If your internet connection is speedy enough, you can play games, download videos, watch movies in HD, and stay connected to the rest of the world. Even a simple task as typing in a word-processing document relies on a stable internet connection to sync data and check for updates. So, if your internet is running slowly, it can be very frustrating. Luckily, there’s a lot you can do to fix it. In this article, we’ll show you how to download faster on your Mac.
- How To Speed Up Downloads On Macbook
- Slow Internet Speed Macbook Air
- How To Speed Up Utorrent Downloads On Mac
Sep 20, 2021 How To Speed Up A Download Mac Download. It’s possible you haven’t updated your Mac for some time. Each OS update brings a. There’s nothing faster than launching a Speedtest straight from your Mac toolbar. Download the free Speedtest macOS app today for the quickest way to check your connectivity. These troubleshooting steps will help you speed up a slow Mac and further improve performance. Whether your Mac has a slow startup, apps are not loading, vid. Nov 28, 2019 To speed up your Mac, you can turn off these visual effects and animations quite easily. To do that, click the Apple menu and select System Preferences. Next, select Accessibility. From here, switch to the Display category and check the Reduce motion checkbox. This can speed up older Macs by eliminating all those motion effects.
Why are downloads so slow?
The speed of downloads on your Mac is dependent on a number of different things. The type of Internet connection you have is one of them. If you have a dial-up connection, it is much slower than a broadband connection. Even broadband connections have different download speeds. DSL download speeds vary from 1.
In order to speed up downloads on your Mac, you’ll have to identify the reason they are slow in the first place. Here are the most common reasons.
- Problems with Wi-Fi on your Mac, your Wi-Fi router, or network
- Problems with your broadband provider’s network
- An outdated or slow web browser
- Malware
- Problems with the website you are downloading from
- Lack of available memory
Now that we know what causes slow download speed, we can move on to troubleshooting the issue.
Slow downloading could be a symptom of your Mac being clogged up with junk files that take up disk space, occupy memory and otherwise slow your Mac down. The solution is to give it a bit of a clear out. CleanMyMac X makes that very easy thanks to its System Junk module. It gets rid of lots of files you don’t need and can free up several gigabytes of space.
1. Download CleanMyMac X and install it, then launch it.
2. Choose System Junk in the sidebar.
3. Press Scan then, when it’s finished, Clean.
How to speed up downloads on your Mac
Before you do anything else, try downloading from a different website to make sure it’s not just one website that is downloading slowly. If the problem is repeated on other websites, try a different browser.
If the problem seems to occur in only one browser, here’s what you can do to fix it.
- Check for updates
- Close tabs you’re not using
- Disable extensions
- Check for malware
1. Update your browser
The process of checking for updates varies according to the browser you use. For example, Safari is updated using Software Update in System Preferences. So, to check for updates, you can go to the Apple menu, choose About this Mac, then Software Update. This will also tell you if you are running the most recent version of macOS. If there are updates available, install them.
Chrome, Firefox, and other browsers, are updated from within the app. Usually you can check whether your browser is up to date by clicking on the name of the browser in the menu bar, then “About…”
2. Close tabs and disable extensions
Have your Mac fans ever run at full speed when you were browsing the web? The browser pages use a lot of memory, and if you have more than nine pages opened, your browser may get unresponsive and even crash. So, if you’re struggling with slow download speed, try closing some of the tabs to focus your Mac’s memory on one task.
The same applies to browser extensions. They can conflict with each other and make your browser sluggish. To remove extensions from Safari, go to the Safari menu and click Preferences. Go to the Extensions tab and uninstall the extensions you don’t use anymore. To learn how to disable extensions in other browsers, read our article.
3. Scan for malware
Malware can cause all kinds of problems, slow down your browser and even your whole Mac. The only way to check if your Mac isn’t infected is to use a dedicated anti-malware tool or the Malware module in CleanMyMac X. Choose Malware Removal in the sidebar, then press Scan. You can also configure CleanMyMac X to scan your Mac for malware in the background.
4. Turn off Wi-Fi on your Mac
Sometimes all you need to do to fix the problem is turn off Wi-Fi on your Mac and turn it back on again. It has worked for us many times.
- Click on the Wi-Fi symbol in the Finder menu bar.
- Turn it off.
- After a couple of seconds, turn it on.
If that doesn’t fix the problem, and your Mac has an Ethernet port, you can try connecting your Mac to your router with an Ethernet cable to see if that helps.
5. Try other devices
If using a different browser and turning Wi-Fi on your Mac off and then on again don’t work, try a different device like an iPhone, iPad, or another Mac. If downloading is slow on those as well, you know the problem isn’t your Mac. It must be either your Wi-Fi router or broadband connection.
