VoIP Speed, Bandwidth, and Jitter Test

VoIP Speed, Bandwidth, and Jitter Test

Use the free VoIP speed test and Bandwidth test analysis tool below to check your Internet speed and to see whether VoIP would be a good option for you. This tool analyses your broadband internet connection for the key components required for allowing good quality VoIP phone calls. The voice quality of a phone call using VoIP depends on four main connection properties known as Bandwidth, Delay, Packet loss and Jitter (for those who want to know more about these technical terms see descriptions below). These four properties are analyzed and summarized at the end of the test.

If you are experience problems seeing the tool below or when running it, please download the latest version of Java. This tool performs all the tests you need to check out your high speed internet connection, whether you just want to verify your download or upload speeds, or whether you are checking your connection to verify it is sufficient for quality VoIP phone service.

VoIP Test

This test should take less than one minute to complete and you will then be presented with a short summary of download and upload speeds, jitter, packet loss and MOS score. Use the "Click to start test" button below to start the VoIP test. Ask questions or add a comment about your results here .

Java is required to view this applet

If your results show five green circles then your Internet connection will support VoIP. If yu have four green and then a yellow for consistency of service this is usally fine too. If you are not sure how to proceed, then read the following section on definitions to try to understand what your issue might be.

NOTE: If you see the message "We were unable to measure your connection's jitter/packet loss. " then the most likely issue is that a socket test cannot be initiated (it will do a HTTP/POST test instead of a socket test for speed). This can occur if the ports 20000 and 20001 are blocked for UDP packets (either by something in your setup or by your ISP).

Technical Term Definitions

Bandwidth - This is a popular term and you have likely had your Internet provider try to up sell you to a higher "bandwidth" that will give you faster speeds for uploads and downloads to and from the Internet. This is typical displayed in Mbps (Mega bits per second) or Kbps (Kilo bits per second) with home Internet download speeds typically ranging from 3Mbps all the way up to 50Mpbs. it really depends on your needs and how much you are willing to pay every month. Your upload speed will typically be much less than your download speed and can often be up to one tenth less. The good news is that for VoIP you only need around 90kbps worth of bandwidth so if you have a regular high speed connection such as DSL or cable, you should be in good shape.

Delay - If your delay is less than 100 milliseconds, your voice calls should consistently be of high quality. Even delays up to 400 milliseconds (as per ITU) can result in decent call quality.

Packet Loss - Any packet loss up to 5% will likely not be noticed by you when you are making calls. As these are digital packets it is often possible to have a packet loss of 0%.

Jitter - This is measured in milliseconds and is created by some instability in your connection. It is a fluctuation in the signal such that it becomes out of sync or displaced from where it should be in the transmission. It is effectively a continuous variation in the delay of packet delivery. VoIP jitter can be tolerated up to 20ms to 30 ms.

MOS Score - MOS stands for Mean Opinion Score and is actually a score given by a human user when evaluating the quality of voice. As it is an opinion, it is subjective. A MOS score of 4.0 or higher is desired.

Other Speed Test Considerations with VoIP

Even if you VoIP speed test results are good, you may still run into issues at some point with your voice calls. This can be due to a number of different reasons but is often caused by your internal network not being configured to prioritize the voice packets over all other packets. For example, if you are streaming video while someone else in the household is uploading some pictures to a cloud application, your bandwidth may be consumed by this video and data traffic, leaving very little room for your voice calls to get through. Think of your Internet connection as a pipe and only so much can fit through that pipe at one time. The way around this is to enable Quality of Service (QoS) on a home network router or telephone adapter, and set it to prioritize voice traffic to the Internet. This effectively reserves some room in your pipe such that you will always have room for your phone calls. For more information and help on potential setup, installation, configuration and ongoing issues, please visit our VoIP troubleshooting section.

Don't jump to conclusions and blame your VoIP provider for poor quality of calls as it may actually be an issue with your own home network.

VoIP Solutions

VoIP phone service has become a real option to millions of households in North America with the incredible speeds and reliability provided by modern day Internet service providers. Many home users see savings in excess of $500 per year on their phone bills. This is one great reason why people consider making the switch to VoIP phone service. Did the speed test above indicate that your internet connection was fast enough for VoIP? If so, check out the great deals available using the table on this page.

To find out more about residential (home) VoIP phone service visit our dedicated section to residential VoIP. Here you will find more information about VoIP for home phone users, including educational articles, provider comparison tables, user submitted reviews and more.

The savings don't stop with home phone service. Many businesses in North America are enjoying paying up to 80% less on their monthly phone bills after switching to a VoIP phone service. If your interest is in a VoIP solution for your business then check out our dedicated section to business VoIP. This provides access to many articles and whitepapers that can help with any questions you have, including FAQ's, service features guides and more. You will also have access to provider comparison tables, user submitted reviews and our free price quote service.

Have something to say about this topic:

Use the form below to add your comments/thoughts and to interact with us. All comments will be moderated by WhichVoIP.com before going live. We try to answer all questions within 24 hours.

Source