One culprit might be an older modem or router. If not, call your ISP to ask why your speed is slower than promised or to ask about upgrading to a faster tier of service.Īssuming the broadband speed coming into your home is satisfactory, there are other reasons you may be experiencing slow service. You want to make sure your ISP is providing the speed you're paying for and that it's fast enough for your needs. Space out the tests over a few days, and at varying times of day, to get an accurate measure of how consistent those speeds will be. You can check your speed using Speedtest or another website. That matters if you play online games or share a lot of photos or videos online.īoth those average speeds are high, but many of us still use ISPs that deliver slower broadband, or we just pay for a lower tier of service.Īnd if your household has a separate 4K video streaming in every room, things may slow down considerably no matter how fast a connection you have to your ISP. Upload speeds also jumped, to more than 32 Mbps, according to Ookla. Fast download speed is critical for watching streaming movies and TV shows at home. That's the company behind Speedtest, a tool consumers can use to measure their home's internet speed. jumped 35 percent last year, topping 95 Mbps, according to Ookla. The good news is that networks are getting faster. That means many homes with multiple active streamers will need internet service that can provide at least 50 Mbps speed. (Netflix recommends a 25 Mbps speed for streaming 4K, while Amazon says you'll need at least 15 Mbps for the highest-quality video.) As you can see from the chart above, 18 Mbps is really the minimum speed most homes will need for streaming 4K movies and TV shows from Amazon Prime Video and Netflix. Netflix and other streaming companies say your internet service needs to run at least 5 Mbps for streaming high-definition shows and movies, but that's sufficient for only one user at a time.

Broadband networks of just a few years ago would have sputtered and stalled if faced with today's consumers and their appetite for streaming services.

Ideal speed for streaming