The next step is to switch your router off and then on again. If that doesn’t help, try moving your Mac closer to your router if you can or repositioning your router so that it’s further away from the wall or anything else that might interfere with the signal. If none of that works, it’s time to contact your broadband provider.
If the internet connection on the other devices works ok, the problem is with your Mac. Restart your Mac.
The last resort, if nothing else works, is to reinstall macOS. But on most occasions, it won’t come to that.
Whether you buy movies to watch offline, download music, or send and receive large files to and from colleagues, slow downloads can become very frustrating. However, if you follow the steps above, you should be able to diagnose the problem and speed up downloading on your Mac. And if you use CleanMyMac X, you’ll end up with a clutter-free, smooth-running Mac as well.
Fix any Wi-Fi problem
There are few things more frustrating than an internet connection that’s very slow. Thankfully, there’s a great deal you can do to troubleshoot the problem and speed up your connection. Here’s how to do it.
Why is my download speed so slow?
Internet speed is measured by how much data per second can be downloaded and uploaded. It totally depends on your Internet use, but the processes like uploading large files and video conferencing require decent speed.
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So what is a fast download speed? Normally, anything that’s above 100 Mbps is considered good Internet. This means, your Mac will handle multiple simultaneous online activities without major interruptions. Still, there’s no limit to perfection. If you want to reach the optimal speed to make downloads faster, there are a couple of things you can try.
First, you need to find out whether the slow download speed is due to your broadband connection or your wireless network. Since your wireless network is the bit over which you have control, you should check that first. In any case, optimizing and fine tuning your home or office wifi will improve performance.
How to increase Internet speed
Firstly, look at where your router is situated. Ideally, it should be in the centre of your house, so that every room gets a good signal. It should be away from walls, the floor and the ceiling as much as possible. And keep it away from metal furniture, which will reflect radio waves rather than allow them to pass through. Modern routers support both 5GHz and 2.4GHz networks. The latter allows for faster speeds, but the former suffers from less interference from other devices like microwave ovens and cordless telephones. So connect to the 5GHz network on devices that support it. If you have devices that only support 2.4GHz, place your router away from appliances like a microwave or cordless phone.
Here are a few simple steps you can take to improve your Internet speed:
Analyze your Internet speed. For a quick check of current speed, find and access Network Utility via Spotlight. Select your WiFi connection under the Info tab, and check Link Speed. The tools like NetSpot ot WiFi Explorer will help you automate WiFi monitoring as well as track factors that impact Internet speed.
Replace old cables. Ensure all your cables are in good condition. Clean dusty cables, replace those that are too loose or damaged, and double check whether the cables you use fit your network environment.
Optimize your router/ISP’s settings. Check the current setup of your router and tweak DNS settings if necessary. Unfortunately, ISPs don’t always come with the DNS configs that perfectly match your environment.
Scan your Mac for viruses. Sometimes, malicious programs and files on your computer can be the reason of poor Internet speed. Open CleanMyMac X > Malware Removal and the app will automatically make your Mac clean.
Regularly update software and firmware. Access Software Update via the Apple menu and see whether you might have missed a macOS update. Outdated OS as well as installing the beta versions of the new macOS may hinder the quality of your Internet. If the operating system is fine, check for the new versions of your router’s firmware.
Eliminate on-system interference. Make sure there are no “heavy” programs like virus scanners on your Mac — they may interfere with network performance.
Check your filters. Low-quality filters are another source of damage for your WiFi infrastructure, so you might need to replace them.
Fix external interference. The position of your router determines the Internet speed you get, especially if other devices located in your building rely on the same WiFi channel. We recommend to use NetSpot, an app for interference monitoring that shows you where to position a router.
Use a cable. We know, it feels like a tip from the 90s, but WiFi is actually always a bit slower than the Internet you get when you plug in directly to the modem.
Get a new modem. Very often, that’s the only fix that can help. Check with your ISP or test other providers to see whether you can get some extra speed.
And yes, don’t do any of the above until you try a restart. Power cycling — which is turning off and on your modem — is what you should begin with. Sometimes, there’s no particular reason your Internet is slow. It’s just your modem needing a fresh start.
How to get better Internet speed
When you’re satisfied with your router and it’s in the best possible location, time to analyze your wireless network. The following solutions will not only help you run a speed test, but also understand how to improve Internet speed.
NetSpot will produce a full analysis of all the wifi networks within range of your home or office and highlight any problems. It produces a heat map of your home or office and highlights ‘dead spots’ where wifi signal strength is low or non-existent. It can also advise on the best placement for your wifi router, and really useful suggestions to troubleshoot your networks.
WiFi Explorer allows you to identify conflicts with other networks, identifies signal overlaps, and provides a graph of signal to noise ratio. By maximizing the signal v noise, you can improve signal performance and speed up downloads.
