Spectrum’s 300 Mbps plan’s upload speed is 10 Mbps. Their Ultra plan is 20 Mbps. Internet Gig is 35 Mbps. And Internet Assist is 4.0 Mbps. Keep reading to find more details on these plans.
As an internet enthusiast, I find upload speeds important for any internet plan. I compiled information on Spectrum’s upload speeds to help you determine whether each plan is right for your home.
I’ll cover the following points throughout this guide:
- Home internet speeds
- Business internet speeds
- What you can do with Spectrum’s upload speeds
- How to check your upload speed
- Ways to improve your upload speed
- Spectrum home internet plans
- Where you can get these plans
- Spectrum’s upload speeds vs. competitors
Let’s judge Spectrum’s upload speeds.
Spectrum Home Internet Upload Speeds
Here are the upload speeds for Spectrum residential internet plans [1]:
| Tier | Max. UL | Median Latency | Enough For… |
| Internet | 10 Mbps | 26 ms | 2 Home Security CamerasOr 2 1080p Zoom 1:1 Conferences |
| Internet Ultra | 20 Mbps | 26 ms | 5 Home Security Cameras Or 2 Ring Video Doorbells & 4 Camera |
| Internet Gig | 35 Mbps | 26 ms | 7 Home Security CamerasOr 3 Nest Cameras |
| Internet Assist | 4.0 Mbps | 26 ms | 1 home security camera |
Charter Spectrum Internet upload speeds compared.
Spectrum seems to love hiding their upload speeds numbers. I wonder why…
When looking at their landing pages, you’ll see vague answers like this:
That doesn’t mean you’ll get 500 Mbps upload speeds. Check out a screenshot from the following page: spectrum.com/policies/Spectrum-broadband-disclosure.
By the way, Internet Assist is lower in the page.
In SOME areas, their Gig plan offers 500 Mbps maximum upload speeds. You’ll need a gigabit modem to achieve these speeds. Also contact Spectrum’s customer service to see whether you’re one of these few areas.
Because they don’t list the supported areas anywhere on their site.
If you’re a small business, you’ll want to know the following upload speeds.
Spectrum Business Internet Upload Speeds
Upload speeds for Spectrum Business Internet plans are as follows:
| Tier | Max. UL | Enough For… |
| 300 Mbps | 10 Mbps | <5 employees |
| Internet Ultra | 35 Mbps | <20 employees |
| 1 Gbps | 35 Mbps | >20 employees |
Spectrum upload speeds for businesses.
Spectrum Business’s asymmetric internet speeds don’t offer much flexibility for employees. I can’t recommend such low speeds for most scenarios for any business.
Do you need to upload large files for clients or your businesses’ cloud server? That’s going to take a bit because of such low speeds.
How about voice over internet protocol (VoIP) calls? For crystal clear calls, you’ll want 23 Mbps per concurrent call [2]. 1 person can make clear calls on the upper-tier plans.
Don’t put too much trust in the number I listed. Because I don’t know how trustworthy the source is. Just use it as a benchmark.
Either way, most businesses with more than 2 employees will need much higher upload speeds in time-sensitive situations.
Let’s go over what residential internet users can achieve with these upload speeds.
What Can You Do With Spectrum Home Internet Upload Speeds?
Online activities you can do with each Spectrum plan will vary. Keep reading to find examples.
Here’s what you can do with Spectrum Internet’s 10 Mbps (the 300 Mbps download plan):
| Task | UL Required |
| 1 Person On A 1:1 Zoom Call (720p) | 1.2 Mbps |
| 1 Ring Video Doorbell | 2.0 Mbps |
| 1 Person Playing Nintendo Switch Online | 3.0 Mbps |
| 3 People Browsing The Internet | 3.0 Mbps |
Internet Ultra’s 20 Mbps allows you to do these simultaneously:
| Task | UL Required |
| 2 Nest Cam IQ (1080p Footage) | 8.0 Mbps |
| 1 Ring Doorbell | 2.0 Mbps |
| 3 People Browsing Google | 3.0 Mbps |
| 1 Person Using PlayStation Now | 5.0 Mbps |
| 1 Person On A 1:1 Zoom Call (720p) | 1.2 Mbps |
Spectrum Gig internet’s 35 Mbps makes it so you can do these tasks:
| Task | UL Required |
| 1 Person Gaming Online While Streaming On Twitch | 9.24 Mbps |
| 1 Person Gaming Online With A PS5 | 3.0 Mbps |
| 1 Person Gaming On A Pc (Competitive) | 10 Mbps |
| 2 Nest Cameras | 8.0 Mbps |
| 1 Person In A Group Zoom Call (720p Resolution) | 2.6 Mbps |
| 1 Active Ring Video Doorbell | 2.0 Mbps |
Do I need to talk about Internet Assist’s use cases? You could run 1 Nest Camera and have no available upstream bandwidth. Or you could run a single Ring video doorbell and have a couple of megabits to spare.
