Sky Speed Test

This diagnostic utility validates the throughput of your Sky Broadband connection. Sky operates on the Openreach network, meaning your performance is dictated by the physical infrastructure at your street cabinet: Superfast (FTTC), which uses copper for the last mile, or Ultrafast (FTTP), which uses pure fiber-to-the-premises.

Understanding Your Speed Metrics

When analyzing your connection integrity, focus on these three performance vectors:

Download Throughput: On Sky Ultrafast (145 Mbps, 500 Mbps) or Gigafast (900 Mbps) plans, wired speeds should be consistent. On Superfast (FTTC) plans, speeds are "distance dependent." If you live 800m from the green cabinet, your line may physically cap at 40 Mbps, regardless of the plan you pay for.

Upload Throughput: Sky Broadband plans are Asymmetrical. For example, the "Ultrafast Plus" (500 Mbps) plan typically offers ~60 Mbps upload. This is standard Openreach provisioning and is sufficient for most video calls but may feel slow for large cloud backups.

Latency (Ping): Sky generally provides stable latency (10-20ms). However, on older Copper (FTTC) lines, Openreach may apply "Interleaving" to correct errors, which increases ping to ~30-40ms. Fiber (FTTP) lines do not suffer from this.

What Results Should You Expect?

The "Guaranteed Minimum Speed"

Sky is a signatory to the Ofcom Code of Practice. Your contract includes a specific "Guaranteed Minimum Download Speed." Benchmarks include:

Sky Gigafast: ~900 Mbps (Wired). Wi-Fi will vary heavily based on device support.

Sky Ultrafast: ~145-150 Mbps. This plan is extremely stable as it uses G.fast or FTTP technology.

Sky Superfast: ~35-70 Mbps. Highly variable based on copper wire quality.

If your Hub Sync Speed (found in the router settings) falls below your Guaranteed Minimum for 3 consecutive days, you are entitled to money back or a penalty-free exit.

Why Is Your Sky Connection Slow?

Before calling the "Sky Expert" team, verify these common premise-level faults:

Sky Q Box Power: Do not turn your Sky Q boxes off at the plug overnight. They maintain the "Mesh" network. If you power them down, your devices may lose connection or drop to a weak signal from the main Hub.

Master Socket (FTTC): For Superfast users, ensure your router is plugged into the Master Socket (the main entry point), not a telephone extension in a bedroom. Extension wiring degrades the signal significantly.

Microfilters: If you have a standard phone socket (not a pre-filtered one), you must use a microfilter. A missing filter will cause the internet to disconnect every time the landline phone rings.

Sky Technical Configuration Data

How to Get an Accurate Test

Wireless testing is unreliable due to the thick brick walls common in UK homes.

To confirm the actual speed delivered to your home, connect a Cat6 Ethernet cable directly from the Sky Hub to a laptop. This isolates the ISP connection. If this wired test meets your "Guaranteed Minimum Speed," your line is healthy, and the issue lies with your Wi-Fi environment or Sky Q positioning.

When to Call Support

Escalate the issue to Sky if you observe these specific failures:

Amber Internet Light: The Hub has power but cannot authenticate with the Sky network.

Flashing Amber Voice: Indicates a failure with the "Internet Calls" (VoIP) system.

No Sync: If the Internet light is off entirely, the physical line to the cabinet is broken.

You can run a line test and book an Openreach engineer directly via the My Sky App or by dialing 150 from your Sky Talk landline.