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From kilobytes to gigabits, the internet’s come a long way and it’s kept up. These days, everything’s connected (even the kitchen). With faster speeds, you can stream, scroll, stir the sauce, and never miss a social update (shoutout to smart fridges) all while perfecting that risotto.
It’s one of those tech terms that gets tossed around a lot, but does it actually mean anything? Is it another fancy marketing buzz word made to sell internet?
Although it sounds fancy, it's not a buzz word. Gigabits (Gbps) and megabits (mbps) are the unit in which internet speeds are measured. 1,000 Mbps? That’s one gigabit.
You’ll see these numbers pop up when you’re downloading a game, uploading content, or streaming
There's 2 parts to how fast your internet is:
You can have a fast connection, but if your bandwidth is limited with multiple people streaming, gaming, or downloading at the same time, things can still slow down. You might also notice different speeds depending on what task you’re doing and what’s included in your internet plan.
When people talk about internet speed, they’re usually talking about download speed.
Download speed affects how fast data comes to your devices. You'll run into it when:
Upload speed, on the other hand, is how fast data goes from your device out to the internet. You'll use upload speeds when:
With many older internet technologies like DSL or cable, upload speeds are way way slower than download speeds. That’s called an asymmetrical connection. It’s fine for streaming and scrolling, but if you work from home, make a lot of video calls, or share big files, slow uploads can mean lag, choppy video, and frustration.
Modern fiber connections usually offer symmetrical speeds. This means your upload and download speeds are the same. This helps with:
With symmetrical gigabit speeds, uploading a video or updating a game takes minutes, not hours. The first time it happens, it feels to good to be true. After a while, it just feels normal.
Until you use someone else’s internet (LAN party anyone?) and think…wait, is there an internet outage?
The days of one user on the internet at a time are well behind us.
Streaming, gaming, remote work, smart homes: It’s all happening at once now, across multiple devices. With all the new internet connected devices, speeds have evolved to keep up. Here’s how things have changed:
Having access to fast speeds is great, but it’s not the only thing that matters. Your experience also depends on:
Your router is the hub that distributes your internet connection to your devices.
To handle gigabit speeds, your router needs to support Gigabit Ethernet and at least Wi-Fi 5 (although a higher standard means better performance).
Older routers, especially those limited to Wi-Fi 4 or Fast Ethernet (100 Mbps), can create a bottleneck and prevent your devices from reaching full speed, even if your fiber connection is fast.
Once your router is set up, the way your devices connect: Wired or wireless, plays a big role in actual performance.
Even with the best connection and router, your device’s hardware can affect speed.
Running a speed test is a quick way to check your internet performance, but it’s only a snapshot of your connection on that device, at that moment.
Let’s say you’re testing from your phone, across the house, while someone’s streaming in the next room. The result might show a lower speed, but that doesn’t mean your internet is slow.
It just means you’re measuring your phone’s current connection, not the full capacity of your network.
To get a clearer picture of your actual connection speed, try this:
A good test doesn’t just show your speed, it shows how well your setup supports it.
Think of speed tests as a tool, not the final answer. If your results seem low, it might not be your internet, it could be your Wi-Fi, your device, or the actual setup.