Download speed test

Measure only your download speed — no upload or ping step. Useful for checking streaming and browsing performance in a few seconds.

Understanding download speed

Download speed measures how fast your device can pull data from the internet. It's the number that matters most for streaming, downloading files, and general browsing. This page tests only download — no upload or ping step.

What is download speed?

Download speed is the rate at which data flows from a server to your device, measured in megabits per second (Mbps). Watching YouTube, scrolling Instagram, opening a website — all of it uses download bandwidth. It's the headline number on every internet plan because it's the one most users notice day-to-day.

What is a good download speed?

For one person, 25 Mbps is comfortable for HD streaming, video calls, and general use. 50–100 Mbps handles 4K and multiple devices. Households with several streamers, gamers, or remote workers should look for 200+ Mbps. Anything above gigabit is mostly marketing for a typical home — your Wi-Fi router will bottleneck before the line does.

How much download speed do you need for streaming?

SD (480p) needs about 3 Mbps. HD (720p–1080p) needs 5–10 Mbps. 4K UHD needs 25 Mbps. Most services adjust quality automatically based on available speed, so a slow connection results in blurry video rather than buffering. Multiple devices streaming at once need that much per device.

Mbps vs file size

Download speed in Mbps does not directly translate to file size. To estimate how long a file takes, divide your speed by 8 to get megabytes per second (MB/s). For example, 100 Mbps ≈ 12.5 MB/s, so a 1 GB file takes about 80 seconds.

Wi-Fi vs wired download speed

Wi-Fi can cap your download speed well below what your ISP provides. A 1 Gbps line can deliver as little as 100–300 Mbps through Wi-Fi if you're far from the router, on the 2.4 GHz band, or running an older router. To see your raw line speed, run this test on a wired Ethernet connection.

Test your upload speed
Check how fast you can send data — useful for video calls, live streaming, and cloud backups.
Open upload test
What is a good internet speed?
Recommended download speeds for streaming, gaming, video calls, and household sizes.
Read the guide

When download speed matters most

Frequently asked questions about download speed

Download speed is how quickly your device receives data from the internet, measured in Mbps (megabits per second). Higher is generally better. It's the number you see when you start a movie, scroll a feed, or open a webpage.
25 Mbps is good for one person doing HD streaming and video calls. 50–100 Mbps is comfortable for small households. Look for 200+ Mbps if you have multiple 4K streamers or gamers. Gigabit and beyond is overkill for most people — Wi-Fi will bottleneck first.
Yes, but maybe not as much as you'd expect. SD needs 3 Mbps, HD needs 5–10 Mbps, and 4K needs 25 Mbps. If your speed is just over the limit, video services will pick a lower quality to avoid buffering. For a consistently good 4K experience, aim for 50+ Mbps.
Divide Mbps by 8 to get megabytes per second (MB/s). A 100 Mbps connection downloads at roughly 12.5 MB/s, so a 1 GB game takes about 80 seconds, and a 50 GB game takes around 70 minutes. Real-world speeds are usually a bit lower because of overhead.
Just barely. 1 Mbps is enough for email, messaging, and SD video on a small screen. It's too slow for HD streaming, video calls, or modern web apps. Most ISPs no longer market plans below 25 Mbps.
12.5 Mbps is enough for one person doing HD video calls and 1080p streaming. It struggles with 4K, large downloads, and households with multiple users. It's below the FCC's current broadband definition (100 Mbps), so it would be considered slow for most modern uses.
This test downloads small test files from a Cloudflare edge server using 4 parallel HTTP connections, which saturates most connections. Speed is computed from total bytes received over time. It runs entirely in your browser — no app required.
Often. Wired Ethernet measures your raw line speed, while Wi-Fi adds variability from signal strength, channel congestion, and router limits. A 1 Gbps connection might show as 500–700 Mbps on Wi-Fi even with a good router. Test both to see the gap.
Yes — and that's normal. Cable, DSL, and 5G plans are usually asymmetric (download is much faster than upload) because most users consume more than they create. Only fiber typically offers symmetric speeds. If you need upload too, use the upload test.
Background apps competing for bandwidth, Wi-Fi interference, distance from the router, ISP throttling at peak hours, an older router, or a slow VPN. Test over Ethernet first to isolate the line from Wi-Fi. If the wired speed is still low, restart your router and contact your ISP.