How fast is 1mbps? 2mbps? 3mbps? 4mbps?

Klaus Warzecha · Dec 31, 2016

Can some host providers please explain me this. How long does it take time to download a 50MB file size on a 1mbps connection? or a 2mbps connection? , on a 3mbps connection? etc...how can I measure its speed? Is there a tool to check this or can I use linux command to check?

Localnode · Dec 31, 2016

You can use these tools to see how long it will take to download.
Keeping in mind that 3mbps and 4mbps are really unusual speeds. Is this for a residential connection?

EcommIndiaCloudIT · Dec 31, 2016

You can do the measurement by remembering these basic facts:

Data Speed is measured in "bits" per second denoted by lowercase b
Data Size is measure in "Bytes" denoted by uppercase B

8 bits = 1 Byte

So when you get a speed of 1Mbps, you are getting 1 Mega Bits per second and NOT 1 Mega Byte per second. So in order to measure how much data you are actually downloading, you just need to divide it by 8.

Example:
8Mbps line will download 1 Mega Byte (1MB) per second (8/8=1)
4Mbps line will download 512Kilo Bytes per second (4/8 = 0.5)
2Mbps line will download 256Kilo Bytes per second (2/8 = 0.25)

Also, do remember that you will not always get 100% download speed for the entire download duration.

So you answer your exact question, if you have a 50MB file and assuming your connection speed remains constant for the entire duration of the download, this is how long it should take:
8Mbps connection - 50Seconds
6Mbps connection - 75Secs
4Mbps connection - 100secs
2Mbps connection - 200secs
1Mbps connection - 400secs

RDO Servers · Dec 31, 2016

Also keep in mind that just because your computer and the server are capable of a certain connection speed, does not mean it will be transfered at that speed as there are other factors involved. (Network congestion, computer speed, available RAM, etc)

Namerie · Jan 14, 2017

I'm still learning about most of the thighs that are regarding web hosting and especially things on the technical side so I don't fully understand how someone can get accurate times when calculating the download speed based on just the mbps.

Aren't there many more things that will determine the download speed?

Are these numbers an absolute and a given or are they more like a maximum that can be achieved? Meaning if a connection is a 3mbps connection does that mean UP TO 3mbps?

EcommIndiaCloudIT · Mar 17, 2017

Collabora said:
This is not entirely accurate. It takes additional bits to move data around a network. The amount of extra bits is for the network protocol. For TCP/IP add 2 bits to the data being downloaded and divide by 10 instead of 8 -- no calculator needed!

I guess you missed this part from my post:

Also, do remember that you will not always get 100% download speed for the entire download duration.

That note was meant to cover any additional data transfer bits in the transmission and things like network congestion etc. without confusing the OP about the actual answer.

Collabora · Mar 17, 2017

EcommIndiaCloudIT said:
For the love of God, please read what I quoted. I'm not disagreeing with you.
I said "the note was meant to cover any additional data transfer bits in the transmission". Are you not seeing this? seriously?.

Yes, and I will reproduce that "note" here:

EcommIndiaCloudIT said:
Also, do remember that you will not always get 100% download speed for the entire download duration.

You then proceed to give examples of how long it will take to download a certain size file at 100% connection speed. Your examples are incorrect and thus causes confusion.

At 100% transfer speed the effective download rate for a specific file using an 8 Mbps connection is 0.8 MBps, not 1.0 MBps as you show

Continuing with your example, a 50 MB file being transferred on an 8Mbps connection will take 50/0.8 = 62.5 seconds at 100% connection speed, not 50 seconds. Thus OP's actual download time should be compared to 62.5 seconds not 50 seconds.

EcommIndiaCloudIT · Mar 17, 2017

Since some folks here do not understand what approximation are, I'll quote myself again. Below listed is the approximate time it would take to download a 50MB file. Anyone else who feel they want to be more precise despite the fact that you can never get the said "precise" time, please feel free to post your calculations.

