Why is my speed test slower than my package?
Because the number on your bill is rarely a promise of “this speed every second on every device.” It might be a maximum, a range, or an average under ideal lab-style conditions. Real tests bump into Wi-Fi, old kit, other people’s traffic, peak-time congestion, and sometimes the limits of your actual line.
Common causes (work through in order)
- Wi-Fi: Distance, walls, and interference cap speed before the fibre does.
- Device: Cheap dongles, battery-saver modes, and busy CPUs skew results.
- Router: Older hardware or bad placement throttles everyone at once.
- Background traffic: Updates, cloud sync, and a quietly seeding game client eat Mbps.
- Peak time: Neighbourhood demand rises after school and work—especially in dense streets.
- Package wording: “Up to” and tier names do not map cleanly to every line.
If you already have a believable download Mbps and want a rough sense of how long a large file might take at that steady rate, try the download time calculator—real transfers still vary with Wi-Fi, servers, and contention.
When to contact your provider
When a fair wired test on a capable PC, repeated across days, still sits far below what your paperwork implies—and you have dates and screenshots. A single phone test from the garden office is not that evidence.
Typical UK scenarios
In a converted Victorian flat in Edinburgh, thick walls might cap Wi-Fi at 45 Mbps while the same socket’s Ethernet run hits 900 Mbps on a full-fibre tier—the “slow package” was never the exchange.
In a new-build near Reading, a family sees tests fall only between 6 and 9 p.m. That pattern points to busy-hour sharing on the network, not a broken router, especially if daytime wired tests look fine.
What Pulse can and cannot confirm
Pulse shows what your browser session achieves for download, latency, and jitter—it helps you document behaviour over time. It does not read your contract or know your cabinet’s spare capacity; use it as structured evidence, not a verdict.
Run the Pulse speed test · Read methodology · Review privacy
FAQ
Is my ISP lying if the test is below the headline number?
Not necessarily. Marketing numbers rarely describe your worst Wi-Fi corner at peak time.
Why does Ethernet matter for this question?
It removes Wi-Fi as a suspect. If wired tests match the package and wireless does not, the fix is usually in the home.
Could I be reading the wrong tier on my bill?
Yes—check whether you are on a discounted tier, a speed-capped product, or an older sync profile.
When should I involve my provider?
After fair wired tests at different times still sit far below what your contract suggests, with notes to hand.