Download Time Calculator
Work out how long a file will take to download at a given internet speed, in hours, minutes and seconds.
Your results
Real-world speeds are usually below the advertised maximum, so actual time may be longer.
Calculation breakdown
- Convert size to bits
- size × 8,000,000 (for GB)
- Convert speed to bits/sec
- Mbps × 1,000,000
- Time
- bits ÷ bits per second
Worked example
A 5 GB game update on a 50 Mbps NBN connection takes about 5,000,000,000 × 8 ÷ 50,000,000 ≈ 800 seconds, or roughly 13 minutes 20 seconds.
Assumptions
- Assumes a constant, uninterrupted connection at the stated speed.
- Real downloads are typically slower due to overhead, congestion and Wi-Fi limits.
- 1 GB is treated as 1,000 MB (decimal), matching how ISPs advertise speed.
How this calculator works
Estimate download time from file size and connection speed. Enter the file size in your chosen unit and your download speed in megabits or megabytes per second to get a plain-English time estimate.
Frequently asked questions
Why is my download slower than advertised?
Real-world speeds are usually lower than the plan's advertised maximum due to network congestion, Wi-Fi limits, and server-side throttling.
Mbps or MBps — what's the difference?
Mbps is megabits per second (used for internet plans); MBps is megabytes per second (used for file sizes). There are 8 bits in a byte, so 100 Mbps ≈ 12.5 MBps.
Does this account for overhead?
No, this is a theoretical estimate based on raw throughput. Actual downloads are typically 10–20% slower due to protocol overhead.