We often forget about the importance of internet connection stability in our efforts to make connections faster, but everything that improves stability also improves your average speed. Maximum speeds of 150 Mbps are fantastic, but useless if they go down to 0.5 Mbps every few seconds unpredictably. Unstable connections can damage the files you send and receive, lose your information, and cause a lot of problems with video conferencing. Use this guide to help you identify any connection instability you might be experiencing and learn about all the quick and affordable ways you can improve it.
Test Your Internet Connection Stability
You need to run some tests on your connection to see what your stability level is to start with. If it's already very stable you don't need to do anything at all!
How to Test Your Connection Stability
Click on this link to the Free Online Internet Stability Test.
Select a server closest to your location in the drop-down menu.
Click the "start" button.
Let the test check your connection stability for 90 seconds.
Understanding your results
Avg Ping - the average time in milliseconds it takes for your router to respond to a signal sent by the server.
Min - the quickest time your router responded to a 'ping'.
Max - the longest time taken to respond to a 'ping'.
Stability - the test's rating of how stable your connection is.
You will also see a graph of your connection response times showing quick responses in blue and slow responses in red. You can also check the dial with more stable connections in green and less stable connections shown in red. For a good stability rating, you are looking for low min and max values, and a small difference between them.
Improving Your Wifi Internet Connection Stability
If you have tested your wifi connection and it's as stable as a three-legged horse, try some of the tips below to improve its reliability.
Switch to Unused Wifi Channels
Wifi routers can broadcast your wifi signal on different 'channels', and are usually programmed to automatically switch to the least used channel for you. Sometimes that doesn't work very well and you might want to try choosing a better channel yourself.
Wifi Analyzer for Android and NetSpot Wifi Analyzer for iOS are convenient phone apps that can scan the wifi channels around your workstation and show you which channels are in use by other wifi networks.
In this screenshot example from Wifi Analyzer, the strongest signal is named "notyours", broadcasting on channel 6, and also covering channels 5 and 7 quite strongly. Unfortunately, it's sharing these channels with interfering signals from "The secret" and "wan". To improve the signal, "notyours" could switch to channel 13 to share less with other signals.
The router owner will need to log into the wifi settings in their wifi router admin portal and change the signal channel setting from 'automatic' to 'manual', and then select channel 13.
Move Closer to Your Router
If cables are not an option and your wifi signal is weak and unreliable, move your workstation closer to the router. Every wall you can remove from between you and the router will have a dramatic effect on your signal quality and internet speeds. Walk around with a phone or laptop checking out the signal strength in different places before choosing where to move your home office to.
Use a Wifi Booster
Wifi boosters, or signal extenders, are small affordable devices you can plug into a power outlet in your home to pick up the signal your router is sending and 'repeat' it to a larger area. Boosters help you create a stronger signal in areas of your home where your original router doesn't reach very well. Boosters are great for large homes, and homes with lots of walls and floors that interfere with your wifi signal.
Improving Your Wired Internet Connection Stability
It is undeniable that cabled connections are faster and more reliable
Use a High-Speed Wired Connection
You might be tired of hearing this from your techy friends, but a cabled connection is always more stable than using your wifi. There are no opportunities for radio interference or walls interrupting your signal. If it's possible and practical wired connections are preferred when working remotely.
If your wired connection is unstable it could be caused by any of these:
Someone or something else is using the bandwidth for an intensive activity like a Windows update which is reducing your speed unpredictably.
Your ethernet cable is old, damaged, or not designed to carry fast enough internet traffic.
There is a tight bend in your cable or it is shut in a door.
Use a Powerline Ethernet Adaptor
Powerline Ethernet Adaptors are small affordable devices you can plug into your home's main power network and your router. The adaptor now uses your home electricity network to send bandwidth and power! To use the new signal all you need to do is plug your computer or laptop into a second adaptor in your home office. All adaptors come in sets of 2 and you can add additional devices to the network by buying more adaptors to add to the network.
Ethernet Adaptors are a fantastic option for people who struggle to get a strong wifi signal around their homes but can't use cables. Adaptors do get some interference from other devices using the power network but are usually much more stable than wifi. They are limited by the age and quality of your power network, but are extremely cheap, easy to set up, and well worth trying!
Wrap Up
Everyone wants speed, but a lot of people forget about the importance of stability. A stable connection will stop you from losing data in your uploads and downloads, stop lag in your video calls, and generally make your internet usage far less frustrating.
So here's a quick refresher on how to improve your internet connection stability:
Test how stable it is.
Use a cable to connect directly to your router if you can.
Move closer to the router if you are using wifi.
Check the wifi channels are clear or move to a better channel.
Extend and strengthen your signal with a wifi booster.
If you can't get a good wifi signal, or get a traditional cabled connection, try using a powerline ethernet adaptor!
If you have cleared up your internet signal and it's stable but still slow try looking at Maximizing Your Internet Connection Speed, or think about upgrading to a faster connection in your home.