Downloads take very long

If you are downloading files while you are browsing the net and you have many tabs opened in the background, they might be slowing down your internet speed and as a result, the download time increases.

This happens mostly because of the unused tabs that are running in the background and "draining" your internet connection. Too much open tabs can also slow down your computer. 

In order to increase the download speed, write down the names of the files you want to download and close your web browser. After a minute or two, open the web browser, enter the name of the files and start downloading them.

Note: If this solution doesn't work, maybe the internet connection itself is slow. In that case, check out the slow internet connection solutions to learn how to speed it up.

You probably ask yourself: "Why should I update the web browser?"

The answer is simple: to improve performance and to speed up downloading files, if possible.

To learn how to update the web browser, check out the don't know how to update my web browser solutions.

When you download a file from a website, you actually download it from the website's central server (the server where all the files a website offfers to visitors are placed).

If you can’t download a certain file from a website, it is possible that the website's central server is the problem. 

Try downloading the same file from a different website.

When you install (or uninstall) files and browse the net, you slow your computer down because of the temp files, registry files and cookies that remain on your computer. Too much temp files will decrease your computer's speed (browsing speed and DOWNLOAD speed as well) and that is why regular maintenance (at least once per week) is advised.

Advanced SystemCare is a user friendly optimization utility that cleans, optimizes, speeds up and protects your computer with a single click on your mouse. It also optimizes the Internet connection settings of your computer so that you browse the net and download files quickly.

Click here to download Advanced SystemCare. Install it and set it to scan your computer by selecting the features you want to be optimized. If you want to keep your browsing history, uncheck the Privacy sweep box.

Note: To unlock all the features Advanced SystemCare offers, purchase the Advanced SystemCare PRO version.

If you download files via uTorrent/Bittorrent and the download speed is slow, maybe the bandwidth allocation setting is not good.

Try setting the Bandwidth allocation to High:

Right-click the torrent file you are downloading at the moment -> Bandwidth Allocation -> Select High

Note: This solution only applies if you have already conducted a test (e.g. via speedtest.net) and your download speed is around 10 Mbps and on uTorrent less than 1 MB/s (the approximate equivalent to 10 Mbps).

If you download files via uTorrent/Bittorrent and the download speed is slow, maybe the download speed is limited.

To check and correct this:

Right-click the torrent file you are downloading at the moment -> Bandwidth Allocation -> Download limit -> Set it to Unlimited

Note: This solution only applies if you have already conducted a test and your download speed is around 10 Mbps and ONLY on uTorrent less than 1 MB/s (the approximate equivalent to 10 Mbps).

Also, don't forget to test your internet speed via speedtest.net or other similar engine.

BitTorrent is a peer-to-peer protocol, which means that when we download a torrent file we don't download it from a central server, but we download pieces of the file from the computers of the users who have the same file and whose uTORRENT/BITTORRENT software is ON.

In short, some people upload and share a file in order for others to download it. This is not good if your internet plan includes limited internet traffic because you risk exceeding it before the end of the month and the internet connection (and download speed) will slow down.

By default uTorrent/ Bittorrent is set to start automatically when your Windows or Mac OS starts and to run in the background, for an obvious reason - to share the files downloaded via it. 

To prevent uTorrent/Bittorrent from starting when your OS starts: 

Open uTorrent/Bittorrent -> Options -> Preferences -> Uncheck Start uTorrent/Bittorrent when Windows/Mac starts

The router sometimes can slow down the Internet connection unexpectedly. Other times it doesn't reconnect to a network automatically.

There are lights on every router which tell you whether the internet connection is active or not.

If you notice that the lights are not working properly, the best solution is to restart the router. The easiest way to restart the router is to unplug the power cord from the outlet and wait for a couple of minutes. After that plug it back in the outlet and everything should be fine.

Always quit uTorrent/Bittorent after the downloads complete, especially if your Internet plan includes limited data traffic. In this way your Internet traffic will stay safe (it won't be exceeded).

If you don't quit it, uTorrent/Bittorrent may continue sharing the files you've downloaded (click here to see how torrent downloading works) and you risk exceeding the allowed internet traffic.

If you are not sure about how to quit uTorrent, check out the don't know how to close (quit) programs/applications solutions.

If it takes more time to download small files (e.g. 20 minutes for a 100 MB file), contact your ISP provider/Operator. Every ISP/Operator has a hotline that helps users resolve minor issues.

Maybe the ISP/Operator experiences some technical difficulties they are not aware of, or they may already work on fixing them. If that is not the case, they will guide you how to diagnose the problem by yourself.

Maybe the modem is the reason for the long download time. If the modem's activity light is not blinking, that is one more reason to restart the modem.

The easiest way to restart the modem is to unplug the power cord from the outlet and wait for a couple of minutes. After that plug it back in the outlet and everything should be back to normal.

Maybe the computer itself is responsible for the slow download speed. In order to test this, try downloading the same file from another computer.

If the download time is shorter, your computer might be the problem (check out the computer is slow solutions or viruses/spywares/malware solutions). However, if the download speed is the same then try a different solution from the list.

