How to Monitor Internet Speed

If you’ve just rid your computer of the Internet Speed Monitor virus then you’re probably wondering how to really test your internet connection speed. You may have had the sneaking suspicion that the internet speed you are paying for is not what you are actually getting and want to check it out.

It is a good idea to monitor internet speed but first you should know a few things. There are some fluctuations in the speed you will experience at different times of the day. For example, at night the internet is traditionally a busier place and your bandwidth will dip somewhat at that time. Even if a good connection drops a little, there shouldn’t be huge variations and ups and downs within short periods of time. There is nothing more annoying then being in the middle of a download, a VOIP call or instant messaging your friend and having your internet connection drop significantly causing you to disconnect. If you use your internet for business purposes, it is highly embarrassing to be disconnected in the middle of a VOIP call.

Internet speed monitoring on a regular basis is something you will want to do to ensure that your ISP is maintaining high quality lines and that your slice of the pie is consistent. If you have removed Internet Speed Monitor and other malware from you computer as well as optimized your computer for maximum speed and are still having connection problems, it is time to test your internet speed.

There are many free internet speed monitor sites for checking your internet speed. There are also sites that measure both your connection speed and the quality and performance of your connection for VOIP calls.

These internet connection speed monitor sites have servers all over the world so you can choose the server nearest you. You can also test your speed against servers in different locations if you know you will be surfing in those locations. If you live overseas but surf mostly American sites or use applications like large databases whose servers are far away, you will want to test how your internet speed holds up when accessing those locations.  You can also sometimes compare your results with others. This is a great way to compare the output of different ISPs in your area.

To start the test for monitoring internet speed, select your location and initiate the test. The test will begin by testing your download speed and will subsequently test your upload speed. This will take a minute or two. Do not close your web browser while the test is in progress. It is also recommended to close all other applications that are running and to make sure that no one else on your network is downloading or uploading files or otherwise significantly stressing your bandwidth.

Upon the completion of the test your results will be displayed. Divide these results by 1,000 to compare to the speed your internet provider should be providing. If your results show 2500 kbps for download, this means you can expect to be able to download at a rate of 2.5 Mb a minute. Choose from the many internet speed monitors available and make testing your internet speed a regular task.

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