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Survey: Just 36% of US know their broadband speed

June 25, 2021

A survey from recommendation site Allconnect reveals a gap in Internet knowledge among several key groups in the US, and some dissatisfaction among those same groups as well. Older Americans made up one of the largest percentages of people who didn’t know their Internet speed but were unsatisfied with what they had.

The survey, conducted on Allconnect’s behalf by YouGov, revealed that females (with 47 per cent unaware of their speed vs 25 per cent of males), older Americans (45 per cent of those 55+ vs 34 per cent of 35-54-year-olds and 26 per cent of 18-34-year-olds) and those in lower-income households (36 per cent of those with a household income under $40,000 vs 30 per cent of those in households earning $80,000 or more) were less likely to know their Internet speed compared with males and households earning at least $80,000. These groups were more likely to signal dissatisfaction with the speeds they received than their counterparts and less likely to know the speeds they need for their online activities.

Additional findings include:

  • 36 per cent of Americans don’t know their home Internet speed
  • Only 19 per cent of those who did not know their speeds, however, seemed dissatisfied with their service
  • 45 per cent of people aged 55+ do not know their Internet speed and 23 per cent of those were unhappy with the speeds they receive (vs. 17 per cent of those 35-54 and 18 per cent of those 18-34).
  • Despite 47 per cent of females reporting they didn’t know their Internet speed, only 21 per cent are dissatisfied with their service.
  • 36 per cent of those in low-income households (making under $40,000) don’t know their Internet speed and:
  • Only 20 per cent of this group displays dissatisfaction about the speeds they receive.
  • Of households making $80,000 or more, the percentage unaware of their Internet speed is only 30 per cent, and they tend to be more satisfied than low-income households (with 74 per cent indicating satisfaction vs. 64 per cent of those in households earning under $40,000)
  • 73 per cent of Americans don’t know how much Internet speed they need
  • 83 per cent of women say they don’t know how much Internet they need versus only 62 per cent of men
  • 74 per cent of women aged 18-34 don’t know what they need versus only 40 per cent of men the same age
  • 85 per cent of those aged 55+ do not know how much Internet they need
  • 90 per cent of women age 55+ don’t know what they need; 80 per cent of men the same age
  • 76 per cent of low-income households do not know how much Internet speed they need

“Internet speed and satisfaction are closely tied together. Many times, most people only care if their Internet service is reliable, not the specific speeds. These groups that do not know their speeds and are unsatisfied, however, are more vulnerable. Knowledge around Internet speeds received and needed allows people to make informed purchasing decisions and get visibility into the reliability of the providers they have chosen,” said Robin Layton, editor at Allconnect.

Categories: Articles, Broadband, Consumer Behaviour, ISP, Research

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