In September 2022, UK telecoms provider, Cable, published the average broadband Internet download speeds for over 200 countries worldwide. The results for 30 Caribbean countries were included, which we discuss.
On 6 September 2021, United Kingdom triple play telecoms service provider, Cable, published the results of a global broadband speed assessment, which featured 220 countries, including 30 from the Caribbean/Caribbean Community (CARICOM) region. The download speed tests were recorded over a 12-month period, ending 30 June 2022, and currently are the most comprehensive set of results that are publicly available.
Methodology
Similar to previous years, and over a period of 12 months up to 30 June 2022, broadband speed test results were collected from a broad range of resources, including regulators and speed test providers that measure and collate broadband speed test results. The results were compiled and presented by Cable.
Similar to previous exercises, the download speeds recorded are those available to a device via a router, and so represent actual (or realistic) speeds experienced by the user – via Wi-Fi, Ethernet connection, or other means. For each country, download speed tests had to be recorded from at least 100 unique Internet Protocol addresses. Additionally, test results were excluded if, among other things, the speed test exercises were unduly long or short, or congestion had been caused by the client device for more than 20% of the test duration (Source: Cable).
We again have extracted the test results for the Caribbean countries included in the global league tables. For the 2022 assessment, 30 countries and/or island groups were included, as reflected in Exhibit 1.
Across this group of Caribbean countries, the results were collated from 956,044 speed tests that occurred between 1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022, from 240,041 unique IP (Internet Protocol) addresses.
In the sections that follow, we
- present the average broadband speeds recorded for Caribbean countries over a 12-month period, ending 30 June 2022 results; and
- briefly compare the 2022 results with those recorded in 2021.
2022 test results
For the Caribbean countries examined, typical download speeds ranged from a low of 3.26 Mbps in Cuba, to 99.42 Mbps in the Cayman Islands, as reflected in Exhibit 2. Across the region, the average download speed was 30.43 Mbps.
Among the countries with the fastest download speeds and in addition to the Cayman Islands, were Puerto Rico, with an average download speed of 72.78 Mbps, and Aruba, with 61.10 Mbps. At the other end of the spectrum, and in addition to Cuba, were Suriname, with an average download speed of 9.48 Mbps, and Haiti, with 9.54 Mbps.
Comparing 2022 with 2021 test results
In comparing the speed test results recorded in 2022 and in 2021, it can be readily observed that in nine countries, the average download speeds decreased over the 12-month period under review, as shown in Exhibit 3. However, in 2022, the download speed averaged across the sample group increased by over 5 percentage points, or just over 6 Mbps, from the average regional speed of 23.97 Mbps, which was recorded in 2021.
Exhibit 4 shows the change in the average per country download speeds recorded in 2021 and 2022 as a percentage. The smallest increase in download speed was recorded in the Dominican Republic, at 2.01%, which was followed by Haiti, at 3.02%, and Guadeloupe, at 4.15%. At the other end of the spectrum, the greatest increase in download speed was recorded in Curaçao, at 902.05%, which was followed by the Cayman Islands and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, at 412.47% and 388.29%, respectively.
Among the countries that recorded a decrease in average download speeds over the period under review, the smallest decreases were recorded in Saint Martin (0.70%), Martinique (8.02%) and Aruba (13.53%). On the other hand, the greatest decreases in average download speeds were recorded in Cuba (95.44%), Saint Barthélemy (59.25%) and Suriname (33.80%).
Some parting thoughts
Internet download speeds continue to increase across the Caribbean region. In seven of the countries, download speeds at least doubled, and in one instance, it was nine times what had been recorded a year ago. It thus was still surprising that for almost a third of the countries, a decrease in download speed was recorded.
However, it was surprising that for a third of the countries examined, a decline in the average download speed between 2020 and 2021 had been recorded. In our previous review, which compared the results of 2019 and 2020, it was only one country, Sint Maarten, that had recorded a drop in download speed.
Although a precise reason for the increase in download speed may not be readily available or known, for the cases in which significant increases were recorded, they may have been due to infrastructural upgrades. Conversely, in the countries where a significant drop in download speed was recorded, it could have been due to increased demand, leading to greater congestion on the networks, thus precipitating consumers to run broadband speed tests.
Image credit: Frederik Lipfert (Unsplash)
