There are a number of factors that can affect connection speed while using a VPN. In this article you will find the most common and a few ways to fix them.
Distance from the server
When using a VPN, your data has to pass through a VPN server, sometimes a far distance away from your home location. As a result, it is normal to see reduced speed. The further away from your home location a server is, the greater the potential drop in speed and increase in latency.
Time of the day
The time of the day at the location of the servers may also cause speed reduction. For example, If you are connecting from Los Angeles at 8 AM local time to a server in the UK at 5 PM local time, there is a likelihood that the server may be busy due to local users connecting who are just returning from work or school.
Technical factors
Other factors such as device compatibility, operating system, local bandwidth and ISP (Internet Service Provider) all play a factor in speed reduction.
Troubleshooting tips
If you are seeing drastically reduced internet speeds while using Mozilla VPN, you can try the following:
- Select a different location. Using a server closer to your actual location should improve network speed.
- If you are on a desktop or laptop, try a wired connection to your router/modem.
- If you are on a mobile device, close any background or unused applications as they could be consuming bandwidth.
- If you have the VPN downloaded on a second device, try connecting to the same server to see if you get better connectivity results. This could indicate an issue with your original device.
If you find that none of these suggestions work, our Engineering team would benefit from logging the details of this issue. If you’d like to contribute, you can start by performing a speed test from a testing site like speedtest.net, while first being disconnected and then a second test while connected to the VPN. Take screenshots of your results and submit a ticket right from the app.
Here are some other things to include that would help us greatly:
- Is the performance issue occurring on all websites or only some specifically?
- Your Internet Service Provider (ISP).
- The server location you were connected to.
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