forms of communication, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi differ in terms of their purpose, capabilities, and other factors. Bluetooth allows for short-range data transfer between devices. As an example, it is commonly employed in headsets for mobile phones, enabling hands-free phone use. Wi-Fi, on the other hand, allows devices to connect to the Internet. Bluetooth limits the number of devices that can connect at any one time, whereas Wi-Fi is open to more devices and more users. In addition, Bluetooth, because it requires only an adapter on each connecting device, tends to be simpler to use and needs less power than Wi-Fi, although this is achieved at the expense of range and speed of data transfer, in which Wi-Fi typically exceeds Bluetooth’s capabilities.