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Don’t forget to consider lesser used devices like security systems, smart appliances, mesh networks, etc., in your household— every connection counts.
Consider how often you rely on technology like Facetime, Zoom, Microsoft Teams or Google Hangouts, if you’re working from home or do so socially.
Consider how often game consoles like Playstation, Xbox and some computer games are used in your home. Games on smartphones typically don't require as much bandwidth.
Some consumers would prefer to pay a little extra for higher speeds and others have a budget to stick to.
Any internet connection with speeds of at least 100 Mbps download and 10 Mbps upload is considered good. Given it meets the needs of the household, which will vary based on the number of users and devices connected at the same time.
While 100 Mbps is sufficient for surfing, streaming, and gaming without interruption, some people don't need internet that fast, while others need something much faster. Check out what you can do with some common speed tiers and the number of devices they’re good for.
Any internet connection with download speeds of 100 Mbps and upload speeds of 10 Mbps or higher is considered fast. But what constitutes a fast internet speed will vary for every household. If you stream 4K content, enjoy competitive gaming, or upload large files, you'll likely need higher internet than someone who casually surfs the internet.
A number of internet providers also offer multi gig plans with speeds ranging from 2 Gbps to 10 Gbps, but most people don’t need speeds that high. Unless you have a large household full of avid gamers, streams, and techies.
Yes, the Federal Communications Commission defines broadband speeds as at least 25 Mbps download and 3 Mbps uploads. But that's like the bare minimum to meet the basic requirements to stream HD content and share large files over the web.
Our Verdict: 25 Mbps is good for a small household with light internet users—not involved in intense, multi-device gaming or streaming at high-resolution.
For a single internet user with 1-2 devices, 40 Mbps download speed may be a good choice to stream 4K content and enjoy competitive gaming. However, if you’ve multiple users in your household involved in heavy bandwidth activities, a 100 Mbps internet speed will be a better option to enjoy a seamless connectivity experience.
Internet speeds in the range of 25-100 Mbps are considered good for Wi-Fi, based on how many users are in your home and how they use the internet.
You can calculate internet speed you need by considering the common types of activities you do online, minimum speed required for each, size of your household, and the number of devices connected to your Wi-Fi.
| Application | Optimum Speed | Functionality |
|---|---|---|
| Gmail | 2 Mbps | Attachments |
| 5 Mbps | Videos, HD uploads, Live | |
| 5 Mbps | Pictures, Videos | |
| Spotify / Apple Music | 5 Mbps | Audio streaming |
| 10 Mbps | Pictures, Videos, Live | |
| 10 Mbps | Pictures | |
| Snapchat | 15 Mbps | Stories |
| YouTube | 15 Mbps | 720p or higher resolution videos |
| Netflix | 25 Mbps | UHD videos |
| Gaming: Xbox Series X|S / Sony PlayStation 5, mobile etc. | 25 Mbps | Real time communication with servers |
| Virtual Home Assistants | 25 Mbps | Cloud video storage, Sensor alerts, Remote control |
You might sign up for 150 Mbps internet speed plan if you’ve got your own bit of internet fame— thanks to your YouTube channel. Or you run a small business and need to keep a few employees online. Also great for sharing your internet connection with 3-4 other people who all enjoy streaming and gaming as much as you do.
For online gaming, download speeds and upload speeds are equally important. This is because your console not just receives information from game servers but also upload your in-game actions to the server.
Whether you’re plowing through your enemies in “League of Legends” or gunning for a Victory Royale in “Fortnite”, your internet speed can have a powerful impact on your chance to win. For a single player, minimum speed requirement for most online gaming setups is 4-8 Mbps. If you want a seamless gaming experience, we’d recommend you opt for a 25 Mbps internet plan. And while online gaming doesn't require lightning-fast speeds, we’d recommend you keep a close eye on one key metric: ping.
Ping time, measured in milliseconds, determines the quality of your internet connection. The lower the Ping time, the better.
If the Ping time result obtained through your internet speed test is less than 50 ms (milliseconds), that’s brilliant and you should be thankful for an excellent connection. A Ping time of less than 100 ms is also good; around 150 ms or above is however not good enough, and you might experience problems during gaming, live streaming, and even video calls.
Bandwidth and internet speed are often confused with each other, but they refer to completely different things. Imagine that you are on a highway with a speed limit of 100 km/h; this is the maximum speed you can travel at. However, this will not be true at all times, depending upon traffic. If the highway is jam packed, then you will not be able to travel at the maximum speed no matter what.
Bandwidth refers to the traffic on the highway while the internet speed is the maximum speed you are allowed to travel at. Your download speed is generally an 8th of your bandwidth.
Your internet connection’s upload speed is the amount of data in megabits that it can send in one second. Most residential users of broadband internet use the downlink of their internet connection far more than the uplink. A good upload speed is 10 Mbps.
Each time you are browsing online or using an app, generally there is some user data collected to enhance your experience and deliver relevant content.
This is an internet connection which furnishes equal download and upload speeds. For example, 50 Mbps download and 50 Mbps upload. This type of an internet connection is usually built on fiber optic lines.
This is the more common type of internet connection. The download speed is more than the upload speed (very rarely it’s the other way around). Most internet service providers in the US offer asymmetric internet connections. An example is a 30 Mbps download and 10 Mbps upload internet connection.
You can calculate upload time using a speed test.
If internet connectivity becomes non-functional on your laptop, this means there might be an issue with your Wi-Fi. In case it doesn’t, try restarting your router to fix this issue. If still there’s no success, contact your ISP because the issue is from that end.
If that doesn’t help, forget the network on your device and connect to the internet from scratch. Try restarting your router, as that might remedy the issue.
On Windows, open Task Manager by pressing Ctrl+Shift+Esc and then go to the Network Column and check Network Usage. For macOS, press Command+Space to open Spotlight, type "Activity Monitor," and then go to the Network tab.
If your network is working properly, but only one device is not performing well, then you know there is a chance that device is facing an IP address conflict. If this is the case, you need to release and renew your IP address.
If you can, remove the network card from its slot and insert it back in. If this doesn’t solve the issue, then delete the network card from your computer and reinstall it. Connectivity issues are also caused due to corrupt OS or a virus attack.
If your router keeps stopping every now and then, restore it to its factory settings by holding down the ‘reset’ button for 30 seconds with a paperclip and then release it. If that doesn’t help, your router may have expired.
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