How much internet speed do you need?

Your internet speed should be fast and stable enough to power your online activities without issues. While lower speeds are sufficient to check your email, you’ll need much faster speeds for glitch-free \streaming your favorite shows, playing graphic intensive games, and video conferencing.

So, what is a good internet speed for you? We’ll reveal the ideal internet speeds for various web activities, including gaming, entertainment, communication, and work. We’ll also share the best internet connection type for accessing such speeds.

Let’s dive in.

What is internet speed and why does it matter?

Internet speed is how fast your device can send and receive data from the web. The speed at which your device receives data is the download speed (e.g. streaming a show). The speed at which your device sends data is the upload speed (e.g. uploading a video to social media).

Both speeds are typically measured in megabits per second (Mbps), but you can find internet providers with speeds measured in gigabits per second (Gbps), which represent thousands of megabits per second. For example, Kinetic Internet offers multi-gig plans that give you up to 2 gigabit (2,000 megabit) download and upload speeds.

Having slow internet can affect both your personal and work life. Have you ever been in a virtual meeting where you could not make out what is being shown? Or been on a video call with your doctor and can’t make out what they are saying? This is the result of slow internet. In a connected world where everything is being conducted digitally, having a slow connection may even contribute to a lower standard of life.

So, how much internet speed do you need? Your ideal internet speed will support all your household’s devices and online activities without obvious performance drops. The last part is crucial because connecting multiple devices can cause drops in speed. You can avoid this with an internet plan that’s designed with enough speed to support multiple devices performing bandwidth-heavy activities at the same time.

Good Internet Speeds for Different Needs

What counts as a good internet speed for one user may be overkill or insufficient for another. As such, to accurately answer what a good internet speed is, we must discuss the minimum speed requirements for different web users.

Use this chart as a general starting point for understanding how much internet speed your household may need. If you have questions about your specific needs, feel free to call or chat with us.

While you can have too-slow internet, you can never have too-fast internet. As such, it’s best to always have internet that’s faster than your minimum speed requirements.

What is considered a fast internet speed?

The average internet speed in the U.S. is 219 megabits per second for download and 24 megabits per second for upload.

And while 219 Mbps may be adequate for most basic internet users, it’s not the best internet speed you can get. With fiber internet, you can access download and upload speeds of over 1 Gbps (1,000 Mbps).

What is fiber internet? It’s a hyper-fast internet solution that sends and receives data via light signals transmitted through tiny glass or plastic wires. Since light travels at higher speeds than electrical signals, fiber internet can download and upload faster than cable or DSL internet.

If you’ve noticed slow internet or issues when doing activities online, run an internet speed test to see what your current upload and download speeds are, and then upgrade to a plan that exceeds them.

What internet connection types are the fastest?

The fastest internet connection type uses a fiber network. Coaxial cable, fixed wireless, 5G, and satellite are other options, but will not deliver the same speed as fiber.

Unlike other internet types that may result in slow internet during severe weather, fiber internet can retain speeds of over 1 gigabit per second.

Also, fiber internet is one of the few internet types with equal download and upload speeds. This means if fiber internet’s download speed is 1 Gbps, the upload speed will be the same making activities like live streaming, gaming, and sending large files faster and smoother. Even better, fiber internet can connect multiple devices with fast internet, ensuring an unfettered internet experience for all users.

So, before selecting an internet type for your home, ask yourself how much internet speed you need. If you want the fastest speeds that’ll keep up with your household’s evolving needs, look no further than fiber.

What internet speed is right for me?

If you want an internet plan that aligns with your goals and needs, consider these factors to pick the perfect high-speed internet plan.

Internet Type

Fiber internet is generally considered to be a fast and reliable internet type. It can stay up and running, even during peak usage periods.

In fact, we surveyed 500 people who switched to fiber, and 77% of them said it's faster than their previous internet type (2024 – Kinetic Raw data report**).

Number of Users

If you have multiple people using your internet, your internet plan must have the bandwidth and speed to support all their needs. Otherwise, you might notice significant drops in download speeds whenever multiple users connect simultaneously.

The more people and smart devices in your household, the higher the speed you’ll want.

Types of Activities

A hyper-fast internet is better equipped to support lag-free streaming, gaming, video conferencing, and large downloads. Even if you’re uninterested in such high-bandwidth activities today, it helps to have an internet plan that can handle such tasks as your needs evolve.

If you work from home, game, or regularly stream movies or TV in 4K, you should consider a plan with higher internet speeds.

Future Proofing

What is a good internet speed for your home today and tomorrow? 100–300 Mbps may be a good speed for your household today. However, it could become inadequate as your household grows and your devices require more bandwidth.

Prevent issues and future-proof your home by choosing a gigabit fiber internet plan.

ISP Speed caps

Some internet service providers limit how fast your internet can go (internet throttling). An ISP may do this after you exceed your data limit for the month or to control network congestion.

Instead of letting your provider control your internet speeds, choose an internet plan with no speed or data caps, like Kinetic’s.

Upgrade to Fast, Reliable Internet

What is a good internet speed?

A good internet speed is fast enough to reliably support your online work and play needs. In most small households (1–3 people), 100 to 300 megabits per second is sufficient. But larger households (3+ people) with high-bandwidth activities may require internet speeds over 300 megabits per second.

Is 300 Mbps fast enough for my home?

If you have a small to average household size, 300 megabits per second (Mbps) is fast enough. It can support multiple devices streaming, gaming, and downloading simultaneously.

However, if your household grows with multiple residents performing several high-bandwidth activities simultaneously, you'll eventually need more than 300 megabits per second.

99.9% Service Availability: As measured by Windstream from March 2023 to March 2024, Kinetic service reliability is calculated by dividing Available Customer Hours by Total Customer Hours, excluding planned maintenance, emergencies (like hurricanes, winter storms, floods), and other uncontrollable events.

*About this data: Study includes data from survey conducted by third-party survey research company on Aug. 19, 2024, of respondents aged 18 and up across all 50 states. Participants were recruited using Random Device Engagement (RDE) and do not have a relationship with Kinetic or the survey research company used. More information on methodology here.