I recently upgraded to a new PC running Windows 11, equipped with an AMD Ryzen 5 7500F processor and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 5060. I'm using an ethernet connection, and I've noticed that even though the download speed shows as high as 20-30 Mbps on platforms like Steam, Epic Games, and GOG, the actual speed is around 2-3 MBps, which is way slower than what I experienced on my old PC with the same cable and ISP. This issue is consistent across all platforms, and I can't find a solution online. I've attached a screenshot of a Steam download for reference. Any thoughts?
4 Answers
Make sure you have the latest drivers for your ethernet card. Go to Device Manager, find your ethernet adapter, and update the drivers from the manufacturer's website. Sometimes outdated drivers can cause speed issues.
Definitely run a speed test at speedtest.net to see if you’re getting what your ISP promises. Sometimes throttling on certain platforms can also be an issue. If your test shows a significant drop, there may be an issue on the provider's end.
Good idea! I got 29 Mbps on the speed test, but the ISP claims up to 900 Mbps! I’m using a signal repeater right now that might not help.
It sounds like you might be mixing up megabits and megabytes. Steam shows speeds in megabits per second (Mbps), not megabytes (MBps), so divide by 8. However, even if you did that, it’s still concerning that the speed is lower compared to your old setup.
Yeah, I confused the units too initially! But it's still odd that the new PC is so much slower, right? I could download a GB file in no time on my previous setup.
Check the quality of your ethernet cable. If you can, try getting a shorter, higher quality Cat 8 cable—it might help with the connection stability. Also, confirm that your PC is correctly connected to the router, as that can affect speed too.
I’ll look into the cable issue. I know the longer cables can be less effective. Thanks for the tip!
I actually updated the network card drivers already, but I’ll double-check to make sure I have the latest ones.