If you suspect your internet isn’t performing the way it should, a speed test is the obvious first step, but running one incorrectly can give you misleading results. Here’s how to test your internet speed properly so you get an accurate picture of what’s really happening.
1. Connect Directly to Your Router When Possible
For the most accurate baseline reading, connect your computer directly to your router with an ethernet cable before testing. This removes Wi-Fi signal strength as a variable, showing you the actual speed coming into your home rather than a number affected by wireless interference or distance.
2. Close Other Apps and Devices First
Before testing, pause downloads, close streaming apps, and ask others in your household to avoid heavy internet use for a few minutes. Background activity on other devices can quietly eat bandwidth and skew your results lower than your actual available speed.
3. Test at Different Times of Day
Internet speeds can fluctuate based on network congestion in your area, particularly during peak evening hours when most people in your neighborhood are online. Testing at multiple times, morning, afternoon, and evening, gives you a more complete picture than a single test.
4. Run Multiple Tests and Average the Results
A single speed test can be affected by momentary network fluctuations. Run at least three to five tests over the course of a day or two and average the results for a more reliable number than relying on just one reading.
5. Test Both Wi-Fi and Wired Connections Separately
If your wired speed test looks great but Wi-Fi tests consistently come in much lower, that tells you the issue is with your wireless setup, not your actual internet plan. This distinction matters for figuring out whether to contact your provider or troubleshoot your router instead.
6. Understand What the Numbers Mean
Speed tests typically show three main numbers: download speed, upload speed, and ping (latency). Download speed affects how fast you can stream or browse, upload speed affects video calls and file sharing, and ping affects responsiveness in things like online gaming and video calls.
7. Compare Results to Your Plan
Check your internet plan’s advertised speed and compare it to your test results. It’s normal for actual speeds to run slightly below the advertised maximum, but if you’re consistently getting less than half of what you’re paying for, it’s worth contacting your provider.
8. Test on Multiple Devices
If one specific device consistently shows much slower results than others on the same network, the issue may be with that device rather than your overall connection, worth investigating separately.
When to Contact Your Internet Provider
If you’ve tested correctly, multiple times, at different times of day, on a wired connection, and you’re still seeing speeds significantly below what you’re paying for, that’s a solid, well-documented case to bring to your provider for further troubleshooting or plan review.