Technology

Mapped: The Fastest (and Slowest) Internet Speeds in the World

Published

1 year ago

September 29, 2021

Carmen Ang

worlds fastest and slowest internet speeds

Mapped: The World’s Fastest (and Slowest) Internet Speeds

How quickly did this page load for you?

The answer depends on the device you’re using, and where in the world you’re located. Average internet speeds vary wildly from country to country.

Which countries have the fastest internet connection? Using data from the Cable.co.uk, this map ranks the fastest (and slowest) internet speeds worldwide by comparing the fixed broadband speeds of over 200 countries.

What Factors Affect Internet Speed?

Before diving in, it’s important to understand the key factors that impact a country’s internet speed. Generally speaking, internet speed depends on:

Infrastructure or the type of cabling (copper or fiber-optic) that a country’s utilizing to support their internet service. Typically, the newer the infrastructure, the faster the connection.
Proximity/connection to submarine cables is important, as these massive undersea fiber-optic cables transmit about 97% of the world’s communication data.
The size of a country, since landmass affects how much it costs to upgrade infrastructure. The smaller the country, the cheaper it is to upgrade cabling.
Investment makes a difference, or how much a country’s government prioritizes internet accessibility.

Of course, other factors may influence a country’s internet speed too, such as government regulation and intentional bandwidth throttling, which is the case in countries like Turkmenistan.

Ranked: Fixed Broadband Speeds

To measure fixed broadband speeds across the globe, Cable.co.uk used more than 1.1 billion speed tests, sourced from over 200 countries.

The region with the fastest connection is Jersey, which is one of the islands that make up the British Isles. It has an average download speed of 274.27 mbps—almost 9x the overall average.

