But some people live in (or may find themselves located in) an area that don’t have cable, fiber optic or DSL internet options…and satellite is their only choice. Satellite cable is used primarily by people who can’t get one of the other types of internet-and it offers the slowest speeds and the lowest “maximum” speed. Satellite internet may sound fancy and “ooooh” hi-tech, however, it’s not. Fios from Verizon for example, is a fiber optic connection, and there are others.

Fiber optics is the fastest, and you can get up to 2,000 Mbps with the best plan and the best connection.

Cable internet, which most people have, can deliver speeds as fast as 300 Mbps, but most ISPs are delivering speeds in the 100 to 150 Mbps range.

DSL is not a fast connection, also at about 25 Mbps.

Satellite is the slowest connection, with a top speed of 25 Mbps.

In the same way skateboards are slower than bicycles, which are slower than motorcycles, internet technologies vary greatly by speed. They are definitely not all same because they are inherently different from each other-and some are much faster.

DSL (Digital Subscriber Line…a telephone line connection).

There are primarily four different technologies Internet Service Providers offer: Here’s something else that factors into the maximum internet speed you’re able to get-that’s the type of internet connection technology you’re using.

Do you have a cable, fiber, or DSL connection? (Hopefully it’s not satellite!)

Spectrum ookla speed test