How does the CenturyLink speed test work?

The CenturyLink speedtest begins by identifying your CenturyLink connection and then selecting the speedtest server closest to your area.

When you click on the GO button it’ll send packets of data from the speed test server to your device.

The CenturyLink speed test checker is powered by Ookla and calculates the ping (latency), download speed and upload speed between your device and the test server.

The time that it takes this packet to go to and return from the server establishes your CenturyLink internet connection speed.

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How accurate is the CenturyLink internet connection speedtest?

This CenturyLink speed test is powered by Ookla which one of the most popular broadband connection speedtest and provides accurate and consistent testing experience and results.

By automatically choosing a speedtest server closest to your location, this eliminates latency & bottlenecks that may distort performance metrics.

Ookla has a global network of over 10,000 speedtest servers in over one hundred and ninety countries.

Source: How are Ookla speed test reliable

To improve accuracy of your speed test, we would recommend that you run the CenturyLink speedtest from a device directly connected to the CenturyLink gateway modem or router.

This will help to provide a more precise reflection on the performance of your CenturyLink internet connection and assist to rule out the Wi-Fi related issues.

If you cannot connect your device directly to your CenturyLink modem or router, ensure that the device you are running this test is as close the modem or router as possible. Also run the speed test at least twice and from 2 different devices to ensure that the fault is not on the device.

Exactly what do the speed test results from my CenturyLink speedtest mean?

What does the Ping metric mean?

Ping is sometimes referred to as latency which in internet connectivity terms refers to the the time (or delay) it takes for information to traverse from one device to another. In this instance, from your device using the CenturyLink internet connection to the closest Ookla test server.

Ping sends data to another computer (in this case, the Ookla speed test server) and measures in milliseconds (ms) the duration it takes to receive a reply back.

If the other computer is far or the network is congested it may take more time to receive a reply and the ping value will be high.

This CenturyLink speed checker will automatically select a speedtest server closest to your location which will eliminate latency and bottlenecks that can distort performance results.

A quick ping (low ms value) means a more responsive CenturyLink broadband connection.

What is a good ping result?

A normal ping rate to a device across the same city should be lower than 20ms. An average ping rate between cities you would expect to see ping values between 30-60ms, and between continents the figure can be over >200ms.

The speedtest above will display the location of the Ookla test server so that you may determine whether your ping result is good or not.

What is Jitter?

All data (e.g. an email, image, video, voice call, etc) is sent across the internet as a series of packets. These packets generally move at a constant rate and are put back together at the destination.

Jitter is the rate of delay during the transmission of the packets.

Try to think of it similar to running a tap and then increasing or decreasing the flow rate of the water coming out. When the flow becomes irregular (because of the increasing and decreasing), the Jitter value goes up – which is not good.

You don’t normally notice jitter because networking devices can smooth it out however, you will be aware of jitter during a video and voice calls because the internet connection will momentarily lag or break up.

CenturyLink Download and Upload speed metrics explained

Find out More:What does the Download and Upload speed results on my CenturyLink speedtest actually mean?

Likely causes of CenturyLink slow internet connection speed

There are a number of reasons why your CenturyLink internet connection is not performing as expected. While we are unable tackle every possible reason, we have listed a number of common causes.

Based on your CenturyLink internet connection setup, some of the recommendations may not be applicable in your case. Hopefully they may trigger possible reasons or get you on the right path to fix your problem.

Is it your CenturyLink broadband internet that is slow or is it your device (PC/laptop/phone)?

You need to consider how many applications are simultaneously open on your device that may be using your system resources (mainly RAM memory and CPU) and your CenturyLink internet bandwidth.

If you’re on a computer, you may use the task manager to see the CPU and memory utilisation.

On other devices you should try restarting the device which should hopefully shut down all apps that may have been running in the background.

Run the CenturyLink speedtest on your PC and your smart phone to see how the speed test results compare between the two devices.

Hopefully the will give you some info to work with in terms of whether the problem lies with your device or the CenturyLink internet connection.

• What does the CenturyLink download and upload speed mean?
• 5 Ways to Speed Up Your CenturyLink Internet Speed
• DNS hack to speed up internet browsing on your CenturyLink broadband

Is the wireless connection the problem?

The cause of the problem could be your wireless network connection and not the CenturyLink broadband internet connection.

