CenturyLink Internet Speed Test FAQ
CenturyLink speed test results are a measurement of your home network as well as the broader CenturyLink network. If you are getting a surprisingly low speed result, please try plugging your computer or laptop into the router with ethernet, or at least place it close to the router to avoid interference. The averages shown above trend low due to the large number of speed tests that are being run as part of the diagnostics process for home networking issues.
CenturyLink DSL Download vs Upload Speed Results
CenturyLink prioritizes download speeds on their residential Internet plans. For most users, this doesn’t matter, since download is much more important than upload for most daily activities like scrolling through Facebook, watching YouTube, and etc. CenturyLink’s upload speeds can impact the performance of video chat apps like Google Hangouts, but users shouldn’t have any problem with one-way streaming services like Netflix.
CenturyLink Latency and Ping
CenturyLink latency is average for a DSL provider. In general, latency is lower than satellite but higher than cable. For customers in rural areas, CenturyLink DSL is almost always a better choice than satellite Internet due to CenturyLink’s high data limits and faster speeds.
CenturyLink DSL Speeds vs Cable and Fiber
DSL Internet speeds are usually lower than cable and fiber. The reason is simple: the copper lines CenturyLink uses to transmit DSL Internet are older and narrower than the cables used by fiber providers. Because DSL signals fade faster over distance than cable or fiber, CenturyLink customers in rural areas may experience slower speeds than advertised if their home is near the edge of the local CenturyLink service footprint. Customers far away from CenturyLink’s local office may also find increased latency.
CenturyLink Speeds vs Satellite Internet
CenturyLink customers are often comparing speeds between CenturyLink DSL and Satellite Internet or mobile hotspots. CenturyLink speeds are lower than satellite in many rural areas. However, CenturyLink gives users a Terabyte of data on most plans, while satellite Internet providers only allow 50GB or so. This makes CenturyLink a clear choice for families and daily Internet users, since they don’t have to worry about running out of data if they watch lots of online video.