One possible cause of poor wifi performance is interference from other wifi networks in your street. WiFi Explorer and NetSpot analyze how fast Internet is by analyzing those networks and let you know if they are causing a problem.
If there are lots of routers in your neighbourhood using the 40MHz spectrum, known as wide band, it can cause congestion – wide band occupies seven channels, compared with five used by 20MHz networks.In this case, switching to the 20MHz band may actually increase Internet speed by reducing interference. To do that you’ll need to access your router’s admin page in a web browser. You’ll need to consult its manual, or look for a sticker on the bottom of the router, for an IP address, username and password.
How to increase download speed on a slow internet connection
- Turn off bandwidth-hogging apps and plugins.
If you haven’t been able to improve the speed of your home broadband or wifi network, or if you’re on mobile network, you can still download faster. TripMode allows you to control which applications can download data. That means you can reserve bandwidth for apps you want to use to download and therefore download faster. - Split the downloads in threads to maximize download speed.
To splitting the downloads in threads try to use Folx, one of the most popular download managers for macOS. It has features for downloading movies, archives, or big files that allows you to split downloads into separate streams enabling faster downloads. - Schedule downloads.
One way to speed up downloads is to schedule them for a time when your ISPs network is less busy. Peak times are usually early evening through to around midnight, so use Folx to schedule downloads for the early hours of the morning. Some ISPs also throttle bandwidth for some users during peak hours, so downloading when it’s less busy is a very good idea.
How to download torrents faster
Despite the negative publicity BitTorrent has had in recent years, there’s nothing illegal in using it or in downloading torrents. As long as the content you download isn’t protected by copyright or, if it is, you have permission from the rights owner to take it, you’ll be fine. What’s more, it’s totally safe to use selected third-party tools to increase upload speed on torrent.
Additionally to Folx download manager it is also a torrent client. It has several features to make torrent download faster.
How To Speed Up Downloads On Macbook
- Check seeds and peers.
Folx has its own built-in torrent search engine, so you don’t need to use a web browser. When you search for torrents in Folx, it will display the number of available seeds for each result. The more seeds, the faster the download is likely to be, so choose a torrent with lots of seeds. - Limit upload speeds and speed up torrent downloads.
Torrent clients upload files as well as download them and so the bandwidth available for a torrent client like Folx is used for both. If you limit upload speeds, you can make download speeds faster. You can also limit download speeds for browsers on your Mac, making more bandwidth available for torrents. To limit upload and download speeds, open Preferences in Folx and click on the Smart Speed tab. Of course, if you want to improve upload speed, you can limit download speeds instead. - Check port number.
Many torrent clients use port numbers 6881-6889. ISPs know this and some of them throttle bandwidth to those ports, which can make download speeds slow. In Folx Preferences, in the Torrents tab, check the port number and make sure its outside that range. If the port is showing as ‘in use’ click ‘Randomize port’ to choose another. - Prioritize downloads.
If there’s one download you want more than the others that are downloading at the same time, right click on the other downloads and use the ‘Limit Speed’ option to cap their download bandwidth and increase torrent download speed for your file.
How to speed up Chrome downloads
There are a number of things you can do to boost up Google Chrome’s speed:
- Limit Extensions. Browser extensions can be very useful but they eat up memory and can be reason of getting slow download speed on browser.
- Don’t have lots of tabs open. Web pages in tabs use resources like memory and, if they auto-load, bandwidth too. Keeping tabs to a minimum will speed up your browser.
- Use a download manager extension. Folx has a smart browser extension that allows it to handle everything you download in Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or any other browser. Using that can speed things up because Folx has features, like splitting files into streams, that are designed to make things faster.
- Avoid noname extensions that promise faster downloading
There are lots of Chrome extensions that promise to make the browser download faster. However, many of them don't work and causes Chrome run more slowly, don’t download the complete file, or, worse, are infected with malware. So, they are best avoided.
Slow Internet Speed Macbook Air
Downie does a similar job, even allowing you to down; pad 4K-resolution videos from streaming video and social media sites. Just copy and paste the URL for the video page into Downie or use its browser extension. Once you’ve downloaded the video, you can use Permute to convert it to any format you want.
If all else fails, check with your broadband provider
- Check whether your broadband provider has a fault
- Check whether wired instead of wireless can improve speed
Check that your broadband provider hasn’t reported a fault in your area by calling its helpline number.
Once you’ve ruled that out you need to find out whether the problem is your wireless network or is caused by your router failing to connect to the broadband network. If you have a Mac that has an Ethernet port or you have a USB to Ethernet adapter, connect it directly to an Ethernet port on your router to try speed up your Internet. If your download speed is much faster when connected by Ethernet, your wireless network may be the culprit.
Fortunately, there are lots of things you can do to troubleshoot and improve the speed of your wifi network.