In this day and age, working from home is becoming more and more common. People are moving away from the typical office cubicle setting and opting to set up their own office at home. Computer and tablet sales have skyrocketed. Internet speeds have been upgraded in households worldwide to handle the increased daily online activity.
Ten Mbps is a good enough speed to work from home. This speed is enough speed for Zoom calls, emails, and research. The internet speed you need depends on the type of work you do. Most people working from home can handle necessary functions with an internet speed of 10 Mbps.
Many have decided that working from home is the best thing for them. At home, you can enjoy all of your creature comforts without the stressful environment. One big question is, what speed do you need to successfully work from home? Read on to determine what you need to use the internet for and if 10 Mbps is fast enough for you.
Will 10 Mbps Be Enough for Working from Home?
Yes, you should be able to successfully work from home on 10 Mbps. Most people who work from home are office workers like clerks, accountants, and analysts. Ten Mbps is enough speed for tasks that are completed on a regular day in the office. To sum up, the speeds needed for each task, see the chart below.
| Work from Home Online Task | Necessary Internet Speed |
| Video chat/conference calls | 1-4 Mbps |
| Research and web browsing | 1-5 Mbps |
| Sending/receiving emails | 1-4 Mbps |
| File sharing | 5-10 Mbps |
The figures in the chart are based on the speed needed per person using a single device. When using multiple devices, your speed will decrease. The same goes for if you try to stream content while someone else is gaming.
Faster internet speeds will get you better quality videos and images but are not needed for daily work tasks. Ten Mbps is plenty fast enough to get your work completed and sent.
What Online Activities Will Your Work Include?
Every job in the modern age requires some form of internet communication. The different forms of this you likely use are video chat and conferences, research, emails, and sharing files with your coworkers or superiors.
Each of these activities has a minimum internet speed to get the most out of their features. As shown in the table above, 10 Mbps should be enough to get your job done, provided you are the only one using the internet during the day.
Video Chat and Conferences
There are so many professionals working from home that utilize the video chat option. The recommended internet speed for video chatting and conferencing from home is 1 to 4 Mbps per person. 10 Mbps should be plenty regardless of the number of users.
- Teachers use video conferences to communicate with their students and teach lessons.
- Doctors use it to get patient information instead of having an in-person appointment.
- News broadcasters have even reported from their own homes.
Research and Web Browsing
Everyone these days does some form of web browsing. Online shopping has become more popular, research for school work has become a daily task, and social media is a time filler for most people. Grocery shopping online is the new craze, as well.
The internet speed that you need depends on the type of browsing you plan on doing most. If you plan on browsing social media, news sites, or searching for information, you will need at least 5 Mbps for a good connection. If you are more into watching videos and playing games, you will need 10 Mbps.
If you work from home, chances are you have to browse the web for one thing or another throughout the workday.
Emails
An email is a tool that everyone needs, especially while working from home online. This form of communication gives your words a more formal look and shows professionalism. When working with clients and colleagues, you will need to check and send emails throughout the day.
Email is also a way to send videos and photos, documents, and links to those you are working with. The size of your email affects the speed of your internet. If you do not have enough Mbps, it causes your progress to become slower.
For typical emails, you can work off of about 1 Mbps. Emails typically take the least amount of internet speed.
Sharing Files
Many jobs require you to share files with clients and colleagues. This can be via emails, as mentioned above, or in file-sharing programs like google drive, one drive, or dropbox.
The size of the files will affect your internet speed.
- Larger files and attachments will slow down the sending speed but will eventually go through with 10 Mbps
- Smaller files will be sent and opened with no problem.
- 10 Mbps is enough for sending and downloading average size files.
Ten Mbps will still work for larger files, just at a slower pace.
How Can You Improve Your Internet’s Speed?
If you are working from home and you find that your internet is not working fast enough, it can be extremely frustrating. You may lose connection during an important conference call or miss deadlines due to slow speeds.
There are three things to try in order to improve your internet speed:
Upgrade Your Hardware
It may be that your modem and router are simply outdated and cannot handle what you need it to do. Check your modem and router to make sure they support your necessary internet speed. If one of those items does not, you will need to replace it with one that does.
Even if it should be able to handle the speeds, check the age of your hardware. Older hardware may simply be worn from long use. It may be time to upgrade or at least get something newer.
Troubleshoot Common Issues
There are several common issues that may be the source of your slow internet. You will want to look into these things first before spending money on better equipment.
10 Mbps is only fast enough if you are the only person online working. Your internet speeds will slow down if others are using the internet at the same time or if you have games or streaming services running simultaneously. If you like to stream music or podcasts while you work, take this into consideration.
Running too much in the background bogs down your internet. One way to handle this is to reset your router periodically. Cutting the whole system off and letting it rest for a minute will get rid of anything your internet was running of which you were unaware.
It is also important to get good security software. Viruses and bugs will slow your internet and computer down and may lead to more serious issues, like a security breach.
Look into a Different Internet Service Provider
Have you determined that you need a faster internet package? If your current provider does not have faster options, maybe it is time to look into other providers. A fiber internet service will yield the fastest speed. There is also cable, DSL, and satellite, with satellite being the slowest.
What internet service providers you have access to will depend on your location. It is worth checking into, but be aware that this fix may be limited by geography.
Conclusion
There are many options for internet service providers out there. Find one in your area that has a price range you can afford, and then look into their package options. Which one best suits your internet needs? What speed will work best for your household? Is your home office running on a different internet service account?
Most professionals who work from home have found that 10 Mbps is plenty fast enough to get their daily work completed and submitted.
Hamid Tahir is a Mechatronics Engineer and founder of WFH Overload. He is currently working from home and is dedicated to the continuous improvement of his home office setup. Hamid has extensive experience setting up workspaces and dealing with the related tech. He hopes to share his knowledge to help you create the most productive and comfortable work from home setup. Read More