Although the price is important, for many people an Internet line must be above all fast, so that they can download data, send attachments via email and watch streaming video at the highest quality, perhaps from multiple different devices. While there are many ADSL comparison sites to check prices, it is much more difficult to understand which of the Internet providers (Fastweb, TIM, Vodafone, Wind etc.) can guarantee us the best Internet line for the home, especially since this does not vary only based on the operator, but also according to the area where you live.
It is one thing to live in the center of Rome, where the fiber optic coverage and the proximity to the control unit should guarantee excellent speed with any telephone operator, another account is to live in a small town or in the suburbs, where perhaps the control unit it is very old and where no investments are made to make the network more efficient (with optical fiber).
So how do you understand, briefly, which operator offers (with the same network conditions) the best line for users "> Which mobile operator has the fastest internet in 3G and 4G LTE
1) Connection technologies
First of all, it is appropriate to understand the difference between the connection technologies that can be used to obtain the Internet at home; we have talked about it in many guides, but we can summarize them briefly in a compact list:
- ADSL : currently it is the slowest but also the most widespread technology, with a maximum speed of 20 Mbps (although in many homes it is barely 6-7 Mbps ).
If possible, we should avoid this type of connection, because it is always saturated and subject to sudden drops in performance.
- FTTC (or VDSL) : the first interesting technology from the performance point of view is the FTTC, which brings the optical fiber to the nearest closet and distributes the signal with the classic copper cable in the homes.
This is the right compromise between speed and practicality (since jobs inside the house are not required), in fact it is spreading rapidly in many Italian cities.
It offers speeds above 30 Mbps in almost all circumstances, with very interesting peaks in well-covered cities (it also reaches 100-150 Mbps ).
If we have to sign a new contract for the Internet at home, make sure that the area is covered by at least FTTC, so as to obtain a good line whatever the operator chosen (although, as we will see below, some are better than others).
- FTTH : the best connection technology, which brings optical fiber into the home.
In order to exploit it, it is necessary that there is a compatible wardrobe in the area and we will have to make changes to the house socket.
The result is amazing: we can surf at a minimum of 100 Mbps (constant), but in some cities we also travel at 1000 Mbps (1 Gbps) !
- Wireless : some operators, such as EOLO and Linkem, provide Internet connectivity via wireless connection over long distances, i.e. dedicated frequencies are used to get the Internet signal home as if it were a TV signal (therefore we will need an external antenna for receive the signal).
Obviously the comparisons of the various reports that we will analyze take into consideration the average speed of the operators with all types of connections : the higher values indicate that that operator has more FTTC and FTTH active on average, but it is not said that he takes well in our house!
This is why it is equally important to check the Internet coverage in the area, so as to realize what technology we can use.
To learn more about the types of connection, I refer you to our dedicated article -> VDSL, FTTC and FTTH fiber: which differences and which is better?
2) Italy Speed Test
If we have to compare the average speed of the various operators, the first report to analyze is the one offered by the Italy Speed Test site .
As we can see from the graph in the head there is Vodafone, with an average speed of 60.3 Mbps in download and a speed of 13 Mbps in upload .
This value is well justified by the fact that Vodafone is investing heavily in FTTH direct optical fiber and tries, if possible, to activate new FTTC connections in cities where direct connection to fiber is not available: even if it has fewer users, everyone gets on average a much higher speed than the competition, thus bringing the operator to the top of the ranking.
This explains, at least in part, the decidedly higher prices compared to rivals.
In second place he chases Fastweb, which adopts a strategy similar to that of Vodafone with the help of the dedicated network (present in many cities), with which it provides new activations in FTTH and FTTC.
In the latter case, it often acts by renting TIM's FTTC, so as to reach even the most distant cities (with all the risks in case of problems).
The average speed for Fastweb is 33.4 Mbps in download and 10 Mbps in upload .
TIM's third place is surprising (but only up to a certain point): despite having the largest network in Italy, with a great potential in terms of FTTC and FTTH connections that can be activated, the huge number of users who still surf ADSL with this operator precipitates the average speed values, which settles at 28.3 Mbps in download and 8 Mbps in upload .
Considering also the average prices of TIM subscriptions (among the highest), we are of the opinion that the top management of the company must invest heavily in the conversion of the ADSL network to optical fiber even in the most remote cities and suburbs, only in this way will the value grow to the point of being able to undermine also Fastweb and Vodafone.
Follow all the other operators, which have much lower speeds even for the lowest number of subscriber users (despite the often lower prices, they can hardly provide the FTTH and FTTC as the top three in the standings).
3) Netflix ISP Speed Index
Another useful site to compare internet speeds for Providers in Italy is Netflix ISP Speed Index .
This site assesses the average speed of users who connect to Netflix's servers, therefore it presents an even more precise measurement because it is based on the constant download of multimedia content (i.e. streaming movies and TV series).
In first place there is always Vodafone with an average download speed of 3.70 Mbps (in optical fiber and ADSL), followed closely by Fastweb with 3.64 Mbps (also in optical fiber and ADSL).
Surprising in this ranking is the third place of EOLO, the Internet operator that works exclusively on long distance wireless networks: it marks a nice 3.64 Mbps (like Fastweb), although it is not present via cable, it marks very interesting values for the type of technology used.
In fourth place is TIM, for the same speeches made in the previous chapter: the average speed is 3.62 Mbps, therefore not very far from rivals (with fiber optic, ADSL and satellite technology).
READ ALSO -> Gigabit or 1000 Mega fiber: how to get it for fast surfing
