Bandwidth Calculator

What’s the right home internet speed for you?

Internet speed is measured by bandwidth consumption at a specific point in time, NOT over a period of time like cell phone providers.

Our goal at Btel is to ensure you have a wonderful Internet experience, so we created this handy tool to give you the power to decide what Internet speed best fits your needs.

How to use the bandwidth calculator

1
In the blue sections below, click the + button to add how many users or devices you use for each activity.
2
When you’re finished, the meter to the left will tell you the bandwidth you require for your devices and activities.
0 Mbps
  • 4k TVs
    Per TV - +

    Internet connected TV Streaming Video with Ultra HD or 4K quality

    4K TV's or Ultra High Definition TV sets offer the highest resolution (3840 x 2160) in the the retail Internet connected TV consumer space. 4K TV content is relatively new to the market and requires a substantial amount of bandwidth to achieve the required quality set by manufacturers. As video compression technology improves, the bandwidth allocation required may improve.

  • Smart TVs
    Per TV - +

    Internet connected TV Streaming Video 1080p or below HD quality

    Smart TV's are High Definition TV sets with 1080p resolution that are connected to the Internet. Smart TV's do not require as much bandwidth for streaming video as 4K TV's and the large availability of content has made this technology the most common in households today.

  • Security Cameras
    Per Camera - +

    Nest, Ring Pro

    WIFI connected security cameras come in several different varieties depending on quantity, resolution and frames per second. Therefore, the expectation for btel is that you have a quality experience when viewing your cameras because we value your safety and security, thus want to ensure our customers are able to see what they want, when they want.

  • Smart Speakers
    Per Device - +

    Amazon Alexa, Echo, Apple Home Pod, Google Home

    Voice controlled speakers are becoming increasingly popular in homes. These can be a little tricky due to far end server response times when fetching answers to your questions. The important thing to know here is that these speakers have functionality and technology built in, so they're always prepared to respond. Also consider what your doing with the speaker, playing music or listening to podcasts.

  • Streaming HD Video
    Per Stream - +

    Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, Vudu, YouTube, Sling TV

    Streaming HD video is not to be confused with 4K or Smart TV sets. What we mean here is streaming video on Smartphones or Tablets. For instance, how many family members are watching a show, YouTube, favorite playback of an event, church, etc. These are all using your Internet connection and contribute to the requirement.

  • Web Browsing
    Per Device - +

    News, banking, Surfing, shopping

    Web browsing is a rather common function when on the Internet, so the important thing to consider here is that websites require bandwidth; that's a no brainer, right? Well, consider the video piece. Nearly every website these days has some sort of video playing on the side, as the attention getter or simply the reason you're there. Many think of browsing as an incidental activity, but there is certainly a quality experience component there.

  • Social Media
    Per User - +

    Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, Snapchat, LinkedIn

    Social Media draws millions together at any given time. Historically, social media was about text and pictures; however, today, social media has become the platform meca for video sharing. Companies, friends, family members and everything in between are trying make impressions by sharing video which requires more and more bandwidth to ensure a quality, flawless experience.

  • Streaming Music
    Per User - +

    Pandora, Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Prime

    Streaming music is probably one of the more popular activities done over the Internet today given the options and flexibility. There isn't a whole lot of depth here, other than we want to ensure our customers music isn't compromised because of multiple devices streaming video or doing other things simultaneously.

  • Work From Home
    Per User - +

    File downloading, cloud storage upload/download, screen sharing, video conferencing

    Working from home is important! We could stop there, but we feel it's important to note that you now have the ability to do everything from home that you can do from the office with a fiber connection. We want you to have an even better experience than you would being at the office while sharing files, exchanging videos or pictures, video conferencing and using any and all of your systems without a hitch.

  • Online Gaming
    Per User - +

    Internet gaming (Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo, Computer)

    Gamers know they need a solid Internet connection, but mom, dad and grandparents may not understand just how important it is all the time. To put it simply, you need to have a better connection than your opponent to ensure you have the competitive edge. Gaming requires quite a bit of bandwidth to not only play, but to also download new games. 25 Mbps may be a little conservative, but we will let you decide whether you need more depending on whether you're winning or losing.

**Allocations are based on average consumption for common Internet functions. Specific usage may vary depending on the number of devices, device health, consumer behavior and other unique situations within the home or business.**