You pay for a 100 Mbps line, but your download shows 12 MB/s. Nothing is wrong — it’s just two different units.
Bits and bytes
- Mbps (megabits per second, small “b”) is how internet speeds are sold and tested.
- MB/s (megabytes per second, big “B”) is how browsers, Steam and download managers show progress.
- 1 byte = 8 bits, so divide Mbps by 8 to get MB/s.
| Line speed | Maximum download rate | 1 GB file takes about |
|---|---|---|
| 10 Mbps | 1.25 MB/s | 14 minutes |
| 25 Mbps | 3.1 MB/s | 5.5 minutes |
| 50 Mbps | 6.25 MB/s | 2.7 minutes |
| 100 Mbps | 12.5 MB/s | 80 seconds |
| 500 Mbps | 62.5 MB/s | 16 seconds |
| 1 Gbps (1000 Mbps) | 125 MB/s | 8 seconds |
Real downloads are usually about 10–15% slower than the maximum because of network overhead, Wi-Fi and the speed of the server you’re downloading from.
Download time calculator
Data vs speed
On capped LTE or mobile data, what matters is how many gigabytes you use, not how fast. Rough guide: HD video uses about 1–3 GB per hour, 4K up to about 7 GB per hour, and a video call roughly 0.5–1.5 GB per hour. A modern game download can be 50–150 GB.
Want to know your real speed? Run our speed test — switch on Data saver if you’re on mobile data.
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