A speed test measures your connection at that moment, including everything else happening on your network. A few minutes of preparation makes the difference between a misleading number and a result you can trust.
Wi-Fi adds its own limits: distance, walls, interference and older Wi-Fi standards can all cut your speed before the internet is even involved. For the truest reading of your line, connect a computer to the router with an Ethernet cable. If you must use Wi-Fi, test close to the router with a clear line of sight.
Routers that have been running for weeks can slow down or hold stale connections. Restart it, wait two minutes for it to fully reconnect, then test again.
Internet speed varies by time of day. Evening peak hours (roughly 7–11 pm) are usually the slowest. Test two or three times and compare the pattern, not a single number. A line that is fast at noon and slow every evening points to congestion at your provider, not a fault in your home.
On a wired connection you should normally see at least 80–90% of your package speed. On Wi-Fi, 50–80% is common depending on your router and distance. If wired results are consistently far below your plan, record a few results at different times and contact your provider with them.
Ready? Run the test →