EcommIndiaCloudIT said:
8Mbps connection - 50Seconds
6Mbps connection - 75Secs
4Mbps connection - 100secs
2Mbps connection - 200secs
1Mbps connection - 400secs

EcommIndiaCloudIT · Mar 17, 2017

Collabora said:
You are missing the point. The theoretical speed is lower than your calculation suggests. The TCP/IP network protocol makes that 8 bit file about 10 bits in size.

Collabora said:
Those are the incorrect approximations. The correct approximations are
8Mbps connection - 62.5 not 50Seconds
6Mbps...

With all due respect, here is where you are making a blunderous assumption.

You assume that each TCP packet is sent as a 1 Byte packet. Have you ever heard of MTU? Packet sizing can vary from network to network and this is why it's an industry wide practice to discount this variable when calculating approximate download speeds. Generally this tends to be around ~1460 bytes per packet. So to assume that each TCP packet is going to broken down into 1 byte chunks is ridiculous and waste of network resources. Heck, even a simple PING send a 32Bytes packet. So, no, its a completely absurd and wrong assumption.

Even if we were to consider your assumption for a second, you are wrong again, its not 10bits, its actually 12bits. It is 1 bit as start bit, 8 bit data, 1 bit as parity bit and 2 stop bits which makes it a total of 12 bits. This is again if you are going to a packet sizing way below the MTU of 1500 used as a global practice. Payload can be of any size within the MTU+headers. So, please relax and stick to the standard approximation of 8Mbits/sec = 1MByte/sec when calculating transfers and not over complicate simple answers.

In case you still have difficulty grasping this basic concept of networking, please feel free to have a look at the below sites and screenshots which use the standard approximation by discounting the MTU sizing which is not predictable as it differs from network to network.

Sample calculations:

Collabora · Mar 18, 2017

Klaus Warzecha said:
Can some host providers please explain me this. How long does it take time to download a 50MB file size on a 1mbps connection? or a 2mbps connection? , on a 3mbps connection? etc...how can I measure its speed? Is there a tool to check this or can I use linux command to check?

Up until now we have been discussing quick approximations to calculate download time. Now I will show you how to calculate download speed -- without downloading! But first I need to define an important term: TCP window size

The TCP receive window size is the maximum amount of received data, in bytes, that can be buffered at one time on the receiving side of a connection. The sending host can send only that amount of data before waiting for an acknowledgment and window update from the receiving host. By default, the TCP receive window size for Windows is 64 Bytes

We will be using network latency in our calculations. To find network latency we can use Ping. Ping will send out a packet to a remote host and measure the round trip time for that packet to reach the host and return. For our example lets use the latency between my computer and forumweb.hosting:

C:\Users\Dean>ping forumweb.hosting

Pinging forumweb.hosting [104.18.49.112] with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 104.18.49.112: bytes=32 time=25ms TTL=58
Reply from 104.18.49.112: bytes=32 time=26ms TTL=58
Reply from 104.18.49.112: bytes=32 time=24ms TTL=58
Reply from 104.18.49.112: bytes=32 time=26ms TTL=58

Ping statistics for 104.18.49.112:
Packets: Sent = 4, Received = 4, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 24ms, Maximum = 26ms, Average = 25ms

The report shows a round trip time of 25ms

LET'S CALCULATE!

(1) Convert the TCP window size from bytes to bits: Since 64 KB is the default TCP window size for computers running Windows we have 64 KB x 8 = 524,288 bits.

(2) Divide the TCP window size in bits by the network path latency. For this example use a latency of 25 milliseconds. 524,288 bits / .025 seconds = 20,971,520 bits per second

(3) Convert the result from step 2 to megabits per second by dividing the result by 1,000,000. In this example, the maximum network throughput is 21 Mbps with the main limitation on the network throughput being the latency of the network connection. Divide that by 8 and we get 2.5 MBps (I am on a basic DSL line :blush

In summary: divide 524,288 by latency(ms), take that result and divide by 1,000,0000 to get MBps, divide that result by 8 to get MBps
.
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EcommIndiaCloudIT · Mar 18, 2017

Again, incorrect assumptions are being made that all data transmission happens just using TCP! UDP is just as prevalent in daily use. For example, torrents file sharing uses UDP, so does many streaming services, VOIP calls etc.. etc.. etc...

