What is good upload and download speed?

What is download speed?

Your download speed is the standard measure of data you can get from the Internet in a given second. In other words, how fast you can pull information from the server. Download speeds are almost always higher than upload speeds by design because the average person spends more time uploading information. Download speed is measured in megabits per second (Mbps), and the speed at which your browser can deliver web pages determines how fast you can download files and video streaming quality.

What is upload speed?

As you can probably see, upload speed is the speed at which you send data to others or to a specific site. When you send large files by email or during a live video stream, the upload speed is relative. As we mentioned, a company or individual needs a higher upload speed after uploading.

"Symmetric" Internet means that download and upload speeds are the same. Both are well tested when speeds are symmetrical, but this is a rare configuration.

What is Bandwidth?

Bandwidth refers to your network's ability to upload or download data. Think of it as a pipeline for transferring information between the Internet and your local network. Larger data requests require greater bandwidth to squeeze. Smaller pipelines cause stagnation, slowing the transfer process.

Good Upload and Download Speed

It is easy to assume that we are getting what we promised but what is the good internet speed and how fast is Netflix needed?

The Internet is a complicated place and with so many different broadband options in and out, it's hard to know if you're getting what you pay for. Here we explain what is good upload and download speed.

You need to find out what they are before we explain whether you are in motion or not. This requires a benchmark speed test. You can do this easily by going to Speedtest.net and clicking on the 'Start Test'.

Test your connection once or twice a day before bothering to contact your provider. Learn more about testing your broadband speed and connection.

If there are things you don't understand, go to our Broadband Speed ​​Jargon Buster. Find out the best broadband deals now and how to get broadband without a landline.

What is good upload and download speed?

There are many ways to look at this. First you need to check if you are getting the speed advertised by your broadband provider or ISP (Internet Service Provider).

For example, if you are going to give 100Mbps download speed to a broadband package, you will be very upset if you are getting 10Mbps speeds.

Remember that the declared speed is the maximum speed, so you probably will not reach that number. However, you should expect more time - IPS slows down busy times to get a consistent connection for customers.

When you run the speed test on the above site, the results are grade, so that you can see if your speed is good or not. For example, if you achieve 70 percent, only 30 percent of connections are better than you.

What internet speed do I need for Netflix, Skype and Gaming?

Another way to see if you have good upload and download speeds is whether they are good enough to do different things. Let’s look at the recommended speeds for video streaming and online gaming, without buffering or logging. You can compare them with your speed test results.

Internet speed for Netflix

0.5Mbps - required speed
1.5Mbps - Recommended Speed
3.0Mbps - SD quality
5.0Mbps - HD quality
25Mbps - Ultra HD 4K Quality
Internet Speed ​​for Skype (Download / Upload)
100kbps / 100kbps - Calling
300kbps / 300kbps - Video calling
500kbps / 500kbps - High Quality Video Calling
1.5Mbps / 1.5Mbps - HD Quality Video Calling
2 Mbps / 512 Kbps - Group Video Calling (up to 3 people)
Internet speed for youtube
1 + Mbps - Recommended
Internet speeds for online gaming
This is a low ping when you talk about gaming. Generally you want the ping to be less than 100ms, but should be less than 50ms if possible.

Jargon Buster

Download speed

How fast you can receive data from your connection server (ie the internet). Coming up with the digital equivalent of your postman. This is usually measured in Mbps (megabits per second) if you don't have slow speeds.

Upload speed 

This is the opposite of download speeds and how fast your connection can send data over the Internet. It can also be measured in Mbps if you don't have slow speeds.

Ping

This is effectively digital response time; The time you receive a response after making a request and it is usually measured in milliseconds.

How do you determine your current bandwidth?

To determine your current bandwidth, check out this free motion test. The results provided will give you an approximation of the speed of your uploads and downloads provided by your Internet Service Provider (ISP).

Run this test in a variety of situations. The number of people implicated in the network effect is upload speed and can cause fluctuations.

If you are planning to broadcast an event with the presence of a larger person, testing with someone around on Tuesday afternoon may not paint an accurate picture of your available bandwidth.

How might your Internet connection be affected? 

The numbers you see on your speed tests may not reflect the network specs that your special ISP provides. The bandwidth available always fluctuates, which is why your internet seems to be slower in some days and faster on others.

Various factors affect your connection. Here are some common reasons for a slow Internet connection.

An incredibly crowded network
Your bandwidth is spread among the people using that network. If your organization provides Wi-Fi to everyone in the building on the same network as your live stream, you thin out the bandwidth dedicated to your broadcast.

There are several ways to deal with a dense network problem: 

You can make your Internet connection private so people need a password to access the connection.
You can provide the quality of your live streaming encoder service (QoS) to allocate a certain amount of bandwidth to your network. QoS can be complicated, so you should start talking to an IT professional before you start experimenting.

A faulty router 

Routers are small devices that allow you to connect devices to the Internet through a physical Internet connection. You may have periodically reset your router to reset your internet connection.

Some routers have a wider range and include more cores than others. These stronger routers process and queue information faster.

The effectiveness of any router - powerful or limited - depends on its storage environment. Temperature, dust accumulation and age can wear on the router and slow down the central processing unit (CPU).

If you think your router may be affecting your network connection, there are several ways to test it.

Bad cabling 

Storage is as important to cables as it is to routers. If the cables are not treated well, they can deteriorate and perform poorly. Cables are damaged on the floor or are subject to frequent foot traffic and may be weakened. Damaged cables may struggle to do their job.

The importance of testing 

Testing your internet speed and network devices is one of the first steps to ensure a strong environment for your live stream. However, you never know how the live stream will work until you test the broadcast yourself. Take the time to run your broadcast, simulating event conditions for streaming as closely as possible.

You won't host a live event without a dress rehearsal. Likewise, you should not broadcast a live event without a proper run-through.

Bonus: How to cut your required bandwidth in half 

High-affinity video coding (HEVC or H.265) is a relatively new video codec that compresses video twice as much as its predecessor, advanced video coding (AVC or H.264). Without compromising quality, HEVC halves the AVC's bandwidth requirements.

To use the power of HEVC, you must have a HEVC capable encoder. Bccaster Pro, HEVC Makes encoding accessible to everyone.