Rank	Country	Mean download speed (Mbps)
1	🇯🇪 Jersey	274.27
2	🇱🇮 Liechtenstein	211.26
3	🇮🇸 Iceland	191.83
4	🇦🇩 Andorra	164.66
5	🇬🇮 Gibraltar	151.34
6	🇲🇨 Monaco	144.29
7	🇲🇴 Macao SAR	128.56
8	🇱🇺 Luxembourg	107.94
9	🇳🇱 Netherlands	107.3
10	🇭🇺 Hungary	104.07
11	🇸🇬 Singapore	97.61
12	🇧🇲 Bermuda	96.54
13	🇯🇵 Japan	96.36
14	🇺🇸 United States	92.42
15	🇭🇰 Hong Kong SAR	91.04
16	🇪🇸 Spain	89.59
17	🇸🇪 Sweden	88.98
18	🇳🇴 Norway	88.67
19	🇫🇷 France	85.96
20	🇳🇿 New Zealand	85.95
21	🇲🇹 Malta	85.2
22	🇪🇪 Estonia	84.72
23	🇦🇽 Aland Islands	81.31
24	🇨🇦 Canada	79.96
25	🇧🇪 Belgium	78.46
26	🇻🇦 Vatican City	73.49
27	🇰🇾 Cayman Islands	71.47
28	🇦🇼 Aruba	70.66
29	🇷🇴 Romania	67.4
30	🇸🇮 Slovenia	67.2
31	🇵🇱 Poland	63.84
32	🇧🇬 Bulgaria	63.41
33	🇱🇻 Latvia	63.28
34	🇵🇹 Portugal	63.02
35	🇰🇷 Republic of Korea	61.72
36	🇩🇪 Germany	60.55
37	🇱🇹 Republic of Lithuania	56.17
38	🇧🇧 Barbados	55.92
39	🇫🇮 Finland	55.08
40	🇸🇰 Slovak Republic	54.92
41	🇹🇭 Thailand	53.95
42	🇮🇲 Isle of Man	52.1
43	🇬🇧 United Kingdom	51.48
44	🇮🇪 Ireland	51.41
45	🇨🇭 Switzerland	50.83
46	🇭🇷 Croatia	49.77
47	🇩🇰 Denmark	49.24
48	🇵🇲 Saint Pierre and Miquelon	47.92
49	🇹🇼 Taiwan	46.43
50	🇷🇪 Réunion	43.62
51	🇲🇾 Malaysia	42.83
52	🇬🇱 Greenland	41.56
53	🇸🇲 San Marino	40.55
54	🇵🇷 Puerto Rico	40.52
55	🇦🇺 Australia	40.5
56	🇲🇫 Saint Martin	40.19
57	🇲🇪 Montenegro	40.14
58	🇧🇸 Bahamas	39.71
59	🇦🇹 Austria	37.99
60	🇨🇿 Czechia	37.23
61	🇮🇹 Italy	36.69
62	🇷🇸 Serbia	36.59
63	🇲🇩 Republic of Moldova	36.47
64	🇹🇨 Turks and Caicos Islands	36.09
65	🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago	35.81
66	🇷🇺 Russian Federation	35.73
67	🇮🇱 Israel	34.97
68	🇧🇷 Brazil	33.34
69	🇳🇨 New Caledonia	31.79
70	🇧🇦 Bosnia and Herzegovina	31.72
71	🇬🇬 Guernsey	31.2
72	🇵🇦 Panama	30.58
73	🇦🇪 United Arab Emirates	29.9
74	🇬🇷 Greece	29.76
75	🇻🇮 Virgin Islands, U.S.	29.34
76	🇨🇾 Cyprus	28.3
77	🇺🇦 Ukraine	25.26
78	🇶🇦 Qatar	24.16
79	🇧🇿 Belize	23.12
80	🇮🇳 India	22.53
81	🇽🇰 Kosovo	22.21
82	🇺🇾 Uruguay	21.73
83	🇫🇴 Faroe Islands	21.59
84	🇬🇵 Guadeloupe	21.32
85	🇯🇲 Jamaica	20.96
86	🇬🇺 Guam	20.76
87	🇻🇳 Vietnam	20.66
88	🇬🇩 Grenada	20.49
89	🇨🇼 Curaçao	20.18
90	🇿🇦 South Africa	19.94
91	🇲🇶 Martinique	19.88
92	🇧🇾 Belarus	19.86
93	🇧🇶 Bonaire, Saint Eustatius and Saba	19.6
94	🇵🇾 Paraguay	19.41
95	🇻🇬 Virgin Islands, British	19.4
96	🇦🇱 Albania	19.36
97	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	19.02
98	🇲🇽 Mexico	18.83
99	🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia	18.1
100	🇰🇼 Kuwait	18.06
101	🇦🇲 Armenia	18.05
102	🇵🇭 Philippines	16.84
103	🇴🇲 Oman	16.73
104	🇧🇭 Bahrain	16.37
105	🇲🇬 Madagascar	16.28
106	🇧🇳 Brunei	15.79
107	🇲🇰 North Macedonia	15.38
108	🇯🇴 Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan	15.25
109	🇱🇨 Saint Lucia	15.02
110	🇲🇳 Mongolia	14.94
111	🇻🇨 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	14.32
112	🇬🇪 Georgia	13.83
113	🇨🇱 Chile	13.76
114	🇲🇵 Northern Mariana Islands	13.15
115	🇨🇴 Colombia	13.13
116	🇰🇳 Saint Kitts and Nevis	12.96
117	🇩🇲 Dominica	12.41
118	🇧🇱 Saint Barthélemy	12.25
119	🇭🇹 Haiti	12.12
120	🇨🇬 Republic of the Congo	12.07
121	🇸🇨 Seychelles	12.04
122	🇩🇴 Dominican Republic	11.87
123	🇦🇸 American Samoa	11.76
124	🇹🇷 Turkey	11.58
125	🇵🇪 Peru	11.35
126	🇰🇪 Kenya	11.27
127	🇬🇫 French Guiana	10.99
128	🇧🇫 Burkina Faso	10.73
129	🇲🇦 Morocco	10.33
130	🇪🇨 Ecuador	10.25
131	🇸🇻 El Salvador	9.95
132	🇱🇰 Sri Lanka	9.95
133	🇬🇹 Guatemala	9.85
134	🇳🇮 Nicaragua	9.75
135	🇮🇩 Indonesia	9.58
136	🇨🇮 Cote D'Ivoire	9.54
137	🇫🇯 Fiji	9.4
138	🇬🇾 Guyana	9.26
139	🇬🇭 Ghana	9.23
140	🇦🇮 Anguilla	9
141	🇦🇬 Antigua and Barbuda	8.69
142	🇳🇬 Nigeria	8.68
143	🇦🇷 Argentina	8.68
144	🇹🇿 United Republic of Tanzania	8.6
145	🇲🇺 Mauritius	8.53
146	🇺🇬 Uganda	8.52
147	🇰🇭 Cambodia	8.49
148	🇱🇸 Lesotho	8.46
149	🇨🇻 Cape Verde	7.94
150	🇿🇼 Zimbabwe	7.92
151	🇾🇹 Mayotte	7.7
152	🇵🇫 French Polynesia	7.67
153	🇹🇳 Tunisia	7.46
154	🇲🇻 Maldives	7.45
155	🇰🇬 Kyrgyzstan	7.44
156	🇸🇷 Suriname	7.44
157	🇧🇴 Bolivia	7.36
158	🇲🇿 Mozambique	7.17
159	🇭🇳 Honduras	7.17
160	🇮🇷 Iran	7.05
161	🇸🇳 Senegal	7.02
162	🇪🇬 Egypt	6.94
163	🇳🇵 Nepal	6.84
164	🇼🇸 Samoa	6.8
165	🇲🇭 Marshall Islands	6.71
166	🇺🇿 Uzbekistan	6.64
167	🇦🇿 Azerbaijan	6.63
168	🇧🇹 Bhutan	6.44
169	🇷🇼 Rwanda	6.29
170	🇸🇽 Sint Maarten	6.15
171	🇱🇦 Lao People's Democratic Republic	5.91
172	🇦🇴 Angola	5.88
173	🇰🇿 Kazakhstan	5.83
174	🇱🇧 Lebanon	5.67
175	🇮🇶 Iraq	5.58
176	🇿🇲 Zambia	5.48
177	🇸🇧 Solomon Islands	5.33
178	🇱🇷 Liberia	5.23
179	🇵🇬 Papua New Guinea	5.1
180	🇬🇦 Gabon	4.99
181	🇲🇼 Malawi	4.96
182	🇵🇼 Palau	4.84
183	🇲🇱 Mali	4.72
184	🇲🇲 Myanmar	4.58
185	🇳🇦 Namibia	4.42
186	🇰🇲 Comoros	3.99
187	🇸🇿 Eswatini	3.73
188	🇱🇾 Libya	3.73
189	🇧🇼 Botswana	3.65
190	🇵🇸 Palestine	3.65
191	🇨🇩 DR Congo	3.63
192	🇹🇬 Togo	3.54
193	🇳🇪 Niger	3.23
194	🇩🇿 Algeria	3.08
195	🇨🇲 Cameroon	3.04
196	🇨🇺 Cuba	2.92
197	🇧🇩 Bangladesh	2.9
198	🇻🇺 Vanuatu	2.9
199	🇵🇰 Pakistan	2.82
200	🇧🇮 Burundi	2.82
201	🇻🇪 Venezuela	2.62
202	🇧🇯 Benin	2.59
203	🇲🇷 Mauritania	2.54
204	🇸🇹 São Tomé and Príncipe	2.43
205	🇪🇷 Eritrea	2.41
206	🇬🇳 Guinea	2.39
207	🇹🇩 Chad	2.39
208	🇸🇱 Sierra Leone	2.19
209	🇨🇳 China	2.06
210	🇬🇲 Gambia	2.04
211	🇹🇯 Tajikistan	1.82
212	🇸🇩 Sudan	1.8
213	🇸🇾 Syrian Arab Republic	1.67
214	🇫🇲 Federated States of Micronesia	1.63
215	🇸🇴 Somalia	1.59
216	🇩🇯 Djibouti	1.46
217	🇦🇫 Afghanistan	1.41
218	🇸🇸 South Sudan	1.4
219	🇹🇱 Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste	1.33
220	🇬🇶 Equatorial Guinea	1.3
221	🇬🇼 Guinea-Bissau	1.24
222	🇪🇹 Ethiopia	1.2
223	🇾🇪 Yemen	0.68
224	🇹🇲 Turkmenistan	0.5

