When paying for an internet connection, you have to choose a specific package that meets your online needs and one that is in line with your finances. But how can you know that your ISP is giving you the speeds that you are paying for?

Find The Exact Browsing Speeds

First of all, check with your internet provider to know the browsing speeds that you are paying for (if you’re not aware). The speeds (download and upload) should be listed on your internet bill.

However, some ISPs do not like to show this information but you can check their website and look at their internet package options. The speeds are listed as follows; download speeds up to 30 Mbps and uploads up to 5 Mbps.

Mbps is short for Megabit Per Second and this is the transfer speed. Mbps should not be mistaken with MBps (Megabytes per second) and 1 MB is equal to 8 Megabits.

Do a Speed Test

There are many tools that you can use to carry out a speed test. One option is speedtest.net, just head over to that website and do the test. To get an exact result, make sure that you are not downloading or uploading anything, pause all the browsing activities when running the test.

Once the test is complete, you will see three different results up top, namely Ping (ms), Download (Mbps) and Upload (Mbps). The ping is how long the data from your connection takes to make a round trip to the server. We have already covered what download and upload speeds mean.

Your download and upload results should be within 1 or 2 Mbps of the publicized rate. If the test results show your speeds to be much sluggish than what you’re paying for, or certain downloads are not fast enough, your ISP could be throttling you.

How to find out if Your ISP is Throttling You

Many ISPs throttle speeds because of torrenting, other times, it’s because a client has exceeded a data cap. Throttling sucks regardless of the reason an ISP does it. Your tests might show that you are getting the speeds that you’re paying for, however, this doesn’t mean that they are not slowing down the downloads.

Many people do not torrent these days because this downloading process was used to share illegal or copyrighted material. If you are caught downloading such files, you can be charged in a court of law.

If torrenting is not the cause, then you might have exceeded your data cap. Some ISPs show your limits in your account portal, but you can also call them to know why you’re getting slow speeds.

If they are not giving you the speeds that you are paying for, then it’s time to look for a new internet provider.

At GTA Telecom, we do not have data caps and we do not throttle the speeds. This means that our internet is unlimited and you can download and upload as much as you want without monitoring your usage and at amazing speeds. Call us if your internet provider is letting you down.