When US internet service providers first rolled out broadband, it transformed our connectivity. Download speeds of 2 Mbps were about 15 times faster than what we had been used to in the days of dial up. Today, the average download speed in the US is more than 200 Mbps.
However, many US householders have speeds that are slower than this, and in this age of movie streaming, conference calls and so on, our need for fast internet connections has never been greater. A slow connection causes movies to buffer, connections to hang and pages to take an age to open. If any of this sounds familiar, the following tips could help you to improve your internet speed without having to go through the inconvenience of changing your internet service provider.
Checking Your Internet Speed
First, understand your starting point by checking your internet speed. There are two areas you need to assess here. As well as checking your actual internet speed, you need to understand how fast it could potentially be at your address. This can be done for US homes and businesses using an internet service provider comparison website that can zero in to any address in the US. The good thing about this tool is it gives granular information that applies to your actual home. Having said that, if you are uncomfortable about giving your exact address, you can also use it to give more general information about internet service providers who serve your zip code and the speeds they can achieve.
Armed with this information, the next step is to check your actual internet speed. There are several free tools that can do this, such as speedtest.net and fast.com. These will give a download speed and upload speed in Mbps. See how this compares with the claimed speed according to your internet service provider – it might come as a surprise.
What Speed Do You Need?
We mentioned at the outset that by and large, internet speed has improved over the years, but so have our demands. Obviously the faster it is the better, but what sort of numbers do you actually need?
Most people are predominantly interested in bandwidth, or download speed. This corresponds with how quickly information reaches your device from the world wide web, so it is particularly important for activities like streaming and gaming. Upload speed refers to information going the other way, for example when you post photos or videos to social media.
If all you want to do is browse the internet, a speed of 1 Mbps is sufficient. But most of us want to do more than that. Video conferencing demands a speed of at least 10 Mbps, while for HD movie streaming, you’ll need a speed of 30 Mbps. At the top end, if you have a house full of people, some of whom work from home while others are streaming movies in different rooms, you might easily need bandwidth of 300 Mbps to handle it all smoothly.
Ways to Improve Internet Speed
Of course, it is always worth checking what is on offer from other ISPs, especially if fiber is available in your area as this can be 10 times faster than cable. But there are other simple measure you can take that can make a big difference to your existing service:
- Reposition your router – hiding the router away in a closet might look neater but it can dampen the signal, especially if devices are some distance away. Try repositioning it and rerun the speed test.
- Invest in boosters – these clever devices only cost a few dollars and they use your home electricity circuit to boost the signal. They are ideal for larger homes and eliminate those dead zones.
- Upgrade your router – most ISPs provide a router for free when you take out your contract, but these soon become outdated. If your speed is not what it should be, let them know and they will probably send you an updated router.
