What Internet speed do you need at home?
What should you be aware of with regard to Internet speed?
The Internet checker tells you the maximum available Internet speed at your address. Most people don't need the full speed. When you are ready to sign up for an Internet plan, you'll need to work out what speed you actually need. The higher the speed offered by a plan, the more expensive it will be.
How can you work out what speed you require?
The ideal Internet speed depends on a number of factors, including:
Number of simultaneous users in the household
Type of Internet usage
Distance between the modem and the device
How do you use the Internet?
We typically recommend the following Internet speeds:
20 Mbps to 50 Mbps: normal web browsing, standard-quality streaming (Netflix, YouTube etc.)
50 Mbps to 100 Mbps: larger distances between modem and devices, use of repeaters, and multiple simultaneous users
100 Mbps to 1,000 Mbps: multiple users simultaneously performing bandwith-intensive activities such as video conferences, UHD streaming and online gaming
FAQs on the subject of Internet availability
If you are moving home, it is always useful to find out beforehand what Internet speeds and providers are available at your new place. However, it's also worth checking your Internet speed in your current home if you are considering switching to a different plan. Your requirements may have changed over time, for example, and you now want cheaper prices or a better service.
You can use the Internet checker to quickly and easily find out whether a copper, cable or fibre network connection is available at a particular location. It will then also tell you the potential bandwidth.
In Switzerland, four different technologies are used to provide Internet access at home: fibre or fibre-optic, copper (DSL), cable (coaxial) or mobile networks (4G/5G).
Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) is a family of technologies used to transmit data using traditional telephone lines. The speed depends on the distance between your home and the local telephone exchange – and the longer the copper cable, the slower the Internet. In addition, this is an asymmetrical Internet connection, which means that the upload and download speeds are different.
Some cable network providers in Switzerland operate a what's known as a 'coax' network. These include Sunrise UPC and Quickline, but many regional providers as well. However, customers only have a single cable connection from one provider in their home and therefore cannot choose the provider themselves. The disadvantage of cable connections is that as usage increases, capacity decreases.
Fibre is the fastest Internet connection available. It involves transmitting data optically via fibre-optic networks – unlike DSL and coax connections, where data is transmitted electrically over copper lines and coaxial cables. In theory, there is unlimited capacity to transmit data via glass fibres without any adverse effects due to line length. Fibre-optic cables therefore ensure a more stable and much faster Internet experience that is less susceptible to interference.
If you have a mobile plan with unlimited data, you can also use that to access the Internet at home. You'll need to have good network coverage at your address though, and you'll find that data-heavy tasks will slow your Internet speed appreciably.
A speed test tells you the maximum speed available to you on your Internet plan. It will vary depending on the contract agreed with your provider. An Internet checker, on the other hand, measures the maximum speed that is technically possible. This depends on whether you have a copper, cable or fibre connection.
If you regularly send large volumes of data over the Internet, a fibre optic connection is useful. Unlike a standard copper cable connection, it won't slow down if several people are using it at the same time. In addition, download and upload speeds are the same on fibre optic connections, which makes uploading data to the Internet much faster. So if you need the Internet for work, for example, and don't want to be disrupted by slow speeds and waiting times, a fibre connection is worth having.
Most providers specify an upload and download speed in their deals. However, the download speed is usually much higher than the upload speed.
For most people, the download speed is also the most relevant, because it is important for services such as TV streaming. However, if you frequently need to upload large amounts of data, you should find out from the Internet provider what the actual upload speed is. You need a high upload speed to perform tasks such as sending large video files or uploading them to servers.
