Internet Download Speed Slower Than Upload

I have been getting download speeds about two thirds of my upload speeds recently. I thought it might be due to an old out of date modem i had, so I updated the modem to the new-ish motorola SBG6782. Resulting in the same download slower than upload ( as measured on coxs speed test and others ). If you're like most of the rest of us, the speed at which you upload is way slower than the speed at which you download. That makes sense if you think of the Internet as a publishing medium, with. There is none. Download speed is the rate at which data is transferred from the Internet to the user’s computer. The upload speed is the rate that data is transferred from the user’s computer to the Internet. Cable companies set the default setting to download faster than upload. Got slow download but fast upload speeds over wireless? Here's a fix. My laptop and iPhone download speed were more than 30 times slower than my desktop’s download speed! On the other hand, the upload speed was roughly the same on all devices. *All* inbound Comcast traffic (Internet --> client) was tagged with a DSCP value of 8 (Class. I recently switched from DSL to Cable internet s. Why would my wireless Upload speed be 4.5x FASTER than my Download speed? I was getting about 5x.

Internet Upload And Download Speed

Why are my speeds so slow? What is 'ping', 'download speed', and 'upload speed'? How do I clear my browser cache? How to use Ping; What do mbps and kbps mean?

Your ISP advertises a 40 megabit per second connection, but that doesn’t look anything like the download speed you see when you’re grabbing a big file. What’s the deal? Are you not getting all the bandwidth you’re paying for?

Dear How-To Geek,

The package deal I have through my local ISP is for a 40Mb connection (that’s the wording they use). When I download files I get around 4.5-5 (and definitely not 40!) Now… this doesn’t seem to be a big deal, because I can download everything I want pretty quickly, YouTube doesn’t stutter or anything, I never have to wait to load my email or web page, etc. But if I’m paying for a 40Mb connection why am I not getting a 40Mb connection?

Sincerely,

Bandwidth Confused

This is a fun question because it allows us to discuss and clear up a common misconception, and learn a little bit about computer history along the way.

Let’s start by delving back into the history of computer networks. Data transfer over networks has always been measured in bits. A bit is the smallest and most basic unit of measurement in computing and digital communications. Bits are most commonly represented in the binary system, via 0 and 1. Bit, in fact, is a contraction of the the longer phrase “Binary Digit”.

RELATED:How to Find the Fastest ISP in Your Area

Internet Download Speed Slower Than Upload Video

The speed of a network is denoted using a bit-per-second notation. Originally, networks were so slow that their speed was measured in just bits, but as network speeds increased, we started measuring internet speed in kilobits per second (remember 56k modems? That meant 56 kilobits per second), and now, megabits per second.

Internet Speed Slower Than Usual

Now, here’s where things get confusing for the average non-geeky-Joe. Computer storage is not measured in bits, it’s measured in bytes. A bit, as we’ve established, is the tiniest unit of measurement in the digital kingdom, that primordial 1 or 0. A byte, however, is a unit of digital information that (in many operating systems, including Windows) is eight bits long. Another term, used by computer scientists to avoid confusion over the different size byte structures out there in the world, is octet. In other words, the byte system that your operating system uses is a bunch of bits strung together in groups of eight.

Internet download speed slower than upload to iphone

RELATED:Why You Probably Aren’t Getting the Internet Speeds You’re Paying For (and How to Tell)

This difference is where, on the surface, it all seems to fall apart. You see, you have a broadband connection that is capable of 40 megabits per second (under ideal conditions, 40,000,000 bits come down the line). But your operating system and all the apps on it (web browsers, download helpers, torrent clients, etc.) all measure data in megabytes, not megabits. So when you see that download chugging along at 5MB/s, that means megabytes per second–as opposed to your 40Mb/s, or megabits per second, internet package. (Note the MB vs Mb notation.)

Speed

If we divide the speed of your connection (measured in megabits) by 8, we arrive at something resembling the download speed you’re seeing in your speed tests: 40 megabits divided by 8 becomes 5 megabytes. So yes–if you’re seeing closer to 5 megabytes per second on a 40 megabit plan, you are indeed getting what you pay for (and can even pat yourself on the back because you’re getting downloads speeds consistently at the edge of what your internet package supports).

Internet Download Speed Slower Than Upload Free

Keep in mind that not all downloads will max out your connection. Some may be much slower, not because your internet is slow, but because the server you’re downloading the file from is busy or slow.

Download Is Slower Than Upload

You can back this up by heading to a site like speedtest.net, which measures your internet speed in megabits, just like your internet provider does. If Speedtest’s results match up with the internet package on your bill, you’re golden. If not, it’s probably time to contact your internet provider and see why you aren’t getting the speeds you pay for.

Internet Download Speed Slower Than Upload Speed

Have a pressing tech question? Shoot us an email at ask@howtogeek.com and we’ll do our best to answer it.