Is 20 Mbps good enough?
Grade 2 of 7: Disappointing
It works, in the way a bicycle with a flat tyre works.
20 Mbps download is grade 2 of 7 on the Speed Roast scale: Disappointing. It carries 4 HD streams, no 4K, and downloads a full game in 7 hours 24 minutes.
What 20 Mbps can do
- HD streamingYes
Around 4 HD streams at once before anything stutters.
- 4K streamingNo
4K needs more than this. Expect the picture to drop to HD or below.
- Video callsYes
Group calls in HD with other things running are fine. Upload speed matters more than download here.
- Online gamingJust
Playing is fine if ping is low, but every update will take a while and anything else on the line will cause lag.
- Working from homeJust
Fine for email, documents and one call. Large file transfers will stall everything else.
Who it serves
One person who mostly browses and streams in HD. Two people will notice each other.
How long downloads take
| A song (5 MB) | 2 seconds |
| A one-hour HD episode (2 GB) | 15 minutes |
| A film in 4K (15 GB) | 1 hour 51 minutes |
| A modern console game (60 GB) | 7 hours 24 minutes |
Assumes the connection delivers about nine-tenths of 20 Mbps for the whole transfer, which a good line does and a busy one does not.
If your test said 20 Mbps
- A speed this low on a wired connection usually means a fault on the line, an ancient plan, or a router that has given up. Reboot the router first; it fixes more than it should.
- Test on a cable if you can. Wi-Fi routinely halves a connection, and a test over Wi-Fi measures the router as much as the line.
- Check the speed your plan promises. Providers advertise an "up to" or "average" figure; a result well below it, on a cable, is worth a complaint.
- Test at different times. Cable and older networks slow down in the evening when the neighbourhood is home.
- If fibre or cable is available at your address, almost any plan will be a large step up from here.
Questions people ask
Is 20 Mbps good for streaming?
Yes for HD: about 4 streams at once. For 4K it is not enough; the picture will drop to HD.
Is 20 Mbps good for gaming?
Playing works if ping is low, but updates are slow and anyone else using the connection will cause lag.
How many people can share 20 Mbps?
One person who mostly browses and streams in HD. Two people will notice each other.
How long does a 60 GB game take to download at 20 Mbps?
About 7 hours 24 minutes, assuming the connection actually delivers 20 Mbps for the whole download.
The grades are mine, applied to download speed. Streaming figures use the services’ published minimums with a margin. See how I work.