The same principle applies to the router and all your wired devices. If you have a modem with a 2.5G Multi-Gig Ethernet port, you get the full 1,000 Mbps (theoretically). If you have a modem with a Gigabit Ethernet port, the most you can get out of the plan is around 940 Mbps.

Let’s use Spectrum’s Gigabit plan as an example, which has download speeds of up to 1,000 Mbps.

They need to complement each other, or else one bottlenecks the other. You can’t make Ethernet components run faster than their intended design, but you can get better hardware and cables to speed up your wired network.Īs we mentioned earlier, your home network speed depends on two factors: The Ethernet ports you use and the connected Ethernet cables. Don’t expect to use a CAT 6a cable and get a 10 Gbps connection out of a Gigabit Ethernet port.

The bottom line here is to be wary about the Ethernet ports you have and how they affect your connections to other devices and the internet. However, you should use a USB-A 3.x or USB-C 3.x port, as they support 5,000 Mbps (5 Gbps) or 10,000 Mbps (10 Gbps), depending on the port’s configuration. The older USB-A 2.0 port supports up to 480 Mbps, which is better than a Fast Ethernet connection. If you have an older PC with a Fast Ethernet port, you can work around its limitation by purchasing a USB-to-Ethernet adapter that supports gigabit speeds. A CAT 6a cable and newer is best for Multi-Gig Ethernet ports. Plug that same cable into a 2.5 Gbps Ethernet port, and you still get around 940 Mbps-the cable is now your only bottleneck. Plug a CAT 6 cable into a Gigabit Ethernet port and chances are the most you get is 940 Mbps. But Ethernet ports and cables play hand-in-hand. We use 6% here to give you an idea of real-world speeds although the percentage changes based on the protocol used to transfer your data. You’ll probably never see the port’s maximum speed due to network overhead, which is bandwidth used to carry information about the payload (your data) traveling down the line.

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