As I understand it, most internet service plans require you to pay for specific upload and download speeds. How can I ensure my internet provider is delivering on the speeds I'm paying for?

1. What Is The Difference Between Upload Speed And Download Speed 1
2. What Is A Fast Upload Speed
3. Check Download And Upload Speeds

Sincerely,
Double Downloading

What Is The Difference Between Upload Speed And Download Speed 1

Dear DD,

Great (and timely) question, and one I'm sure we're all thinking a little bit about now that Google Fiber's insanely fast internet has us all a little jealous. Just last week the FCC revealed that most Internet Service Providers (ISPs) usually meet their advertised speed rates. Of course, just because most ISPs are delivering what they're advertising doesn't mean yours is. The basic process to test your download speeds is something anyone can do. The first step: we need to verify how much you're actually paying for.

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Find Out the Speed You're Paying For

The first thing to do is check in with your ISP and see what speed you're paying for (if you don't already know it). In some cases, all you need to do is look at your most recent bill and the download speed and upload speed will be listed on it.

Jul 23, 2018. How to gauge good upload and download internet speeds. You to download huge files and other media content in a short period of time. The speed a Dial-up internet connection topped out at is “56k”. This was a theoretical speed, and many technical factors had to match up to achieve it. That meant a download rate of about 7KB/s (keep reading to know how we worked that out). The differences between “Kb/s” and “KB/s” make it confusing at times. When it comes to mobile internet download speeds, terms like 2G, 3G, 4G and 5G are often used. Referring to four different generations of mobile technology, each of them gives a very different download speed. Older 2G connections give a download speed of around 0.1Mbit/s, with this rising to around 8Mbit/s on the most advanced 3G networks. Oct 11, 2010  Best Answer: Both download and upload speed will use your bandwidth. Download speed is how fast data will come from other computers to your computer (for instance when you open a website). Upload speed is how fast you can send data to other computers (all websites are just other computers on the Internet). Almost every speed test site tests for download speed, upload speed, and the ping rate. The upload rate is always lower than the download rate. This is a configuration set by the local cable carrier — it is not dependent on the user’s bandwidth.

However, some ISPs like to hide this information away a little. If your bill lists something like, 'Blast Speed,' or 'Roadrunner,' then that's the tier you pay for. The only way to figure out the speed you're paying for is to head over to your ISPs web site and search through their package options (here are some helpful links for Comcast, Time Warner, AT&T, Verizon, and Century Link).

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The Difference Between Download Speed & Transfer Rate by Alex Kocic Download speed refers to how fast a file can be copied from a remote computer, while transfer rate is the speed at which data is transferred between two devices, such as a hard drive and computer's memory. The Difference Between Download Speed & Transfer Rate by Alex Kocic Download speed refers to how fast a file can be copied from a remote computer, while transfer rate is the speed at which data is transferred between two devices, such as a hard drive and computer's memory.

If you need a quick primer on what to look for, your connection speed will usually be something like, 'Download speeds up to 20 Mbps and uploads up to 4 Mbps.' Mbps means Megabit per second and refers to transfer speed. (Don't confuse Mbps with MBps, aka Megabytes per second. A MB is equal to 8 Megabits combined). Head over to Buddy Backup blog for a nice and simple breakdown of broadband speed terminology.

You should now have an idea of the internet speed you're paying for, so let's do a speed test. Photo by BuddyBackupBlog.

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Do a Simple Speed Test

The easiest way to do a speed test is with Speedtest.net (or at least it's our favorite tool for the job). All you need to do is click on the nearest testing area (usually the big green arrow), and click Begin Test. (For the most accurate test, make sure you're not downloading or uploading anything—for example, you may want to pause services like Dropbox.)

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Let Speedtest run for a few seconds and you'll see your results. You'll see three different sets of numbers: Ping, Download Speed, and Upload Speed. The Ping is how long it takes for your data to make a round trip to the server, and we already know what the upload and download speeds mean.

