Internet Speed Analysis: Rural, Top 200 Cities March 29th – April 4th

For the past three weeks, our team has been tracking internet performance in hundreds of American cities amid the coronavirus pandemic. Last week, we expanded our analysis to include rural America, as well as adding in data on upload speeds, which have been central to the discussion around working (and learning) from home. Key findings:

• Internet performance in the US improved overall, with 97 cities (48.5%) recording download speed degradations this week (down from 117, or 59% last week). 139 cities (69%) have reported upload speed disruptions, which is also down from last week’s 144, or 72%.
• Combined rural download speeds are rallying, climbing to a median of 16.2 Mbps compared to last week’s 15.5 Mbps. Upload speeds in rural areas have remained consistent from the week of 3/22, albiet slightly down from previous weeks.
• Three cities are experiencing upload speed drops of greater than 40% out of range, including Baltimore (MD), Los Angeles (CA), and Flushing (NY). 
• Four cities are still experiencing significant download speed drops: Lawrenceville (GA), Rochester (NY), Saint Paul (MN), and new addition Evansville (IN).