Viasat (Formerly Exede) Speed Test FAQ
Viasat (Exede) launched a new satellite in 2017, and Viasat speed test results have improved since the upgrade. The averages shown here represent thousands of Viasat speed tests run through BroadbandNow. Viasat’s improved speeds have made them a much more attractive Internet option for rural homes — however, they still have data limits in place, even on “unlimited” plans.
Viasat Download vs Upload Speeds
Viasat’s download speeds are generally higher than their upload speeds. This is normal among ISPs, who want to allow customers to use most of their bandwidth for Netflix, YouTube, and other video services. High upload speeds aren’t usually required for these purposes.
Viasat Internet Latency and Ping Issues
Viasat’s high latency is due to the fact that they deliver Internet via satellite, rather than terrestrial cables. Satellites are by definition far away from the earth, so data sent and receive through Viasat (Exede) has to travel 22,300 miles to where their satellite is positioned above the equator. That’s a total of 89,200 miles a data packet has to travel in order to bring you information from a website.
Latency can be surprisingly low considering the circumstances, and results below 100ms aren’t rare. However, latency commonly gets as high as 800ms with satellite Internet providers as a category.
Viasat Internet Speed vs HughesNet
Viasat’s Internet speeds are similar to HughesNet, their main competitor in the US broadband market. Viasat (Exede) currently has an advantage when it comes to data caps. HughesNet tends to limit plans in the 10–100GB range, while Viasat offers “unlimited” plans. However, these unlimited plans have a caveat — once you burn through an upward ceiling of data, your speed will be throttled to dial-up territory. Viasat’s speeds and general performance have increased dramatically since 2016, but they still can’t compare to wired speeds from cable and fiber providers.