If your household primarily streams videos (the resolution doesn’t matter), upload speed won’t matter. Because you’re not uploading information. You’re downloading video.
The same goes for streaming music and downloading files.
The most significant issue with Spectrum’s low upload speeds lies with anyone who frequently uploads files. Use cases or individuals that’ll fall into this realm include:
- Video editors
- Graphic designers
- Using home security cameras
- Managing home cloud servers
Video editors, graphic designers, and other remote professionals will likely need to upload a large image or video file. To send to clients. You won’t want 35 Mbps speeds to send or upload files quickly.
Try uploading a 10 GB 4K UHD TV1 file into your client’s Google Drive folder. With the Gig plan’s 35 Mbps speeds, it’ll take you 40 minutes to upload that file. Without interruptions or anyone else on your network.
A horrible gamble for anyone who’s on a time crunch.
And video cameras. They continually upload video footage to a server. Do you see where I’m going with this?
Anyway. Let’s check out how to check your current upload speed.
How To Check Spectrum Upload Speed
Visit spectrum.com/internet/speed-test to test your internet speed. You may want to cross-reference your result with other internet speed tests.
Spectrum’s speed test will likely offer the best results. Since it uses servers closest to their services.
Speaking of accuracy. Test your upload speed on a device connected to the internet VIA Ethernet. Because Wi-Fi can run into a bunch of obstacles. Like physical barriers or other wireless signals (e.g., baby monitors).
These obstacles can sabotage your results and mislead you.
Spectrum doesn’t throttle internet speeds [3]. Thus, it doesn’t matter the time of day you test your speed. You may want to do so when you don’t have many people on your network.
You may have network congestion otherwise.
Don’t see the upload speeds you’re paying for?
Test your speeds once more. And if the results persist, follow these tips to potentially improve your upload speed.
How To Improve Spectrum Upload Speed
If you’re not using an Ethernet cable on supported devices, that’s the easiest fix to sluggish upload speeds. When I swapped to Ethernet cables, I saw over 15% faster internet speeds.
Virtual private networks (VPN) may slow your internet up to 10-20% [4]. Due to VPN servers having to reroute your traffic. You’ll have to disable your VPN, connect to different servers, or try different encryption methods.
If you’re paying for a VPN, you likely won’t want to disable it. And changing the encryption method could expose you to hackers if you’re using public Wi-Fi. Here’s a massive list of other ways to speed up Spectrum internet speeds.
I want to cover a couple more methods I possibly didn’t include in the guide I just linked. One revolves around checking ALL your devices for malware.
Spyware, for example, can add delay to your internet speeds since it scans your devices for keystrokes [5].
If you’re a Windows user, open Windows Security and follow these settings:
Virus & threat protection > Scan Options > Microsoft Defender Antivirus (offline scan)
I suggest this scan because it’s the most intense scan without nuking your operating system.
Mac doesn’t have a built-in antivirus. And I don’t want to mislead you by recommending one I haven’t tried.
Press the Command + Space bar key to open Spotlight. Type “Activity Monitor” and open that software. Scan the list of running software for anything suspicious.
I can’t tell you what your Mac should and shouldn’t run. But Google can. Cross-reference programs and see what to disable. Once you find a suspicious program you want to disable, highlight it and press the “X” icon surrounded by a hexagon.
To fix internet issues, try manually resetting your modem, router, or gateway. These devices store short-term memory known as cache. Sometimes they’ll accidentally store an error.
Said error could reduce your internet speed or disable your service entirely. You’ll need to reset your device’s short-term memory.
Unplug each device for 10 seconds, then plug it in once more. Wait for all the LEDs to power on, then test your internet speed.
Confused about network hardware LED lights? Check out our guides on what to look out for:
I fixed my internet last night with this tip. You could fix yours too.
Time to talk about Spectrum’s internet plans.
Spectrum Home Internet Packages, Pricing, & Features
Here are all Spectrum’s internet plans compared:
| Tier | Promo. Price | Max. Speed (DL/UL) | Best For |
| Internet | $49.99/mo. | 300/10 Mbps | Gaming & video streaming |
| Internet Ultra | $69.99/mo. | 500/20 Mbps | Remote collaboration & price |
| Internet Gig | $89.99/mo. | 1,000/35 Mbps | Livestreaming, remote workers, & downloading large files frequently |
| Internet Assist | $17.99/mo. | 30/4.0 Mbps | Low-income households |
Despite lower upload speeds for some individuals, Spectrum’s internet plans offer much value in some areas.
