Why Are Internet Upload Speeds So Slow?

If you’ve ever uploaded files especially high-end videos on your drive or social media you may have noticed that upload speeds are much slower in comparison to download speeds. In other words, it’s quite easy to download files but it’s quite difficult to upload files. So the question you might be asking is whether or not our Internet Service Providers (such as PTCL, Wi-Tribe, Nayatel, etc.) are behind this or not? In other words, do they simply decrease the upload speeds on their own? Well actually, that’s not the case as there is a limit to how much data can be transferred.

Basically, your ISP divides the data provided (or the package you signed up for) equally to accommodate different services such as music streaming, Smart TV, Netflix, etc. There are also scenarios where your ISP also accommodates your landline services (assuming you use PTCL).

In more tech-savvy words, your ISP uses different frequencies for each type of data so that you can enjoy your Netflix streaming while FaceTime-ing your loved ones without any sacrifice in internet speed. Moreover, it is important to note that most consumers mostly rely on ‘downstream’ rather than ‘upstream’. In other words, hardly anyone uses the internet to upload high amounts of data files.

This became common when home-based internet started rolling in the 1990s. In those days, users normally used the internet for viewing a web page or simply attach some image or document in an email hence there was hardly any need for uploading data on a consumer level. Since then, Internet Service Providers have been providing internet packages where normally consumers would get about 15 Mbps of download speed but only 5 Mbps of uploading speed.

However, not all ISP’s have such packages as some providers even provide an equal amount of download and upload speed. So how much you are able to upload data at what speed will totally depend on your package or subscription. To increase your upload speed, you’ll have to contact your Internet Service Provider and then change to whatever package you prefer.