Which is why everyone should just stick to a standardized approximation of 8 Bits/sec = 1 Byte/sec. If you're just a regular Joe like the OP who just wants to know what is your approximate download speeds, you should cut out all the other variables and just divide or multiply by 8 appropriately to get your approximate speeds/times. Unless of course you're being really picky and/or a network engineer trying to optimize your network traffic and know exactly what your MTU/packet sizing is, what your protocol is etc..

I'm done trying to put this in the simplest, understandable and usable form.

Moral of the story: 8 MBits/sec = 1 MByte/sec

BlaZeX · Apr 25, 2017

The community has well explained but I'm amazed as no one mentioned this site: toolstud.io/data/bandwidth.php
It shows you how much data transfer your connection can handle per second, minute, hour, day, month, etc.

rankmyhub · Apr 25, 2017

I would like to convery OP that

How long does it take time to download a 50MB file size on a 1mbps connection? or a 2mbps connection? , on a 3mbps connection?

Time consumption also depends on various other factors like the source server and destination computer and what are the other services that are dependent on Internet are being used at the same time, when you are downloading a file. So the time taken for downloading a file x from server z and file y from server b may not be the same.

I assume that you are using resedential or home internet connection or broadband.. Thank you.

fishmonk · Jul 24, 2017

I would say that the actual internet speed varies from the advertised speed in most cases.
To get actual data on Internet speed, all someone has to do is run a speed test on their connection and compare the actual results to the advertised speeds.
I am currently using Speedof.me,a HTML5-based speed test to determine upload and download speeds and identify other issues with my Internet network.

vinaya · Aug 24, 2017

The maximum speed I can get in my home country is 6 mbps. However, I have not subscribed to the internet service provider that claims to provide 6 mpbs. The one that I am using is 3.1 mbps. I started using internet through a dial up connection that was 256 kbps. Well 3.1 mbps is a way better than 256 kbps. The internet speed claimed by ISP is not an actual speed that you get.
I use following sites to test my internet speed:
www.speedtest.net
https://fast.com

Vastor122 · Sep 6, 2017

This depends on how fast your internet connection while doing multi-tasking. When you have a 3mbps connection while downloading a 50mb file, maybe you'll finish it after a minute. That all will depend on how consistent your connection is.

Laudemer2 · Sep 24, 2017

1mbps 2mbps 3mbps 4mbps

For 1mbps you can only use 2 gadgets either phone or tablet. For 2mbps you can use 5 gadgets, 3mbps you can use 5 gadgets plus 1desktop and last 4mbps you can use 5 gadgets plus 2 desktop.
The gigabytes of every mbps also depends on the network provider you are using, also the usage if you love watching, playing i prefer you to use 4mbps up to prevent the logging of your game. Some also use vpn but not advisable because it can harm your gadget.

Constar442 · Nov 3, 2017

50MB file is most likely 50 seconds on a 1MBps connection if itbis true rated. Most providers advertise the promised speed only. They are tricky. If you look at the ads. You usually says "up to 1MBps" which really means it is the maximum speed. While if you use it it is only at 30% n off peak hours. I recommend using "test.me". Its a website which measures your exact download speed. It sends a dummy file to measure the speed.

Constar442 · Nov 3, 2017

Basically 1Mbps means 1Megabytes per second. Ideally a 50MB file would take only 50sec. If the provider gives the true rated speed. But most of them advertise only the promised speed which is usually not met. Are you familiar with the "UPTO 1Mbps" tag? This the way they trick the consumers on believing them. Most of them only can deliver 30% of the promised speed.

Dictator20 · Nov 14, 2017

The Internet speed that I have is 5mbps so that 55mb just took 5-10 mins for me to download. so if you have only 1-3 mbps connection it will take a longer time to download that 55mb. You can check your download speed,Ping,Upload speed, etc. in Speedtest.net it is a legit site.

How fast is 1mbps? 2mbps? 3mbps? 4mbps?

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