In order to accurately determine the location of an electronic device in an environment, a computer selects a set of received-signal-strength (RSS) values based on wireless communication between the electronic device and access points in sub-regions of the environment. This set includes a largest RSS value associated with a sub-region and at least two RSS values associated with neighboring sub-regions. Then, the computer calculates pairwise distance estimates of the location of the electronic device in the environment based on predefined locations of the access points associated with the set, one or more differences of pairs of RSS values in the set and a predetermined path-loss factor in the environment, where a given pair of RSS values includes the largest RSS value and one of the at least two RSS values. Furthermore, the computer determines the location of the electronic device in the environment based on the pairwise distance estimates.