Whenever the subject of home internet is broached among a group of people, each one of them has a different answer, mainly because everyone has different internet speed requirements. The reason for that is not everyone uses the internet for the same purposes as other people.
The required internet speed for a household is dependent on multiple factors, including the number of users, the purpose they need it for, and the kind of traffic passing up and down the network. In this article, we’ll shed some light on the aspects that help determine the required internet speed of a household, and with that, we’ll establish what your monthly internet needs are. You can use some free internet speed test tools online to check the internet speed can reach to 1 -5 Mbps.
How Much Internet is needed for Different Purposes?
The internet speed required by a household is mostly dependent on what they are using the internet for. Since the outbreak of the Coronavirus, most of us have been using the internet at our homes to work and connect with fellow employees. Some of us are movie buffs, who like streaming movies online, and some are compulsive shoppers, who can’t stop themselves from clicking on add to cart. Every online activity requires different internet capabilities. Below we’ll mention some common internet uses and the internet speed required for them.
Basic Use
The basic use entails the random online activities we do use the internet. These include surfing through the web, checking emails, and social media. These tasks alone require around 1-5 Mbps of internet speed. You may need slightly more if you have more users in the house.
Movie Streaming
Who does not like watching movies on the weekend? Some of us are used to streaming an episode of our favorite show while we eat, and we prefer to watch both movies and TV series in HD quality. Around 5-8 Mbps is needed to stream a movie in HD quality. According to Netflix, if you are streaming an episode or a movie, you need 5 Mbps of internet speed.
Online Gaming
Online gaming is very popular among the youth and they usually require low ping internet connections so that the games run without any lag. A poor internet connection tends to spoil the gaming experience by causing interruptions. Due to that, most online gaming communities recommend an internet speed of 6-8 Mbps with a low ping rate that may range from an exceptional 20ms to an average 100ms.
Working from Home
Since last year, we have all been working from home because of the outbreak of coronavirus. Besides the hurdles that occurred during the adoption of WFH practices, one question popped up in the heads of all the employees, “How much internet would remote work require?” The required internet speed varies and is dependent on the number of users and the kind of tasks they are accomplishing while working from home. If you have 1 or 2 WFH users at your home, who are surfing through the web, using social networking and video conferencing platforms, and are checking their emails, you need around 25 Mbps of internet speed. But in case you have more than 5 users, who are working from home, you may need an internet speed of 50 – 100 Mbps.
What is the Difference between Download Speed and Upload Speed?
It’s quite self-explanatory, download speed is how quickly you can retrieve content from the internet to your computer and upload speed is the measure of sending data stored in your device up on the internet.
When you’re deciding on which internet service to go for, be mindful of both the download and upload speeds. Some internet service providers only advertise their download speeds while ignoring their upload speed. Although download speeds are relatively more important than upload speeds, it is still important to take into account the upload speed while choosing an internet service for your home.
Conclusion
At the end of the day, deciding on what internet speed would be good for you isn’t as easy as it seems. You need to consider the number of users that will simultaneously connect to your network and exactly what they’ll be doing with the connection. Spectrum CS (For Spanish users ES) offers multiple futuristic internet deals like Windstream based on the internet speed you require. You can choose the one that best fits your needs.
Also Read – Ethernet vs. Wi-Fi: Is WiFiStill Useful for Home Offices in 2021
