How to test your internet connection

Acutis · plain-English network help · updated June 2026

The short version

To properly test your internet connection, don't stop at a speed test — that only shows one number. Run four quick checks in order: a speed test for bandwidth, a ping & jitter test for delay and stability, a DNS check to rule out name-lookup failures, and a wired-vs-Wi-Fi comparison to find where the problem lives. Together they tell you whether the issue is your speed, your latency, your DNS, your Wi-Fi, one device, or your ISP. Each step below points to a free tool you can run in your browser.

Step 1 — Run a speed test (bandwidth)

A speed test measures how much data per second you can move — your download and upload speeds in Mbps. Run it and compare the result against the plan you pay for. A few tips so the number means something:

• Close other apps and pause downloads first, or they'll drag the result down.
• Test plugged in with Ethernet if possible — that's the true speed reaching your home.
• One slow result can be a fluke; run it two or three times.

If your speed is close to your plan, bandwidth isn't your problem — move on, because a fast connection can still feel terrible for calls and games.

Step 2 — Run a ping & jitter test (latency)

Speed isn't everything. A ping test measures the delay and stability of your connection — the part that actually decides whether calls and games feel smooth. Watch three numbers:

• Ping / latency — round-trip delay in milliseconds. Under 30 ms is excellent; over 100 ms feels laggy.
• Jitter — how much ping varies. Steady is good; a number that bounces between 20 and 200 makes voice choppy.
• Packet loss — messages that never arrive. Even 1–2% causes stutter and rubber-banding.

If your speed is fine but ping, jitter, or loss are high, you've found why things feel bad despite a "fast" connection.

Step 3 — Check if it's DNS

Sometimes the connection is healthy but pages still won't load — that's usually DNS, the system that turns names like example.com into the numeric addresses your device needs. If some sites load and others fail, or everything is "server not found" while your speed test runs fine, run the "is it DNS?" check. It confirms whether name resolution is the broken link rather than your actual connection — a five-second test that saves a lot of pointless router rebooting.

Step 4 — Test wired vs Wi-Fi

This is the most useful comparison you can make. Run the same speed and ping tests twice: once over Wi-Fi, once plugged into the router with an Ethernet cable.

• Good on Ethernet, bad on Wi-Fi → your problem is wireless: distance, interference, a crowded channel, or an old router. Move closer, switch to 5GHz, or go wired.
• Bad on both → the problem is past your Wi-Fi — your cable, your router, or your ISP. Wireless tweaks won't help.

This one test instantly splits your problem in half.

Step 5 — Isolate one device

If only one computer or phone is slow while everything else is fine, the network is probably healthy and the issue is that device. Test from a second device on the same Wi-Fi. If the second device is fast, focus on the slow one — background uploads, a stuck app, a full disk, or driver issues can all make a single machine feel like the internet is down when it isn't.

Step 6 — When to suspect your ISP

Blame the provider only after the steps above point there. You likely have an ISP problem if all of these are true:

• Speeds are well below your plan even on Ethernet, retested several times.
• Ping and packet loss are bad on a wired connection with nothing else running.
• Multiple devices are affected, not just one.
• A reboot of the modem and router didn't help.

When you call them, those test results are your evidence — they turn "my internet is slow" into specific numbers the provider can act on.