Your download and upload speeds should be within about 1 or 2 Mbps as your advertised rate. If your speed test is a lot slower than what you're paying for—or, more importantly, you feel like certain types of downloads aren't fast—then it's time to check if your ISP is throttling you.

Check if Your ISP Is Throttling Your Connection

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Sometimes ISPs throttle you because you're torrenting, other times, it's because you're exceeding a data cap. Regardless of which reason it's happening, throttling stinks, and it's good to figure out why your ISP is slowing your internet down. Even if your speed test shows you're getting the right speed, that doesn't mean your ISP isn't slowing down certain types of downloads.

Find Out Which ISPs Are the Biggest BitTorrent Throttlers

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To test if BitTorrent is the cause, head over to Glasnost. Select 'BitTorrent' from the menu and let Glasnost run through its process (it takes about 8 minutes). Glasnost will let you know if your ISP appears to throttle your speed during certain types of downloads. If they are throttling your BitTorrent traffic, check out our guide to speeding it up.

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How to Boost Your BitTorrent Speed and Privacy

BitTorrent's been around for a whopping ten years, but it continues to evolve and remains one…

If they're not throttling BitTorrent, but your connection still seems slow, you might have reached a data cap. Some ISPs show you your limits in your account information, but it might be easier to call them and start hashing out why you're getting slower speeds. If you are exceeding your data usage, we've shown you how to monitor your usage to keep it from happening again.

How to Monitor Your Internet Usage So You Don't Exceed Your Data Cap

Internet data caps are becoming a reality and can seriously suck. If you're stuck with the…

What Is A Fast Upload Speed

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If they're not delivering what's advertised with any consistency, it's probably time to look for a new provider.

Sincerely,
Lifehacker

Check Download And Upload Speeds

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Internet service providers (ISPs) love to advertise one big number. This number – the download speed, measured in megabits per second, or Mbps – is generally the larger of two numbers that define browsing speed and general internet responsiveness. The second number, upload speed, can range from being the same as the download speed, to barely meeting high-speed standards, depending on the service offered. As a business user, you’ll benefit greatly from understanding what download and upload speeds are and how they work.

Upload vs. Download Speed

Put plainly, upload speed is the amount of data you can send in a given second. Download speed is the amount of data you can receive in one second. To download a web page, the computer first sends a request to download. The website processes the request and sends you the page. In this example, the uploaded data is small compared to the downloaded information.

High Internet Upload Speed Advantage

The must-have capability for most home internet users is good download speed, as this affects streaming services such as Netflix, Amazon Prime and Hulu. Many business users, however, need both download and upload performance. They aren’t simply consumers of data, they also supply it in significant amounts. Business applications that require good upload speed include the following examples:

• Hard drive backups
• In-house web hosting
• Attachments on outgoing email
• Cloud applications: Google Docs, Dropbox, iCloud
• Voice over IP (VoIP) telephone service
• Skype and FaceTime

Upload Speeds by the Numbers

At the time of publication, a good broadband internet connection will give you upload speeds of 50 Mbps or better. At the low end, basic services may provide maximum upload speeds as low as 256 thousand bits per second (Kbps). The service provider's technology generally determines upload speed performance, with services such as Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) and satellite coming in among the slowest, and fiber optics being the fastest.

Shared Upload Speeds

It's common for even small businesses to have multiple internet users. Upload-intensive applications present an even bigger issue when multiple users are on your network. For example, if the upload bandwidth is too small, a single VoIP call could cause web and other services to lag. With the average business placing a greater, two-way strain on a typical internet connection, it becomes more important to accommodate for simultaneous, continuous uploads.

Best for Your Budget

Although high upload speeds are desirable for a small business, such service is more expensive than those with more modest upload performance. Determining exactly how much you need depends on how you use your internet. For organizations that need only basic web browsing, email and video, a lower upload rate will work fine. More media='all' href='/css/citation.css'>

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