How to check your Internet speeds in South Africa
Local Internet package prices have decreased significantly in recent years, resulting in more South Africans being able to afford high-speed connectivity in their homes.
These packages promise impressive upload and download speeds – but not every ISP delivers upon these promises.
You should therefore perform speed tests on your home network regularly to ensure you are getting full value for your money.
MyBroadband Speed Test app
The best option for running a speed test is the MyBroadband Speed Test app, which can be accessed in the following ways:
Next, you must click “Start Test” – and the tool will automatically calculate your ping, download speed, and upload speed.
You will also be shown which ISP you are using – to ensure you are testing the right connection – and once the test is complete, you will have the option to copy or share your result, rerun the test, and rate your ISP.
Understanding your result
Your speed test result will include three numbers. This is what they mean:
- Ping – The time it takes for a single packet of data to be transferred between your device and the server. This is an important metric for online gamers, as lower ping numbers result in less lag when playing online.
- Download – The speed at which files and data can be received by your computer – such as when watching your favourite streaming service, or downloading a file.
- Upload – The speed at which files and data can be transferred from your computer to other locations on the Internet – such as if you are uploading a file to your Google Drive folder.
To understand if your download and upload speeds are acceptable, you must understand what speeds your ISP promised.
Most home Internet packages are styled as follows: 100/10Mbps.
In this example, the package offers up to 100Mbps download speeds, and up to 10Mbps upload speeds.
In real-world scenarios, it is unlikely you will ever reach these respective speeds – but you can expect numbers that approach this figure.
For example, if your ISP has promised you a download speed of 100Mbps, and your speed test indicates 90Mbps, this is acceptable.
However, if the speed test shows that you only achieved a download speed of 25Mbps, this would not be acceptable.
Reasons for slow Internet
There are several reasons that your speeds may not match the package you are paying for – and not all of them are the fault of your ISP or network provider.
For example, you may have many background apps running across the various devices in your home.
In this scenario, your speed test results would be lower than the actual amount of bandwidth being delivered by your network provider, as a speed test can only determine how much available speed you have on your network.
The best way to avoid this is to turn off other devices and rerun your speed test to see what difference this makes.
Another reason your speeds may not accurately reflect your Internet package is if you use Wi-Fi, rather than a wired connection.
Wi-Fi speeds are generally lower and less stable than using a LAN cable, and this can be amplified if you have an older router, or one that is not operating effectively.
Therefore, if you are performing a speed test on a laptop or computer, it is preferable to connect via a LAN cable to negate any Wi-Fi issues.
It is also worth restarting your modem or router if you get a bad speed test reading, as this may fix any device-related issues that are causing lower speeds.
If none of these troubleshooting tips work, it is advisable that you contact your ISP for more advice.
Click here to perform a speed test now.
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