Page Contents
Fast.co.uk internet Speed test
Click on the “Go” button on the Ookla Speed test to test the speed of your Fast.co.uk broadband connection.
Information on how to troubleshoot problems with your Fast.co.uk broadband can be below.
For a more accurate reading, run the Speedtest twice
Troubleshooting Fast.co.uk broadband internet performance
Before starting to troubleshoot the performance of your Fast.co.uk broadband connection, you need to run the Fast.co.uk Internet Broadband speedtest and also confirm the exact Upload and Download speed that you are paying for.
You can get this information by checking a Fast.co.uk bill or contact Fast.co.uk to confirm this information.
Possible causes of Fast.co.uk slow internet speed
Is it the Fast.co.uk broadband that is slow or is it your device (PC/laptop/phone)?
You need to check how many applications are currently running on your device that could be utilising your system resources (mainly RAM memory and CPU) and/or your Fast.co.uk internet bandwidth.
If you are on a PC then you can use the task manager to check your processor and memory usage.
On any other device you should try restarting the device which should hopefully kill all programs that may have been running in the background.
Re-run the Fast.co.uk speed checker on your personal computer and your mobile to see how the speedtest results compare between the 2 devices.
This should hopefully provide you with some info to work with in terms of if the issue lies with your device or the Fast.co.uk internet connection.
- What exactly does the Fast.co.uk download and upload speed mean?
- 5 Ways to Speed Up Your Fast.co.uk Internet Speed in your area
- DNS hack to speed up internet browsing on Fast.co.uk
Is your Wifi connection the problem?
The cause of the problem could be your Wifi network connection and not the Fast.co.uk broadband internet connection.
You could rule out the Wi-Fi network network being the cause of the problem by connecting your computer directly into the Fast.co.uk broadband router using an ethernet cable and run the Fast.co.uk speed checker again.
If speed is better when you are connected using a network cable then this proves that the problem may be with the Wifi network connection setup.
Possible things to check are:
- Are the Wireless channels you’re using for your Wi-Fi network network (SSID) overlapping with the neighbors?
- Could the Wi-Fi network signal from the router be obstructed?
- Does the performance improve when your are standing directly in-front of the Fast.co.uk broadband or wireless router?
Who is connected to my Wifi network?
Have you checked that your Wi-Fi network password has not been compromised? Do you have an open Guest Wifi network?
Neighbors could be on your Wifii network and using up all your Fast.co.uk bandwidth downloading/uploading or even streaming netflix! Worse still, they could be carrying out illegal activities which will all point to your connection.
There are two apps that you can use to scan your Wi-Fi network to check who is connected:
- Windows users can use Wireless network watcher
- MAC users can use whoFi (who is on my Wifi)
Both applications will scan your wireless network and show you a list of the connected devices.
Check out this tutorial on how to use both applications
Do I need a Wi-Fi network Booster for my Fast.co.uk broadband?
If you find that you have Wifi black holes in your home, then a Wifi extender also know as a Wi-Fi Booster is the fix to boost your signal. They are readily available online from around £15.
The wireless booster simply picks up your existing Wi-Fi network signal as it is starting to become weak and then re-transmits the Wifi network signal at a more stronger rate to extend it’s coverage.
Place the Wifi network booster/extender where your Wifi signal from the Fast.co.uk broadband router is starting to become weak. Approxiametly where your wireless network signal drops down to two bars. Use your mobile phone to determine where this is.
When was the last time you upgraded your Fast.co.uk broadband router?
The Fast.co.uk and openreach infrastructure is constantly being upgraded to support new features (some customer facing and others internal). Ensure that the Fast.co.uk broadband router has the latest software.
The majority of Fast.co.uk broadband routers will allow you to perform the software update by logging on the Fast.co.uk broadband router and simply clicking a button to perform the update.
If you can’t do this, contact Fast.co.uk and they are able to either do this for you or guide you through how to do it depending on the Fast.co.uk router model you have.
As well as upgrading the software, if you have had the same hardware for a long period, it’s worth speaking to Fast.co.uk to request for a router upgrade.
Is the issue external (at the exchange)?
This is probably the most likely reason for Fast.co.uk broadband performance issue in your home and is more common with broadband connections that are delivered through phone lines.
If you’re not sure if this is relevant in your case, you should contact Fast.co.uk who will be able to run the relevant connection tests to check if there is a fault on the Fast.co.uk internet connection.
Is it due to Fast.co.uk Broadband congestion?
If you’re finding that the Fast.co.uk internet connection speed in your area is slow during certain times e.g weekends and during the evening, it may be because of congestion during peak times.
- What is Broadband Contention Ratio and does Fast.co.uk have contention?
- What does network latency mean?
You should speak to your Fast.co.uk to understand if the service you have subscribed to has a minimum speed or is a contended ‘first come first serve’ service with no minimum speed guaranteed.
Finding a better Service Provider
Re-testing your Fast.co.uk broadband connection
After the issue has been fixed either by yourself or Fast.co.uk, retest your internet connection using at least 2 independent speedtests such as the one here and Ookla internet speedtester to ensure the fault is fixed.
