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How to Test Your VPN Speed & Maximize Your Connection

speedtest

As threats to online privacy and security continue to rise worldwide, selecting the best VPN has never been more difficult.

Several VPNs are accessible nowadays, each claiming to provide the finest service.

Although security and privacy are the most crucial factors to consider when selecting a VPN, speed is also vital.

A VPN will often slow down your internet connection. This is because a VPN encrypts your traffic and routes it through a secure server in a different region.

Fortunately, with a good VPN service provider, the speed difference is quite modest, allowing you to experience fast and stable connections.

How to Test the Speed of a VPN

The VPN speed testing procedure is straightforward and can be finished in a few minutes. Follow the instructions below.

To test VPN speed, you’ll need to know how fast your internet connection is. So first, unplug and perform a speed test if you’re using a VPN.

A VPN test may be performed using a variety of internet providers. Try SpeedTest.net, which is managed by the analytics company Ookla, for a simple experience.

Others, such as Fast.com, but SpeedTest is often regarded as the finest.

Initial Internet Connection Speed Evaluation

  • Check that no programs are running that are consuming important bandwidth.
  • Go to www.speedtest.net
  • Select the “Begin Test” option (the app should choose a server close to your location). If Speedtest.net reports the wrong location, walk around the map and select a closer server by clicking on the flashing white dots.
  • The SpeedTest web software will do a downstream test, then an upstream one.
  • Following the completion of the test, downstream and upstream speeds will be recorded in megabits per second. Then, repeat the test three times more by clicking the “Test Again” button (record the best up and down speeds for comparisons later).

To run the VPN Speed Test, follow these steps:

  • Begin by launching your VPN client.
  • Select a server in the nearest city with the shortest response time and click “Connect.”
  • Repeat steps 2-5 of our original internet connection speed test above in a private or incognito web browser.
  • Compare the best downstream and upstream speeds from the previous stage to the best from the actual internet connection speed tests conducted without a VPN. The fastest VPN server is the one that provides downstream and upstream speeds that are the closest to the best speeds obtained before while evaluating speed without connecting to the VPN.

The Fastest VPN Download Speeds

We evaluated around 30 best VPNs and computed the percentage difference for each. While several VPNs dropped performance by up to 90%, a few VPNs fared well regarding speed and performance.

These are:

Examining the Results of the VPN Speed

Speedtest will use three main variables to evaluate your internet speed and, by extension, that of your VPN. ‘Upload’ and ‘download’ speeds are measured in megabits per second (Mbps), and you’ll also get a ‘ping’ rating. Here’s what each one means:

Download rate

This indicates how quickly or slowly info from the internet reaches you. The higher this value, the faster you’ll be able to stream videos, download files, and navigate between pages. Ideally, you should observe a download speed of 20 to 25 Mbps.

Upload Rate

Is the rate at which data and requests are sent to the web. A slow upload speed will be very troublesome if you’re streaming to other devices, for example, during a video call or watching Instagram Live. For casual home use, an upload speed of roughly 3 Mbps is ideal, while an upload speed of around 10 Mbps is ideal if you need to broadcast high-quality video to others.

Pings

The ping rate represents the full speed. Therefore, the lower your ping value, the quicker your internet will be. For example, assume your Speedtest result is 80 pings when your VPN is on. That indicates a data packet was transported from your device to a server and returned in around 80 milliseconds.

How to Boost the Speed of Your VPN

Even if you’re using a high-quality VPN, you could notice a tiny dip in download speeds or a spike in ping rate from time to time. Don’t give up on encryption just yet. You can use a variety of methods to increase your speed.

Reconnect and disconnect. A decent VPN service provider would have many servers in more populated locations. If your internet connection is degrading, there might be a problem with the server you’re on, so reconnect to a different one in your desired area.

Modify security procedures. Because different security protocols might affect internet speeds, you should experiment with changing your protocol if necessary.

Choose a new geographic location. If the problem is geographical, select a new server in another country. VPNs provide over 5,000 servers in 59 countries worldwide. So you will always be able to select a spot that provides the finest internet experience.

Factors Influencing VPN Speed

Several elements influence upload and download speeds while connecting to a VPN server.

Although some factors, such as locations, routing, server load, and server speed, are determined by the VPN provider, your connection options and home network influence performance. These elements include router speed, protocol, server selection, and bandwidth.

Normal Internet Connection Speed

Regardless matter how fast a VPN service is, the most important factor restricting it is the speed with which you connect to the VPN server. For example, you can never attain 50mbps speeds if you use a 10mbps home connection.

Server’s Location

Servers near your location will always be quicker than those farther away. For example, if you have a 100mbps internet connection, you should be able to receive 95mbps or higher on a nearby VPN server. However, you may only get 5 to 10mbps on a server in another nation or continent. A VPN, on the other hand, may boost your Internet connection speed for long-distance communications.

Server Overcrowding and Bandwidth

The amount of users connected to a VPN server at the same time has a direct impact on the server’s performance. If, for example, a 1000mbps server is shared by 100 individuals, each user will receive an average of no more than 10mbps. As a result, expensive VPN services are often quicker since each user has more server bandwidth.

Encryption Strength

Encrypting a data stream requires additional data, which consumes part of the available bandwidth.

Protocols

The VPN protocol used has a direct impact on encryption strength, but it can also have an impact on speed on its own. TCP (OpenVPN) protocols are usually always slower than UDP protocols (OpenVPN),

Routing

The speed of a VPN connection is determined by how data is sent to the VPN server and how the VPN provider routes a connection across many servers in the same region. Major established VPN service providers use incredibly effective routing algorithms; however, less experienced VPN services may do so inefficiently.

Configuration of the network

Although most customers enjoy the option of connecting to their network over WiFi, using a LAN connection results in substantially quicker VPN rates. Using a cable connection can create a difference of up to 100%.

Conclusion

Whether security and privacy are your top priorities, speed is critical. You wouldn’t want to pay for a high-speed internet service to have your VPN slow it down.

When using your VPN, try to select servers that are close to your location and have a lower server load. Choosing a faster procedure might also help to increase the pace.