Here are some examples:
- No hard data cap
- Over 500,000 wireless hotspots
- No contract
- Access to a low-cost mobile plan (Spectrum Mobile)
Spectrum Mobile costs around $30 per line (their unlimited plan) and uses Verizon’s towers. You’ll get immense coverage without paying a fortune for fewer than 6 lines. The latter part of that sentence refers to Verizon’s pricing scheme.
Anyway.
The Wi-Fi hotspots give you access to internet at hundreds of thousands of locations at varying speeds. These work great for anyone who wants to watch anime at maximum volume in a library or café.
Don’t do that. But you get my point.
The hotspots also help conserve your soft data allowance. The allowance that’ll lower your data speeds once it runs out. I cover this more in a separate guide.
One more thing before I talk about internet coverage.
Getting an internet-only plan gives you access to Spectrum TV Essentials. It’s a streaming(ish) live television service that allows customers to watch 60 channels on smartphones or other media streaming devices.
So long as they support the Spectrum TV app. Because that’s where the magic comes from.
Before you leave this page and buy a Spectrum plan, ensure your area supports it.
Spectrum Home & Business Internet Coverage
Spectrum residential and business internet are accessible in these states:
| Alabama | Arizona | California |
| Colorado | Connecticut | Florida |
| Georgia | Hawaii | Idaho |
| Illinois | Indiana | Kansas |
| Kentucky | Louisiana | Maine |
| Maryland | Massachusetts | Michigan |
| Minnesota | Mississippi | Missouri |
| Montana | Nebraska | Nevada |
| New Hampshire | New Jersey | New Mexico |
| New York | North Carolina | Ohio |
| Oregon | Pennsylvania | South Carolina |
| Tennessee | Texas | Vermont |
| Virginia | Washington | West Virginia |
| Wisconsin | Wyoming |
Visit spectrum.com/services and select your state. You’ll see what cities Spectrum supports. Ensure you check this information before committing to Spectrum.
Because Spectrum doesn’t support every city.
Whether Spectrum doesn’t support your city, or these upload speeds are unacceptable, you’ll want to consider alternatives.
Spectrum Upload Speeds vs. Their Competitors’
Keep reading to see how Spectrum’s upload speeds compare to similar internet service providers:
| Provider | Post Promo. Pricing | Max. UL | Symmetric? |
| Spectrum Home Internet | $17.99–$114.99/mo. | 4.0–35 Mbps | No |
| Cox Cable Internet | $9.95–$79.99/mo. | 3.0–35 Mbps | No |
| AT&T Fiber Internet | $55–$180/mo. | 300–5,000 Mbps | Yes |
| Xfinity Cable/Fiber Hybrid Internet | $25–$300/mo. | 10–3,000 Mbps | No |
| Verizon Fios Fiber Internet | $49.99–$89.99/mo. | 100–800 Mbps | Yes (for most plans) |
Spectrum has the second-worst upload speeds on this list. Only Cox’s low-income internet plan’s upload speeds fall behind Spectrum’s Internet Assist.
Xfinity has higher upload speeds on some of its plans. And even symmetric speeds with their 6.0-gigabit plan. You’ll need to pay $300 monthly for 6,000 Mbps internet.
And to engage in a crazy number of frequent downloads and uploads. You’ll also need a contract. There’s no backing out of Comcast’s grip if you choose them.
Anyone who cares about high upload speeds will want Verizon Fios or AT&T Fiber. AT&T Fiber offers symmetric speeds on all its plans. But Verizon Fios doesn’t.
I can’t tell you which to choose. Because at that point, it comes down to the speed you’ll need, available budget, and whether it’s available in your city.
I compare the overlapping states each of these services provides in a different guide. Check it out here. Because it would take forever to add that information to this guide.
FAQs: Spectrum Upload Speed
Explore these commonly asked questions about Spectrum’s upload speeds.
Why Is My Spectrum Upload Speed Slow?
Fix slow Spectrum upload speeds by using an Ethernet cable instead of Wi-Fi (if possible). Otherwise, try different spots for your wireless router, reset your modem, router, or gateway, and change your router’s frequency band.
How Do I Increase My Upload Speed on My Spectrum?
Spectrum only lets you increase your upload speed by getting a higher internet tier.
Does Spectrum Throttle Upload Speeds?
Spectrum does not throttle upload speeds.
Wrapping Up
Spectrum’s upload speeds could cover all needs for homes that don’t require upload-heavy tasks. These speeds aren’t the best when uploading files for clients or companies and using security cameras.
At that point, you’d need to seek out a competing ISP. Because Spectrum doesn’t offer options to upgrade their upload speed.
Before ruling out Spectrum as a primary provider for your other services, check out all their other services.
