Read the guide
How much internet speed you need
Add up what your home streams, calls, and plays at the same time, use FCC rates for each activity, and pick a plan with some headroom.
Internet Speed Calculator
Work out the download speed your home needs. Count what runs at the same time in your busiest hour, such as 4K streams, video calls, and games, and the internet speed calculator adds it up with some headroom.
Runs in your browser. Your data is not uploaded.
Where the speed goes
| Activity | At once | Mbps each | Mbps total |
|---|
How to use the Internet Speed Calculator
- Think of the busiest moment in your home, often a weekday evening. Enter how many of each activity run at that moment.
- Leave Headroom at 25% or change it. It covers Wi-Fi losses and phones or laptops that update in the background.
- If you want, enter Your plan's download speed to see whether it covers the result.
- Read the total, the first common plan speed at or above it, and the table that shows where the speed goes.
How it works
speed needed = (sum of count × Mbps per activity) × (1 + headroom ÷ 100)
Each activity uses the download figure from the FCC Broadband Speed Guide. Where the guide gives a range, such as 5 to 8 Mbps for HD video, the total uses the top of the range so the result does not fall short. The answer is rounded up to one decimal place. The suggested plan is the first of 25, 50, 100, 200, 300, 500, 1,000, or 2,000 Mbps that is at least that high.
Download speed per activity
| Activity | Mbps for each one |
|---|---|
| Browsing, email, and social media | 1 |
| Music or radio streaming | 0.5 |
| SD video stream | 3 to 4 |
| HD video stream | 5 to 8 |
| 4K video stream | 25 |
| HD video call | 6 |
| Online gaming | 4 |
| Large file download | 10 |
Figures from the FCC Broadband Speed Guide. The guide lists radio streaming as less than 0.5 Mbps, so 0.5 is used.
Examples
- Two people browsing, one HD stream, one 4K stream, and one HD video call: 2 + 8 + 25 + 6 = 41 Mbps. With 25% headroom that is 51.3 Mbps, so 100 Mbps is the first common plan that covers it.
- Two 4K streams and nothing else, with no headroom: 50 Mbps.
- One SD stream with 25% headroom: 4 × 1.25 = 5 Mbps.
Download speed is only half of it
Plans are sold by download speed, and that is the number this calculator adds up. Video calls, cloud backups, and live streaming also send data out, and many plans have a far lower upload speed than download. If you work from home on calls, check a plan's upload figure as well.
Wi-Fi also loses speed with distance and walls. A plan that covers the total can still feel slow in a far room, which is one reason to keep some headroom.
Limitations
- The figures are typical rates from the FCC guide. A service can use more or less depending on its settings and the picture quality it picks.
- Upload speed is not calculated.
- The total assumes everything runs at once. Activities that never overlap need less.
- Up to 50 of each activity.
Frequently asked questions
How many Mbps do I need for 4K streaming?
The FCC Broadband Speed Guide lists 25 Mbps for each 4K stream. Two at once need 50 Mbps before any headroom.
Is 100 Mbps fast enough for a family?
For two people browsing, one HD stream, one 4K stream, and a video call at the same time, the total is 41 Mbps, or 51.3 Mbps with 25% headroom, so 100 Mbps covers it. Add up your own busiest hour to be sure.
Does this calculator test my connection?
No. It works out the speed you need from what you enter. Nothing is measured or sent anywhere.
Why add headroom?
Wi-Fi loses speed through walls and over distance, and devices update in the background. Headroom keeps those from slowing what you are actually doing.
Related tools
Often used together with Internet Speed Calculator.
Download Time Calculator
Estimates how long a file takes to download at a given speed.
Mbps to MB/s Converter
Converts internet speeds between Mbps, MB/s, and other units.
Bandwidth Calculator
Speed for a data volume, website bandwidth, and GB/month vs Mbps.