A method and apparatus for controlling an output power level of a radio frequency (RF) repeater (100 or 200). A system includes a receiver to receive a signal, a filtering unit configured to pass frequency components at or around a frequency band of a predetermined communication channel, an attenuator (124 or 142) to produce an attenuated signal by attenuating a parameter of the signal, a power amplifier (150) to adjust the output power level of repeater to a desired level by adjusting the gain of one or more components of the system, and a microprocessor (170) to receive an input responsive to the output power level of the repeater and, in response to the input, to transfer control signals to the receiver and the attenuator. The method includes sampling traffic load characteristics during operation of a network and adjusting a gain of one or more components of the repeater based on the traffic load characteristics.