How to Get the Best Internet Speed Test Results

Wi-Fi allows us to connect to our loved ones, stream quality content, download our favorite music, and more. A handful of people can use multiple devices at once to watch movies, play games, or catch up with a friend with a strong connection.

Testing your internet connection every now and then can benefit the members of your household who use Wi-Fi. Slow speeds can make any entertainment or work experience challenging — no one likes to see the dreaded buffering circle.

By running a test, you’re able to see the components that contribute to your internet speed. After assessing your results, you can decide if you need to upgrade your plan with your service provider or maybe dial it back.

It’s essential you know how many devices each member of your household may use at one time, including yourself. This will allow you to adjust your Wi-Fi plan accordingly.

Upload and download speeds increase every year worldwide. By 2023, it’s expected that average worldwide rates will increase to just over 91 megabits per second (Mbps). For context, it’s recommended to use at least a 25 Mbps connection to use more than one device at a time without any service interruptions.

We’ll break down the benefits of running a speed test on your connection, how to run a test, and how to get the most accurate results.

Testing Your Internet Speed

Most people take the time to set up Wi-Fi in their home and only check it during times of disruption — maybe the connection dropped, or a show won’t load properly.

The best way to test your Wi-Fi plan is to hop on Google and enter the search “Internet speed test.” Google provides a speed test, and other websites like Speed Test, AT&T, and Fast by Netflix offer to test your connection. Most internet speed test sites provide reliable results. Still, there are steps you can take to ensure your results are as accurate as possible.

Here are the steps for testing your internet speed and receiving accurate results:

1. First, reset your modem and router to give the system a chance to refresh itself and clear any unnecessary memory.

1. Next, turn off your Wi-Fi settings on your devices or turn off your devices altogether. The goal is to test the connection when no devices are in use — this will provide the most accurate results.
2. Then, restart your laptop or computer. Be sure to clear your browser cache before restarting. A cache is a tool that tracks browser history and stores information from websites you visit. Clearing your cache will prevent any test interruptions, making your results more accurate.
3. Keep track of the time of day you run your test. If you run your test during peak hours, where many people use the internet, your results may be slower than usual. Try running tests at different times of the day and compare them.
4. Now you’re ready to test!

Once you receive your results, sites will organize them in categories that analyze speed more closely.

Some of the terms are:

• Download speed: How quickly you can access data from a server
• Upload speed: How fast you can send data to the internet
• Ping: How quickly your device responds when making a connection
• Mbps: Megabits per second — the standard measure of internet speed

You may be asking, “What’s a good speed?”

Keep in mind that one speed may be perfect for one household but not for another. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) offers a broadband speed guide that can help you identify what speeds work best depending on your data usage.

Testing your internet speed can improve the quality of video calls, especially when working from home. It’s crucial to have a speedy internet connection to accomplish all of your tasks during the day or enjoy a fun gaming session later on.

Improving Your Internet Speed

The most important reason to test your internet speed is so you can find the best plan through your service provider. Once you run your test and see the results, you can either change your plan to reduce your bill or pay more to upgrade and improve your speed.

For example, one person using one device in a household wouldn’t require the exact speed necessary to connect four people to seven or eight devices. In this case, the individual using one device would pay less than a family of four.

The more devices you have, the faster your internet will need to run to keep up with your connections. As a result, you’ll pay a higher bill.

Test Your Speed Frequently

If you’re interested in cutting costs where you can and maintaining a solid internet connection, begin testing more frequently. It takes a short amount of time to test your connection, and as soon as you have your results, you can make decisions about the next steps.

Maybe you upgrade your plan to support more devices or downgrade because you’ve decided to spend less time-consuming media. Regardless of what you do with your devices, a speed test will help you make a more informed and educated decision about your Wi-Fi plan.