Top 10 Ways to Deal with a Slow Internet Connection

Sometimes slow internet is the universe’s way of telling you to go play outside and get some fresh air for once. Other times, it is the universe’s cruel joke to destroy your productivity.

Here are 10 ways to troubleshoot, fix or just survive a slow internet connection without going full hulk-mode.

10. Check Your Speeds (and Your Plan)

Sometimes, your internet is slow because you're only paying for slow internet. Contact your provider and find out what plan you have. Then, head on over to Speedtest.net and run a speed test. If the numbers match up to what you're paying for, then your network is working fine and you're just paying for slow internet—and the best way to speed it up will be to upgrade!

9. Troubleshoot Your Hardware

Before you go cursing your internet provider, give your modem and router a quick reset and see if that helps. Check the other computers in your house to see if their internet is slow, too—if the problem only happens on one computer, the problem is that computer, not your router or modem. Run through these troubleshooting steps to see if it's a hardware problem. Then, once you fix your router or modem (or replace it), you'll be browsing speedily once again.

8. Fix Your Wi-Fi Signal

If you're using Wi-Fi, you might find that your router and internet are fine, but your wireless signal is weak, causing a slowdown. In that case, you may need to reposition, tweak, and boost your router with a few tricks – Contact The Computer Guyz if you need help with your wireless signal.

7. Turn Off Bandwidth-Hogging Plugins and Apps

If your hardware seems to be in working order, see if any other programs are hogging the connection. For example, if you're downloading files, regular web browsing is going to be slower. You should also try installing extensions like Ad Block Plus or Flash Block, which will block some of the bandwidth-hogging ads, animations, and videos that can use up your connection. They probably won't solve all your issues, but they can at least help make a slow connection feel more usable.

6. Try a New DNS Server

When you type an address into your browser — like tcgcape.co.za — your computers uses something called DNS to look up and translate that into a computer-friendly IP address. Sometimes, though, the servers your computer uses to look up that information can have issues, or go down entirely. Your best bet would be to try a new DNS server.

5. Optimize Your Web for a Slow Connection

Troubleshooting slow internet can take awhile, and in the meantime you still need to browse. Or maybe you're at a coffee shop or in the airport, and there's nothing you can do about your slow speeds. In that case, it's time to optimize your web for a slower connection: use mobile or HTML versions of your favourite sites and disable images.

4. Work Smart

If you need to get work done on your slow connection, you may have to prioritize tasks differently than if your internet were super fast. So, separate your tasks into bandwidth-heavy and bandwidth-light ones. Get the light ones done when you're on your slow connection, and group all the bandwidth-heavy tasks together so you can do them if and when you get faster access. Similarly, work outside your browser whenever possible—if you're doing basic writing, do it in Microsoft Word or Notepad instead of in your browser. If you plan your work ahead of time, you can at least make the best of a bad situation. 

3. Call Your Internet Provider

If you've gone through all the necessary troubleshooting steps and your internet is still slow, then it's time to call your internet provider and see if the problem is on their end. Remember: don't just assume they've done something wrong. You're much more likely to get good results if you’re polite and friendly.

2. Find a New Provider

If your ISP can't help you (maybe they don't provide the speeds you want, or maybe you're just sick of them), it's time to find a new ISP. We recommend picking up the phone and calling The Computer Guyz, or pop into their offices in Cape Town or Centurion.

1. Use Your Time Productively

If you're lucky, you can get your internet speeds back up to snuff quickly and stress-free. But, if not, you can at least try to put a good spin on it: As long as your work isn't too bandwidth-intensive, slow internet could actually make you more productive. After all, if Facebook takes a minute to load, you're a lot less likely to pop over for a "quick break" (that turns into an hour-long photo-fest) when you're supposed to be working on something for work.