You could eliminate the Wifi network being the cause of the problem by connecting your computer directly into the CenturyLink internet modem or router using a network cable and run the CenturyLink speed checker again.

If speed improves when you are connected via an ethernet cable then this proves that the issue may be with your Wifi network.

Other things to check are:

• Are the WiFi channels you’re using for your Wi-Fi network network (SSID) overlapping with the neigbours?
• Is the Wireless frequency congested? You should consider switching to 5Ghz?
• Is the Wifi network signal from the modem or router obstructed?
• Does your performance improve when you’re stood directly infront of the CenturyLink wireless network modem/router?

Number of devices connected to your home network

Every device that is connected to your home network or Wireless network is using the same CenturyLink internet connection.

If you have multiple devices on the web, streaming video, streaming music, downloading or uploading files, video conferencing, etc, this may have an impact on the performance on your CenturyLink broadband internet connection because the available bandwidth is being split between devices.

Are you aware of how many devices are connected to your CenturyLink internet connection? Don’t forget about all the smart home gadgets, security cameras, doorbell cameras, Google or Alexa home hub or other similar devices that are constantly connected.

Who’s connected to my Wi-Fi network?

• Have you checked that your Wi-Fi network password has not been compromised?
• Do you have an open Guest Wi-Fi network?

Nearby Neighbors may be using your wirelessi network and eating up all your CenturyLink internet bandwidth downloading, uploading, streaming or running peer-to-peer file sharing over your CenturyLink internet connection. Worse than that, they could be carrying out illegal activities.

There are 2 applications that you can use to scan your wireless network to check who’s connected:

• MS Windows users may use Wireless network watcher
• MAC users may use whoFi (who is on my Wifi)

Both applications will scan your Wifi network and display a list of the connected devices.

As an alternative, you can log into the CenturyLink wireless router to see who is connected to your wireless network.

Check out the guide on how to use both Apps

Wifi signal strength

If the PC, laptop is unable to pick up a strong signal it will have an effect on the throughput, speed and internet performance regardless of how fast the CenturyLink internet connection is.

Conditions that may affect your wireless signal are;

• Walls, doors or floors between your device and the CenturyLink broadband internet modem or router
• Household appliances such as baby monitors and microwaves
• Overlapping Wifi signal from your neighbors
• Long distance between the device and the CenturyLink internet modem or router.

Do I need a wireless signal booster for my CenturyLink internet?

If you discover that you have Wifi black spot at your house, a Wifi signal extender also know as a wireless booster is the solution to increase the signal strength across your house.

The wireless network booster simply picks up the existing wireless network signal as it is becoming weak and then re-transmits the wireless network signal at a more stronger rate to extend its reach.

Place the Wi-Fi network booster/extender where your wireless signal from the CenturyLink broadband internet router or model is beginning to become weak. Approximately where your Wi-Fi network signal drops down to two bars. You could use your phone to determine where this is.

Health of your Device

Viruses and malware can slow down your device and consequently the performance of your device. Viruses or malware could be working quietly and concealed in the behind the scenes download and uploading information and thus slowing the performance of the whole internal network down.

When is the last time you ran a full Virus and Malware check on your device?

When was the last time your CenturyLink broadband modem or router was rebooted?

In the same way as other Internet Service Providers, CenturyLink’s broadband infrastructure is frequently upgraded to support new features and changes in technology. Likewise, the broadband internet routers or modem at your property will also periodically require an update to support changes in the CenturyLink internet network.

The update could be in the form of a software update or an upgrade of the physical CenturyLink modem/router hardware to a the newest version.

You may be able to perform the software upgrade by logging in to the CenturyLink modem/router. If you can’t do this or are not confident doing it, get in contact with CenturyLink and they are able to either it for you or guide you through it.

The type and age of the device

Newer PCs, smart phones and other internet-enabled devices will be generally faster than older devices due to advancements in networking technology and protocols.

Are you experiencing the same problems or newer devices?

Is the fault external to your house?

This is probably the most common reasons for CenturyLink internet connectivity issues. There are miles of cabling used to bring the CenturyLink broadband internet connection to your home.

The issue may be with the physical cabling that comes into your house and terminates into the modem or router in your home.

You should get in touch with CenturyLink who will be able to run the relevant connection tests to see if there’s a problem on the CenturyLink internet line.