So much of how we learn, communicate, and live our daily lives happens on the Internet. Because we spend so much time on the Internet, we tend to know when something’s not right. We often perceive this as slowness when pages don’t load quickly, or when our computer can’t even connect or stay connected.
We quantify the speed of our Internet connections in terms of bandwidth. Bandwidth describes the amount of data that can flow to and from our computer over a given amount of time, and we measure it in Kilobits per second, Megabits per second, and Gigabits per second. If your download speed, the speed at which you can access a web page or download a file, is 10 Mbps, then that means you should* be able to download about 10 megabytes per second. Your upload speed is how fast you can upload a file or send data to a website.
We recommend testing your Internet speed through the following sites.
1. speedtest.net (works best on desktop/laptop browsers)
Open up a browser (must have Flash enabled, so we’ve found Google Chrome works best). Go to speedtest.net.
Click on the button in the center of the map that says BEGIN TEST. Make sure you’re using this button on not a button in an ad on the page.
The speed test will begin. It should measure your download speed, upload speed, and latency/ping time (measured in terms of milliseconds).
Once the test has completed, you can get a URL for sharing your results by clicking the link in your results labeled SHARE THIS RESULT.
If you are filling out the Campus Wi-Fi Report, this is the URL we need for submitting the form.
2. www.bandwidthplace.com (works on mobile devices too)
Open up a browser and go to www.bandwidthplace.com. In the center of the speedometer on the page, click on the button labeled Start.
The speed test will begin. It should measure your download speed, upload speed, and latency/ping time (measured in terms of milliseconds). Once the test has completed, you can get a URL for sharing your results by clicking the link in your results labeled Share Results.
If you are filling out the Campus Wi-Fi Report, this is the URL we need for submitting the form.
