How Much Internet Speed Do I Need?

Okay, now that you've run a speed test, you know what you're currently working with. To give you an idea of what your internet speed should look like, here's our top 5 favorite internet service providers.

After hours of research and testing, we narrowed down our five favorite internet service providers:

• Comcast Xfinity offers the best balance of data speeds and price.
• Spectrum Internet® is provides solid internet speeds for a reasonable price without requiring you to sign a contract.
• AT&T Fiber offers super-duper fast fiber speeds.
• Verizon Fios isn't as widely available as other options, but gets you fast speeds for low prices.
• 5G Home internet beats out satellite internet for internet speeds. T-Mobile's 5G Home Internet plan gives you a fast internet connection for a flat $50 a month.

Here’s a quick look at what you can do with other speeds and bandwidth commonly offered by internet service providers (ISPs).

The data speeds you'll need to power your home come down to how many devices you're looking to connect, how many people will be using your connection, and what region you live in.

To find the internet speed sweet spot, you’ll want to follow these steps:

1. Count the people using your internet
2. Count the devices connected to your internet
3. Look at what you do online
4. Add up the recommended Mbps
5. Find the right internet plan

The more people using your internet, the more speed, or Mbps, you need to keep everyone happy.

Don’t forget to count yourself when you tally up everyone who connects to your internet. Other potential internet users can include your partner or spouse, children, housemates, and even frequent visitors, like friends, grandkids, or siblings.

Like people, the more smart devices you have that use the internet, the more Mbps you need.

You might only have 2 or 3 people using your internet, but each person can have multiple devices connected to your Wi-Fi at one time so this may take some thinking. There are so many smart devices that use your wireless network in today’s world. It’s easy to forget how many you have at home, but this list of common connected devices might help jog your memory:

What do you do when you’re online? Do you game? Watch Hulu? Stream music on Spotify? Or maybe you’re a pretty casual internet user who just checks email and Facebook.

Each of these activities needs different speeds—otherwise you’ll run into laggy internet or that dreaded buffering icon. Here’s a quick look at the bare minimum internet speed you’ll need for a few common online activities.

A good internet speed comes down to what you're doing online. For example, if you're making a simple video call to your extended family, a good speed is somewhere between 0.5-1.5 Mbps. But, if you're trying to stream a 4K video, you're going to want at least 25 Mbps. However, these recommended speeds only work if it’s just you doing one of those online activities at a time. Who does that?

It’s more likely you’re a multitasking machine when it comes to doing things online. You’re streaming Dopesick on Hulu while you check email, download an HD video to watch later tonight, and hop into a Call of Duty match. And your roommate, kid, or partner is doing the same things at the same time that you are.

This is why most ISPs don’t offer internet plans with just 5 Mbps—they’re offering you 50, 100, or even 1,000 Mbps plans, so you can keep doing what you do best online.

Okay, now that you’ve got a general idea of who and what uses your internet and how they use it, it’s time to do some math. (Don’t worry, it’s just some simple addition.)

We’ll start by going over our recommended baseline speed per person and device.

We recommend giving each person who uses the internet in your home 25 Mbps. And for every device, you can allot 10 Mbps. (But if it’s a 4K device, bump that up to 25 Mbps.)

• People: 25 Mbps per person
• Devices (not 4K): 10 Mbps per device
• Devices (4K): 25 Mbps per 4K device

Okay, now let’s see how those recommended speeds add up with an example.

Let’s say we have a home with two adults and two children who all use the internet. Here’s a list of the internet speeds each person gets, plus the internet speeds each of their devices gets.

• People: 25 Mbps x 4 = 100 Mbps
• Desktop computer: 10 Mbps x 2 = 20 Mbps
• Laptop: 10 Mbps
• Tablet: 10 Mbps
• Mobile device: 10 Mbps x 3 = 30 Mbps
• Smart TV (4K): 25 Mbps x 2 = 50 Mbps
• Xbox gaming console: 10 Mbps
• Wi-Fi printer: 10 Mbps
• Home security system hub: 10 Mbps
• Home security camera: 10 Mbps x 2 = 20 Mbps
• Total: 270 Mbps

 The recommended internet speed for this family is 270 Mbps. That may seem like a lot of speed, and you’re probably right. This recommendation assumes that every person and every wireless device is online at the same time.

That’s where online activities can factor in. If the family knows they usually stream 4K videos on one of their TVs about once a week and in the evening when no one’s on their computers, gaming on the Xbox, or using the printer, they can probably knock this speed down a bit to 200 Mbps.

If the family knows no one uses the computers and tablet for working or studying from home, they might even be able to get away with 100 or 150 Mbps.

Even though it’s not a definitive answer, adding up the speeds needed for the people and devices using your internet gives you a ballpark estimate of where your internet speeds need to be.

Next stop? Now that you have a good idea of what goes into choosing an internet provider and the things you need to consider, it's time to find an internet provider and plan that has good internet speed for your needs. Sometimes this is easier said than done, but we can help.

And to get even more specific, let’s look at the top internet providers in your area.

Enter your zip code, and we’ll pull up a full list of internet providers available in your area. Then you can easily check what plans they have for you and how much each plan costs. Easy peasy.

Finally, if you have specific internet needs—like you play an unusually large number of online games or spend an abnormal amount of time watching a streaming service—we have more specific recommendations that can help. Check out our top internet providers for online gaming and for streaming. We even have recommendations for business internet setups if you work from home.

Here are the top internet service providers available in the US (Xfinity, AT&T, Verizon, Spectrum, and Viasat) and their speeds.