Want to ensure optimal connectivity and performance? Use the Google Home app to evaluate download and upload speeds for Nest Wifi Pro, Nest Wifi or Google Wifi networks.
Improve your Internet connection
Follow the steps to improve your mesh connection,
increase your Internet speeds and make your
Internet more consistent throughout your home.
Check your Internet speed
With the Google Home app
- Open the Google Home app
.
- Tap Favourites
Wi-Fi
.
Wi-Fi 
With Google Assistant
Say 'Hey Google, what's my Internet speed?'
Available with Nest Wifi or Google Wifi in the Home app. Learn more about setting up Voice Match and controlling your devices by voice.
What do the results mean?
The Internet speed test measures the download and upload speeds from your router or primary Wi-Fi point.
Download speed
Download speed represents how quickly your network can receive data from Internet servers in a given amount of time. Download speed is measured in megabits-per-second (Mbps). This is what we usually think of when we hear 'Internet speed'. If you have a faster connection, you'll be able to receive more data in a shorter amount of time. For example, fast download speeds mean smooth video streaming, smooth online gaming and fast web browsing.
Note:
- Your download speed is determined by the plan that you have purchased from your Internet service provider (ISP). Some plans are limited to 10 Mbps, while others can go all the way up to 1,000 Mbps.
- Some devices like mobile phones won't have speeds as fast as computers. The model or version of the device also affects speed.
What you can do with your download speed
Download speed |
||
|---|---|---|
| Megabits-per-second (Mbps) | Rating | What you can do |
| 100 Mbps and up | Blazing fast | Stream 4K videos on multiple devices, play online games with your friends or have a video call – all at the same time. |
| 50 Mbps and up | Lightning fast | Stream 4K video, video call and online games on multiple devices at the same time. |
| 25 Mbps and up | Pretty snappy | Reliably stream HD videos on multiple devices at the same time. |
| 13 Mbps and up | Good | Stream a few HD videos at once. Decent for a crowded home but best for small households. |
| 7 Mbps and up | OK | Stream one HD video. If multiple devices are streaming videos at the same time, some videos might start to buffer. |
| 3 Mbps and up | A little slow | Stream a standard definition video on one device. |
| Under 3 Mbps | Not so great | Web browsing should be fine but videos may load slowly. |
What to do if results aren't what you expected
- Try to run a speed test again. Slow results can be due to congestion on your ISP's network or on the Internet, which are most crowded during peak hours like dinnertime. When networks get crowded, data gets slowed down.
- Turn off priority device. Priority device reserves bandwidth for the prioritised device and will result in slower network check results.
- Perform a mesh test and check if there are issues with your network.
- Check with your ISP if there are any outages or issues with their Internet service.
How we calculate download speed
To calculate your download speed, the Google Home app measures how much data your router or primary Wi-Fi point can send and receive from Google's servers in a given amount of time. We believe that testing speed against a popular server such as YouTube instead of the closest one provides a truer measure of normal, everyday Internet use.
For example, if your download speed is 45 Mbps, that means that:
45 megabits of data can be transferred in one second from YouTube's servers to your home.
Note:
- Any speed test is just a snapshot of your download speed, which depends on when and where you use the Internet. You might not have the same speed for everything that you do online.
- Your network's bandwidth could be throttled. Bandwidth throttling is an intentional limitation sometimes employed by ISPs to limit the download speed on a network to regulate network traffic and try to manage network congestion. If YouTube traffic is regulated, it can impact the Google Home app speed test results.
- Network congestion is a factor. Depending on what you're doing, when you're doing it and what other people on the Internet are doing, your download speed could potentially be higher or lower than your speed results.
Upload speed
This measures how fast your network can send data to a server. Upload speed is important for online gaming, making video or voice calls and uploading large files, such as videos to YouTube or backing up photos. Upload speed is measured in Mbps.
Overall performance also depends on Internet speed
You can have the best router in the world but if the Internet connection provided by your ISP is slow, you'll still have slow performance.
Why do other speed tests give me different results?
Most online speed tests check for speeds between your personal devices and a server. But these results will vary depending on two factors:
- Your location
- The location of the server
Some tests automatically select the closest server to you, while others let you select from a list of several servers.
Either way, one thing's for sure: distance matters. Test against a server that's close to you and the results will be faster. Test against a server further away and they'll be slower. This variability can lead to results that aren't always representative of the speeds that you'll experience in everyday use.
Google measures the speed between your Wi-Fi point(s) and Google's servers. We believe that testing speed against popular servers such as YouTube's servers provides a truer measure for normal, everyday Internet use.
Why do speed test results sometimes vary from past speed tests?
Multiple factors can go into speed tests when run on a router:
- Network congestion: High data usage at a given time can limit network speeds. Congestion can happen to your Wi-Fi network when multiple devices are actively using the Internet and can also happen to ISPs when a certain area receives limited network speed due to heavy usage of the Internet by everyone at the same time.
- Bandwidth throttling: Sometimes ISPs intentionally throttle networks at certain times of the day to regulate network traffic and minimise congestion.
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