Broadband speeds

How fast is your current connection?

In order to take some of this confusion out of the broadband shopping equation, we have just launched our own state-of-the-art speed test.

Speed tests are useful as many customers don't know what speed they are currently experiencing and therefore don't know what 8Mb or indeed 50Mb would mean in practical terms.

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Note

In order to get an accurate reading, you should close all other programs, webpages and games before starting the speed test.

Can you speed up your broadband without switching provider?

Yes. Assuming your computer settings are already optimised and your computer is working as efficiently as possible, broadband speed software from OnSpeed can speed up or “optimise” your broadband connection.

What speed can I get?

The speed of broadband that you can get depends mainly on where you live:

• In a cable or ADSL area
• Rural or urban area, broadband is consistently faster in urban areas
• The distance of your house from the telephone exchange, the closer you are the faster your connection

To see an accurate approximation for your home, try our postcode checker, which scans your BT exchange and works out what broadband speeds you can get. In general, the closer you are to your BT exchange, the faster your broadband will be. UK broadband speeds are currently from 512k to 50Mb.

We rank fast broadband packages for your ease.

Why is my connection slower in the evenings?

ADSL broadband is a shared service. Therefore the more people who are using it, the slower it will be. The amount of people using a broadband connection in an area affects the “contention ratio” which is the ratio of users to the BT area’s exchange and the coping capacity the exchange has for those connections. Most home users use their computers in the evening, so connections tend to be a lot slower at these peak hours (i.e. 7 to 10pm). The best times to use broadband are between 12am and 8am.

Cable broadband speed does not change during the day, making it a more consistent alternative.

Compare fast broadband packages on Top 10 Broadband.