Why your speed test results may not match your plan

Imagine the connection from Frontier as an expressway leading to a city (your home). If you have a Fiber 2 Gig plan, the speed limit would be 2000 Megabits per second, which is the maximum speed that data can be transferred to your home.

Once you arrive at the city (your home), there are smaller streets, each with their own speed limits. These roads represent the connections between your router and connected devices like your mobile phone, tablet, and smart TV.

On the expressway, the connection to your router might be wide open with data moving blazing fast. On the smaller city streets, the connection from your router to your devices may move slower based on the type of device you’re using, your Wi-Fi connection, or other factors.

Now that we’ve covered the basics on internet plan speeds, let’s talk about how to measure your internet speed.

Most often, you’ll see a difference between your speed test results and your plan speeds when taking a speed to device test. This type of test measures the speed from your router to your connected devices, so it can be affected by a number of things including the type of device you’re using (phone, computer, tablet, etc.) and the quality of your Wi-Fi connection. This can cause your results to be lower than your plan speeds.

Here are some other things that may impact your test results:

1. Wi-Fi interference: Other electronic devices, physical obstacles like walls and doors, and even other Wi-Fi networks nearby can impact your speed.
2. Range from the router: The farther your device is from your Wi-Fi router, the weaker the signal and, consequently, the slower the speed.
3. Device capabilities: Not all devices are built the same. Your gaming laptop may be equipped for high-speed connections, while an older laptop might handle a quarter of the speed. It all depends on the types of devices you have.
4. Many devices: The more devices connected to your network, the more crowded, or "congested," your network becomes, and this can slow things down.
5. Software updates & background activities: Sometimes, devices run necessary software updates or background processes that can take up a chunk of your bandwidth, causing a slow connection.
6. Devices with older Wi-Fi technology: Devices with older Wi-Fi tech take more time to transmit and receive data on your Wi-Fi network, slowing the entire network down.

Now that you know the differences between internet speed tests and common issues that can slow down your internet, there may be some things you can do to optimize your Wi-Fi connection. Learn more.

Need help troubleshooting your connection? Get internet troubleshooting tips or chat with us for more support.

Max speeds are wired. Wi-Fi, actual & average speeds vary. For performance details, visit: frontier.com/internetdisclosures.