It is 2020 and looking at the rate at which the number of users on the web is increasing each day, it is pretty evident that we have reached a point where we are highly reliant on the internet for various tasks we do in a day — be it related to work, information, or even entertainment. Irrespective of which part of the world you are from and what your service provider is, it is reasonably likely that you run into slow speeds or poor internet connection from time to time.
One way to determine your connection’s performance is to check different performance metrics of your internet connection, such as data rate (upload and download speed) and latency (time delay between transmission and response of packets). Although you can use the native speed test utility from your service provider, if you are looking for a more reliable report on your connection, it is better to use some of the widely-used services out there. To help you find one, here are our top picks for the best internet speed test services.
Best Internet Speed Test Services
1. Speedtest.net
Speedtest.net or Speedtest by Ookla is one of the leading web service providers globally that powers a range of different internet speed test services. One of the reasons for Ookla’s rooted penetration in the industry is the fact that the service provides reliable and consistent results, and has a huge collection of test servers available across the globe. Speedtest is accessible on the web and also has apps for both Android and iOS, giving you the ability to perform speed tests on any device.
For those looking for more control over their test, with Speedtest, you can do things like change the server location or the mode of testing: Single or Multi-threaded — as per your needs. Talking about testing, the service offers results for metrics like the download speed, upload speed, and latency, which is pretty much all you need to know, in general. Furthermore, it also gives you the option to create an account and view all your internet speed test history in one place to keep a tab on your internet connection’s performance. However, one of the most disappointing aspects of the service is that it comes with a lot of ads, which can get pretty annoying at times.
Available for: Web | Android and iOS
2. Meteor
When it comes to internet speed tracking, another name that pops-up every now and then is Opensignal — an independent company specializing in offering insights into wireless network connectivity. The London-headquartered company offers two apps, available for both Android and iOS, that help you learn about the different aspects of your network and determine the problems with your connection. One of these apps, Meteor, is what you need to check your internet speed connection — be it WiFi or mobile connection.
Essentially, Meteor gives you insights into the same metrics as some of the other apps, but in addition, it also includes details about how well those metrics corroborate with some of the apps on your device. The service supports around 25 apps, and at a time, allows you to check the performance scores of up to 6 apps. So, if you are uncertain about a network’s connectivity and are facing speed issues, you can use Meteor to find out if the app you are meaning to use will function uninterruptedly over the connection.
Available for: Android and iOS
3. TestMy.net
TestMy.net is another good service to help you test your internet connection speeds. The service is available on the web and incorporates HTML5 (and PHP), which means you can access it on your mobile phone (Android or iOS) via browser and get a smooth experience. When it comes to testing, it has several test servers across different parts of the world, but sadly, there is no option to select them manually.
When compared to some of the other apps and services, TestMy.net takes a different approach to test internet speeds. Basically, it comes with four options for testing, which include Download, Upload, Latency, and Combined. Offering separate options allows you to only test a certain metric of the network like the download speed, upload speed, or latency — in case you only require to know one. However, if that’s not the case, there is also the Combined mode, which tests the network for all three metrics. Besides, you get features like dark mode and multi-thread testing, along with the ability to sign in to view test history and get results over email.
Available for: Web
4. SpeedOf.Me
Unlike some of the other solutions on the list, SpeedOf.Me is a web-based internet speed test utility. It is based on HTML5 and JavasScript, two of the core web-based technologies, which makes it available on any browser that supports HTML5. Moreover, the company claims the service to be optimized for mobile devices, so you should be able to use it seamlessly using a web browser.
To check the internet connection speeds, the service utilizes close to 127 servers from across the globe. Although, you do not get an option to switch servers to your liking. SpeedOf.Me suggests downloading large sample files, as opposed to smaller chunks of files from some of the other internet speed testing services, which makes it more accurate and reliable. Talking about other aspects, you get a history graph to view all your previous test results, which you can use to compare and get a better idea of your network’s performance over a period of time, and also get the ability to export the history over a CSV file for reference.
Available for: Web
5. FAST
FAST is another widely-used internet speed test service, and it comes from one of the popular content streaming services, Netflix. Compared to some of the other services in this list, FAST falls short on certain features. For instance, you do not have the option to change the server locations, and therefore, have to stick to Netflix’s own servers for your test results. Although, you do get the usual metrics like the download speed, upload speed, and latency. And the speed test results are also pretty accurate most of the time.
Moreover, FAST provides a few options in the settings, which allow you to change things like the duration of test and number of parallel connections to conduct speed tests, along with the ability to view all test metrics right on the front page.
Available for: Web | Android and iOS
The aforementioned are some of the best internet speed test services available out there for Web, Android, and iOS. Using these apps, you can get insights into different key performance metrics, which would help you determine your connection’s performance. And subsequently, help you figure out the issues to make troubleshooting easier.