A modified planar monopole antenna with multiband operation for wireless local area networks (WLAN) is presented in this article. The antenna is composed of symmetrical hook‐shaped strips and a horizontal strip on the top, both printed on an inexpensive FR4 substrate, and is fed by a coplanar waveguide (CPW) feedline. The measured results explore broadband dual‐frequency operation with 2:1 VSWR impedance bandwidths range from 2.07 to 2.52 GHz and 5.07 to 6.62 GHz, which cover the 2.4/5.2/5.8 GHz WLAN operating bands. Also, good similar omnidirectional radiation patterns have been achieved. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 52: 463–466, 2010; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/mop.24940