Infrastructure is a major reason behind Jersey’s speedy internet. It’s the first jurisdiction in the world to upgrade its entire system to pure fibre (FTTP). But the region’s size also plays a factor, since its landmass and population size are both relatively small compared to the rest of the world.

Second on the list is another small region, Liechtenstein, with an average download speed of 211.26 mbps. Liechtenstein is one of the richest countries in the world per capita, and its government has invested heavily in its telecommunications infrastructure, aiming to be fully fibre optic by 2022.

Like Jersey, Liechtenstein also has a relatively small population. At the time of this article’s publication, the region is home to approximately 38,000 people. In fact, it’s worth noting that of the top ten regions, only two have populations over one million—the Netherlands, and Hungary.

At the opposite end of the spectrum, Turkmenistan has the slowest fixed broadband, with a speed of 0.5 mbps. As mentioned above, this is largely because of government regulation and intervention.

The Future is 5G

Innovation and new technologies are changing the digital landscape, and things like 5G networks are becoming more mainstream across the globe.

Because of the rapidly changing nature of this industry, the data behind this ranking is updated monthly to provide the latest look at internet speeds across the globe.

This means the bar is gradually raising when it comes to internet speed, as faster, stronger internet connections become the norm. And countries that aren’t equipped to handle these souped-up networks will lag behind even further.

Related Topics:infrastructure 5g 5G wireless 5G network submarine cables internet speed fixed broadband

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And because of this, it’s easy to assume they’re in direct competition with each other, fiercely battling for a bigger piece of the “Big Tech” pie. But while there is certainly competition between the world’s tech giants, it’s a lot less drastic than you might imagine.

This is apparent when you look into their various revenue streams, and this series of graphics by Truman Du provides a revenue breakdown of Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, and Microsoft.

How Big Tech Companies Generate Revenue

So how does each big tech firm make money? Let’s explore using data from each company’s June 2022 quarterly income statements.

