Looking for easy ways to get faster internet at home? If you’re tired of sluggish downloads, endless buffering or jerky video calls, then this is the guide for you.
We’ve compiled our top tips for boosting your home broadband speed. The best part? They won’t cost you a thing, so you can enjoy smoother browsing without breaking the bank.
Free, easy ways to get faster internet: Our top tips
Perfect your router positioning
Your router is the device that generates your home WiFi network via a physical connection to the telecoms network. It sends out a WiFi signal, which devices like your phone, computer and tablet then connect to.
WiFi signals are weakened when they pass through solid objects like walls and furniture, and particularly large electrical devices like fridges. Position your router high up in the room (on top of a shelf is great) in a clear, open space.
Do parts of your house have a weak or no WiFi signal? A network extender will help your router reach further and keep you connected.
Disconnect unused devices
Your internet bandwidth is shared across every connected device on your network. That means the more devices using the connection, the slower the speed will be for each one.
Disconnect any internet-enabled devices that you’re not using, like smart speakers or games consoles, from standby to get faster internet speeds for the ones you’re actually using.
Change your router frequency
Home broadband routers have two (or more) possible frequency bands for their signal. The default band is usually 2.4 GHZ – but the 5 GHZ band has a higher capacity. The signal range on this frequency is less, but the bandwidth is higher, offering higher potential top speeds.
Switch to a wired connection
Do you have an Ethernet cable at home you’re not using? Most PCs, laptops and game consoles have an Ethernet port you can use to connect them directly to your router. This bypasses the signal loss by converting your connection to a wireless network and broadcasting it across the house.
Instead, a direct wired connection should offer the maximum performance from your home router.
Clear your cache and history
Clearing your browser history isn’t just useful for hiding your Christmas present shopping – it’s also an easy way to get faster internet.
Your web browser stores a version of websites you visit in temporary storage called the cache. This can make visiting the same web page again faster, and automatically fill in data you’ve already entered, but it makes accessing new or updated sites slower as your browser loads the cached version first.
Visit your browser settings to clear your history and cache, and stop wasting time loading old information.
Hunt down malware
Malware – malicious software installed on your computer without your knowledge – can slow down your internet connection, or worse.
Use free anti-virus software to scan for malware and remove it so you’re not wasting bandwidth sending your personal data to third parties. Just make sure to choose an anti-virus from a trusted source, or you might just be adding more malware!
