Mapping Internet Speeds

The European Data Journalism Network has mapped out internet speeds across Europe. The interactive map Average internet speed across Europe allows you to view the average download and upload speeds in areas across the continent, as recorded in the second quarter of 2021. 

The fastest average internet speeds can be found in Iceland, Switzerland and Denmark. The slowest internet speed is in North Macedonia, with Albania and Greece not far behind. Within most individual countries there can also be large gaps in internet speed, with urban areas tending to have far faster speeds than rural areas across the European continent. 

The data used for the map comes from Speedtest. This data reveals that overall in Europe over the last 18 months average download speeds have increased by 51.9%. Cyprus (+87.4%), France (+76%), Italy (+74.8%) made the largest improvements in average download speeds. 

Earlier this summer the U.S.'s Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) released a new interactive map that visualizes key indicators of broadband needs across the USA. The map uses data from a number of different sources to show broadband availability and speeds at the county level.

If you click on a county on the The Indicators of Broadband Need digital map you can view details on the percentage of the local population without Internet access, the median broadband speed available, and the percentage of downloads completed over 25 Mbps.

The map reveals that large areas of the country have broadband access which is below the Federal Communications Commission's recommended benchmark of 25 Mbps download / 3 Mbps upload. The map also includes a number of other economic data layers which allow you to view and compare poverty data with broadband access data.