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How to Speed Up Downloads: A Guide to Boost Your Download Speed

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Are you trying to download something on your computer, but it’s taking forever?

We understand how frustrating it can be because you’re not alone who has experienced this issue.

All of us experience it at some point.

That’s why we’ve prepared this guide to help you speed up downloads on your device.

A number of reasons contribute to this issue, so we shall try to fix them one by one until your download speed has increased back to its normal level.

Let’s start!

Frequently Asked Questions

Why Are My Downloads So Slow?

There may be a number of reasons at play making your downloads slower than they should be.

Your internet connection may be slow, you may be downloading multiple files, DNS may be causing the issue or even some potential hardware issues.

The list is a long one.

Can I Speed Up Downloads?

Of course, you can.

There are a number of methods to speed up your downloads depending on the underlying issue that may be making them slower, as you’ll see below.

What You’ll Need to Speed Up Downloads

Nothing specific.

You just need to find out the specific issue that may be causing your downloads to be slower, then fix it to speed up your downloads.

How to Speed Up Downloads: Step-by-Step Instructions

As we said above, the list of issues that may make your downloads slower is a long one.

You’ll have to look into them one by one until your download speed has increased, so let’s go.

1. Restart

Sometimes simplest of things give the best results.

A lot of issues that we face with our devices are temporary, and they go away when we restart the device.

So your slow downloads may also be fixed sometimes by simply restarting your computer or smartphone.

Give it a try!

2. Run Troubleshooter

If you’re experiencing the issue on a computer, your system’s network driver may be the culprit.

If that’s the case, you’ll have to run the Windows Network Troubleshooter to fix it.

Just go to Network Settings on your computer, and from there launch the Network Troubleshooter.

Alternatively, you can also launch it directly by searching for “Network Troubleshooter” in the Windows search bar.

Once it’s launched, follow the steps it suggests in the Wizard to speed up your downloads.

3. Check Your Network Cable

This one applies to users who are using a wired high-speed internet connection.

It’s possible to experience slower-than-usual download speeds if your network cable is not connected properly.

So, perform a line test on it by unplugging and replugging it.

Once you’ve replugged the cable, check your download speed again to see if it is fixed or not.

4. Using A Custom DNS Server

This is a bit of an advanced thing.

The Domain Name System (DNS) is responsible for decoding the website addresses that you fire from your web browser into IP addresses of servers where your desired website has its content stored.

Sometimes, if the DNS server is slow to resolve a website URL into its IP address, the whole process of accessing the content stored in the server and downloading it may become slower than usual.

Normally, ISPs set your router or modem to access their preferred DNS servers. But you can change it to some other DNS of your choice, and sometimes it can work to boost your download speed. Here’s how to do that:

  1. Change your DNS on Windows
  2. Change your DNS on macOS

Following the procedures explained in the links above will switch your DNS to Google’s Public DNS, which should fix the issue of slow downloading if it is because of a slow DNS server.

5. Disconnect Other Devices

If you’re using a Wi-Fi connection to connect to the internet, it’s possible that any other device connected to the same router is consuming too much bandwidth, thus making downloads slower for you.

If it’s your home router and not a public one, try disconnecting some devices from the network and see if that solves the problem.

6. Disable or Disconnect Apps That Are Not in Use

Nowadays most apps and programs rely on the internet for one or more functions.

And sometimes, those functions start consuming more of your bandwidth than they actually need, thus making less of it available for other programs.

To check if that’s what is causing your downloads to be slower, disable some apps you’re not using right now and see if that solves the problem.

7. Avoid Downloading Multiple Files

If you’re downloading multiple files at once, that may also be the culprit behind your slow downloads.

This is especially true when you’re downloading large files, like YouTube videos (downloading from YouTube takes time because the company wants to dissuade unauthorized 3rd party services from offering this feature).

So if you are downloading multiple files at once, try downloading one file at a time, and see if that makes your download speed return to normal.

8. Relocate Your Router

If you’re using a wireless internet connection or even a high-speed fiber line connection that delivers internet from your router to your computer over Wi-Fi, it’s possible that nearby objects may be interfering with your signal and causing the issue of slower downloads.

Or simply, your router may be too far from your computer.

Try changing the location of your router and see if that fixes the issue.

9. Replace Your Router/Modem

Sometimes hardware issues like a faulty router or modem can also make your network terribly slower.

Try switching to a different modem or router and see if you get the full download speed that you expect.

And if that’s the case, then it’s time to switch your router/modem permanently.

10. Scan for viruses

There’s nothing that a virus can’t do on your computer.

Limiting your download speed is just one of them, so if none of the above has been able to fix your problem then you should probably try to scan your computer for viruses.

Just start your antivirus program, and give your PC a quick scan (or even a full scan, if you have the time) while trying to download something.

If there’s a virus that is consuming your network resources, the antivirus will recognize it and quarantine it.

11. Disable Automatic Windows/macOS Updates

Windows and macOS update files are large system files that are downloaded over the internet to update your version of Windows/macOS and give you a better and more stable PC experience.

However, sometimes these files consume too much of your bandwidth, thus making your internet connection slower for other tasks.

Try disabling automatic Windows/macOS updates on your computer, and see if your download speeds increase.

Here’s how to do that:

12. Use a Download Manager Program

Download managers like BitComet, uGet, and JDownloader are designed for the very purpose of boosting download speeds.

They maximize the consumption of your network resources for the purpose of downloads and also provide a number of features like the ability to pause and resume downloads to aid in downloading large files.

You can use them to download anything faster.

13. Talk to your ISP

Finally, if nothing works then there’s no option except for speaking with your Internet Service Provider.

Because in that case, the issue is more likely on your ISP’s side than yours.

So speak to their customer support and see if they can refresh your network to give you better downloading speed.

Similar Tutorials to Check Out

  • How to Run a Pingdom Speed Test: If you want to test whether your website is fast or slow, there can be no better solution than Pingdom. It can test the accessibility of your site from 70 different locations, and help you make sure that your site is easily accessible to everyone across the globe. This tutorial explains how can you run a Pingdom speed test.
  • How to Speed Up WordPress: If your website is slow, and if it’s based on WordPress, this tutorial can come in quite handy. It explains various methods to speed up a WordPress site.
  • How to Optimize Images for WordPress: Images can also significantly reduce the loading speed of a webpage if they are not optimized properly, so this tutorial explains how to optimize images for your WordPress site to make it load faster.

Wrapping Up

Slow download speeds can be among the worst and most irritating experiences for anyone.

We hope our suggestions given above can fix this problem for you, so try them and let us know which one worked for you in the comments.

Also, if this guide solved the issue for you, share it on your social media because there’s no better deed than sharing helpful content! 😉

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