Alphabet

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In Q2 2022, about 72% of Alphabet’s revenue came from search advertising. This makes sense considering Google and YouTube get a lot of eyeballs. Google dominates the search market—about 90% of all internet searches are done on Google platforms.

Amazon

breakdown of amazon's revenue streams and profit

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Perhaps unsurprisingly, Amazon’s biggest revenue driver is e-commerce. However, as the graphic above shows, the costs of e-commerce are so steep, that it actually reported a net loss in Q2 2022.

As it often is, Amazon Web Services (AWS) was the company’s main profit-earner this quarter.

Apple

breakdown of Apple's revenue streams and profit

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Apple’s biggest revenue driver is consumer electronics sales, particularly from the iPhone which accounts for nearly half of overall revenue. iPhones are particularly popular in the U.S., where they make up around 50% of smartphone sales across the country.

Besides devices, services like Apple Music, Apple Pay, and Apple TV+ also generate revenue for the company. But in Q2 2022, Apple’s services branch accounted for only 24% of the company’s overall revenue.

Microsoft

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Microsoft has a fairly even split between its various revenue sources, but similarly to Amazon its biggest revenue driver is its cloud services platform, Azure.

After AWS, Azure is the second largest cloud server in the world, capturing 21% of the global cloud infrastructure market.

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Over the last three decades, the internet has grown at a mind-bending pace.

In 1993, there were fewer than 200 websites available on the World Wide Web. Fast forward to 2022, and that figure has grown to 2 billion.

This animated graphic by James Eagle provides a historical look at the evolution of the internet, showing the most popular websites over the years from 1993 to 2022.

The 90s to Early 2000s: Dial-Up Internet

It was possible to go on the proto-internet as early as the 1970s, but the more user-centric and widely accessible version we think of today didn’t really materialize until the early 1990s using dial-up modems.

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AOL held its top spot as the most visited website for nearly a decade. By June 2000, the online portal was getting over 400 million monthly visits. For context, there were about 413 million internet users around the world at that time.

Rank	Website	Monthly Visits (May 2000)
1	AOL	400,891,812
2	Yahoo	387,573,587
3	MSN	354,239,803
4	eBay	116,101,785
5	Lycos	116,064,930

But when broadband internet hit the market and made dial-up obsolete, AOL lost its footing, and a new website took the top spot—Yahoo.

The Mid 2000s: Yahoo vs. Google

Founded in 1994, Yahoo started off as a web directory that was originally called “Jerry and David’s Guide to the World Wide Web.”

When the company started to pick up steam, its name changed to Yahoo, which became a backronym that stands for “Yet Another Hierarchical Officious Oracle.”

Yahoo grew fast and by the early 2000s, it became the most popular website on the internet. It held its top spot for several years—by April 2004, Yahoo was receiving 5.6 billion monthly visits.

Rank	Website	Monthly Visits (April 2004)
1	Yahoo	5,658,032,268
2	MSN	1,838,700,057
3	Google	1,318,276,780
4	AOL	905,009,947
5	eBay	805,474,705

But Google was close on its heels. Founded in 1998, Google started out as a simpler and more efficient search engine, and the website quickly gained traction.

Funny enough, Google was actually Yahoo’s default search engine in the early 2000s until Yahoo dropped Google so it could use its own search engine technology in 2004.

For the next few years, Google and Yahoo competed fiercely, and both names took turns at the top of the most popular websites list. Then, in the 2010s, Yahoo’s trajectory started to head south after a series of missed opportunities and unsuccessful moves.

This cemented Google’s place at the top, and the website is still the most popular website as of January 2022.

The Late 2000s, Early 2010s: Social Media Enters the Chat

While Google has held its spot at the top for nearly two decades, it’s worth highlighting the emergence of social media platforms like YouTube and Facebook.

YouTube and Facebook certainly weren’t the first social media platforms to gain traction. MySpace had a successful run back in 2007—at one point, it was the third most popular website on the World Wide Web.

Rank	Website	Monthly Visits (Jan 2007)
1	Google	7,349,521,929
2	Yahoo	5,169,762,311
3	MySpace	1,276,515,128
4	MSN	1,259,467,102
5	eBay	957,928,554

But YouTube and Facebook marked a new era for social media platforms, partly because of their impeccable timing. Both platforms entered the scene around the same time that smartphone innovations were turning the mobile phone industry on its head. The iPhone’s design, and the introduction of the App store in 2008, made it easier than ever to access the internet via your mobile device.

As of January 2022, YouTube and Facebook are still the second and third most visited websites on the internet.

The 2020s: Google is Now Synonymous With the Internet

Google is the leading search engine by far, making up about 90% of all web, mobile, and in-app searches.

What will the most popular websites be in a few years? Will Google continue to hold the top spot? There are no signs of the internet giant slowing down anytime soon, but if history has taught us anything, it’s that things change. And no one should get too comfortable at the top.