For example, if you’re gaming or streaming a lot, you’ll want a higher download speed to avoid buffering and lagging. What constitutes a ‘good’ speed will vary depending on individual circumstances, taking into account how many people will be using the internet at once and what it will be used for. The average broadband speed in the UK is 81.7Mbps, but not many households will need anything faster than this. The higher the download speed, the faster your internet should be. This is not only because it’s what we mostly use the internet for, but also because download speeds are a lot higher than upload speeds and therefore more attractive to customers who don’t know much about how internet speeds work.ĭownload speeds are important to consider for: When comparing broadband tariffs, it’s most often the download speeds that are advertised. Almost everything you do on the internet requires you to download data, so this is an important number to take into consideration. What is download speed?ĭownload speed refers to how long it takes to download data to your device from an external source, measured in megabits (Mb) or megabits per second (Mbps). You may also see it when gaming – if your ping is high while playing online, you often receive an error message with a warning and could result in slow load times and lag. Ping is mainly seen when you conduct a broadband speed test. They’re advertised by providers to show how fast your internet could be and entice customers with high potential speeds (it’s likely that a lot of people won’t get the high speeds advertised). The most likely place that you will see ‘upload speed’ and ‘download speed’ will be when you’re comparing broadband providers and tariffs. You’ll see them each in different places under different circumstances but all three should be taken into consideration when testing your broadband speeds. ‘Upload speed’, ‘download speed’, and ‘ping’ are all terms used to convey internet speeds. How do I find out my upload speed, download speed, and ping?.Why are upload speeds slower than download speeds?.
Why is my file downloading at a slower speed?.As always, we’ve got you covered! Navigation In this guide, we’re going to look at ‘download speed’, ‘upload speed’, and ‘ping’ to help you understand what these terms mean and why they’re so useful. Whether you’re comparing broadband providers or conducting a speed test, you’ll probably find a few technical terms come up that you haven’t heard of. Disclaimer: The information on this page was correct as of August 23, 2021.