Note: If you don't have another computer, ask a friend to borrow you his.

Seed or Seeder is the person who has one complete copy of the file being shared across the torrent network. Leech or Leecher is the person who does not have the complete file yet but has joined the network to download it. 

When a Leecher downloads the file, they automatically start sharing it across the network (i.e a leecher becomes a seeder). For high torrent speeds, the best bet is in these numbers. The greater the number of seeders, the faster the torrent download is.

You should always select torrent files with a high number of seeders and less leechers if you want them to download faster.

If your mobile device is slow, and downloads take long, try restarting it. Maybe an application started misbehaving and your mobile device couldn't deal with it.

To learn more about how to restart your mobile device, check out the  don't know how to restart my device solutions.

It's a good idea to clear the browser's cache from time to time, because every website you visit leaves some files behind. Those files (known as cookies, temp files, etc.) can slow your web browser down and decrease the download speed, which means that downloads will take very long unless you clean the browser's cache from time to time.

To learn how to clean the browser's cache, check out the don't know how to clear my cache solutions.

It's a good idea to clear the browser's cache from time to time, because every website you visit leaves some files behind. Those files (known as cookies, temp files, etc.) can slow your web browser down and decrease the download speed, which means that downloads will take very long unless you clean the browser's cache from time to time.

To learn how to clean the browser's cache, check out the don't know how to clean my cache solutions.

Maybe your downloads take very long because of a virus. Viruses are designed to harm you in every possible way (e.g. browsing the net without reaching the speed you pay for etc.). The solution is to remove them; however, there are some viruses which may bypass your antivirus. 

Check out the viruses/spywares/malware solutions to see how to scan for and remove viruses.

Too many programs running in the background, along with a web browser (especially if you have many tabs opened in it) can slow your computer down and increase the wait time for downloading a file. Even if you close the programs manually, your computer may still be slow. 

A simple restart may be the solution to your problem.

Close the programs manually to avoid sensitive data loss and restart your computer.

If you don't know how to restart the computer, check out these solutions.

If you have more computers connected to the same network (router), and you are downloading files on them as well, pause the downloads in order to increase the download speed. After the download of your top-priority file is completed, resume the previous downloads.

The more computers connected to the same router, the lower the download speed will be, because every computer or mobile device requires internet connection in order to perform some basic tasks (such as updating of applications and etc.).

The download speed decreases if many people subscribed to the same network browse the Internet at the same time. However, the number of people browsing the Internet after midnight or early in the morning is smaller than the number of people browsing the net during the day. As a result, the download speed increases.

If your download speed is slow during the day and if downloads take very long, download files around midnight or early in the morning. The network won't be overloaded, given the fact that not many users are online after midnight or in the morning.

Every browser supports multi-tab browsing, i.e. it allows you to open as much tabs as you like and to return to the websites you previously visited without searching for them through the browser history.

Multi-tab browsing requires more of the device's RAM memory and if it doesn't have enough RAM memory, the browser's and the device's speed will slow down.

If you have browser tabs you don't intend to use, close them. The more they are, the more they decrease your download speed.

You can close them by clicking on the small X mark next to the tab's name or by moving the cursor over the tab's name and pressing the middle (spinning) mouse button.

If you are subscribed to a ISP Internet plan that reduces your internet speed to 1Mbps/1Mbps (download/upload speed) after you exceed the Internet traffic limit, it is possible that you exceeded the internet traffic you are subscribed to (e.g. you pay for 100 GB montly limit, and you have made an internet traffic of 102 GB).

To prevent situations like this in future, keep an eye on your internet traffic. Every Internet provider offers a website where subscribers can check their internet traffic and every subscribers is given a username and password.

Note: If you're not sure about the internet traffic you pay for, check the contract with your ISP. There you should find all the relevant data (Including the username and password of the ISP's website)

Internet Download Manager is a tool that takes the maximum of the download speed, that resumes, schedules, and organizes downloads. It resumes unfinished downloads due to network problems, or unexpected power outages.

It is easy to use thanks to the user friendly menu, the site grabber that downloads files that are specified with filters (e.g. all pictures from a website, different parts of websites, or complete websites for offline browsing)

Download it from official website, purchase it and reduce the wait time for downloading files.

If your Internet speed is faster when you download a torrent but slower when you browse the net, a change to the MTU settings will be required.

For detailed, step-by-step instructions read this article.

If you have cleared your browser's temporary files and cookies and adjusted your settings, there may be an issue with the way the network is configured. In order to correct it, you need to flush the DNS.

Check out the don't know how to flush the DNS solutions to learn how.

Sometimes downloading applications from Google Play(store) takes a long time as result of a problem with the synchronization settings. If they are correct (if you haven't changed the password of the Google account you use to synchronize your mobile device with), all you need to do is to refresh them. 

To refresh the data synchronization settings:

Settings -> Accounts & Sync -> Background data -> Uncheck the box and then recheck it. Restart the downloads