We suggest calling your internet service provider (ISP) as a first step to see what it can do. However, if you've done everything you can to speed up your connection and you're still getting a lower speed than you were promised, your broadband provider may be in breach of contract. If your speeds are significantly less than you expected, there are steps you can take to improve things – get started by checking our advice on Speed up slow broadband. Tech tips you can trust – get our free Tech newsletter for advice, news, deals and stuff the manuals don’t tell you What you can do if your broadband speeds are slow The results also only show the speeds you're getting on the device you're using for the test – the speed your provider is delivering to your home may be higher, especially if you're performing the test wirelessly at some distance from your router. To build an accurate picture, we would suggest you run several tests during a single week, in peak use time (between 8pm and 10pm) and during off-peak times. However, if you use your broadband connection for video calls or online gaming, keep an eye on the upload rate, too, as it's essential for both. The upload speed shows the rate that data is transferred from your device to the internet – how quick it is to upload a photo or document to an email, for example.ĭownload speeds are usually of more interest, as most tasks require you to download information, for example searching online for information.The download speed shows the rate at which data is transferred from the internet to your device – how quick it is to access a newspaper article online or stream music, for example.This is needed for applications where timing is everything, such as interactive video games.

More responsive connections are those with a low number of ms (meaning they take less time to respond).

Response time is measured in milliseconds (ms) and shows how quickly you get a response after you've sent out a request.The tool measures the response time – also known as latency – of your broadband connection, as well as your download and upload speeds. What do the broadband speed test results show? You should also make sure nothing else is using your internet connection or running on your computer when you do the test. If you need to test wirelessly, get as close to your router as possible. How to use our broadband speed checkerįor the most accurate results, use an ethernet cable to connect your computer to your router before running the test. We explain how to use the speed checker below – and if your broadband isn't as fast as it should be, we give you some simple steps you can take to speed up your connection.

Test internet speed upload and download