Is there any way to get better connection without spending 5k?

[Bleamy]

My internet provider is CenturyLink, currently my Wi-Fi runs at about .5 MB upload and about 4 MB download. When asking if we could upgrade our internet in someway they said new “line” would need to be put in and it would cost around 5k to do so. I don’t know anything about how Wi-Fi connection and things like that work. Can someone tell me if there is another way to increase my internet speeds? Or am I kinda screwed

[mariushm]

You could try Tesla's Starlink ... but it would cost you $100+ a month

 

You should look at how fast your connection is when you're connected directly to the router they give you through ethernet cable.

If you have a very old wireless card, your transfer speeds could be limited by the wireless card you have... then you could look into getting a better wireless card.

 

[Senzelian]

As mariushm said, check the speed by connecting your PC, or any other PC for that matter, with an ethernet cable to your router and run a speedtest.

Preferably this speedtest: https://www.speedtest.net/
 

Then compare your results to the contract you have with your provider.
The results should be close (within a couple of mbit) to what your provider promises.

Then you can look into whether you have an issue with your WiFi connection, which is unrelated to your internet connection, or if the issue is actually your internet connection and you need a new new one.
 

[LIGISTX]

11 minutes ago, Bleamy said:

My internet provider is CenturyLink, currently my Wi-Fi runs at about .5 MB upload and about 4 MB download. When asking if we could upgrade our internet in someway they said new “line” would need to be put in and it would cost around 5k to do so. I don’t know anything about how Wi-Fi connection and things like that work. Can someone tell me if there is another way to increase my internet speeds? Or am I kinda screwed

Do you know what speeds your paying for? What speeds do wires devices get?

[Bleamy]

38 minutes ago, mariushm said:

You could try Tesla's Starlink ... but it would cost you $100+ a month

 

You should look at how fast your connection is when you're connected directly to the router they give you through ethernet cable.

If you have a very old wireless card, your transfer speeds could be limited by the wireless card you have... then you could look into getting a better wireless card.

 

About 2-3 weeks ago I checked to see how fast it would be with an ethernet cable instead of using wireless and I was able to achieve speeds around 1 MB upload and 17MB download. This was directly from my router to the ethernet port on the back of my pc

[Needfuldoer]

Is CenturyLink the only wired provider in your area?

 

Is T-Mobile home 5G an option for you? (I have no experience with it myself.)

https://www.t-mobile.com/isp

[Bleamy]

35 minutes ago, LIGISTX said:

Do you know what speeds your paying for? What speeds do wires devices get?

I will get back to you on the speeds being paid for since my roommate is the one who set it up but on wired devices I get about 1MB upload and 17MB download

[Bleamy]

2 minutes ago, Needfuldoer said:

Is CenturyLink the only wired provider in your area?

 

Is T-Mobile home 5G an option for you? (I have no experience with it myself.)

https://www.t-mobile.com/isp

I believe so since xfinity and media com said there services could not reach us, we did not attempt any other providers since CenturyLink said they were able to get us internet. 
 

we looked into the T-Mobile 5g as a sort of replacement since we also have T-Mobile as a mobile carrier but they said it was unavailable in our area

[Ralphred]

44 minutes ago, Bleamy said:

speeds around 1 MB upload and 17MB download.

If you're happy with that but you don't see the same on wifi, turn off the wifi on the router and buy a separate AP.

[LIGISTX]

6 hours ago, Bleamy said:

I will get back to you on the speeds being paid for since my roommate is the one who set it up but on wired devices I get about 1MB upload and 17MB download

If that is good enough, you likely just need a better router to get comparable Wifi speeds. Wifi, with a good router (and/or wireless access point) should be about the same speed as wires devices. It will always be a little slower, but your internet speeds are not very fast so Wifi will likely almost match that. 

[dogwitch]

16 hours ago, Needfuldoer said:

Is CenturyLink the only wired provider in your area?

 

Is T-Mobile home 5G an option for you? (I have no experience with it myself.)

https://www.t-mobile.com/isp

general yeah they are in a lot of area. btw the usa in general is a 1 isp service city.

[Donut417]

On 4/29/2022 at 5:18 AM, Bleamy said:

am I kinda screwed

You're kinda screwed. It sounds like you have some kinda of DSL. Your only hope is if Century Link decides to update your area with Fiber. Like others have suggested, you could look at Starlink or some kinda of 4G/5G Cellular internet. I know that both T Mobile and Verizon offer home internet service.