Data Center

The 10 States with the Fastest Internet Connection

Average speeds are declining, but these states stand out because of speedy connections.

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Each quarter, Akamai, a Massachusetts-based web services provider, gathers data from the Akamai Intelligent Platform in order to publish their State of the Internet Report. The company’s latest report observed attack traffic, broadband adoption, mobile connectivity and data trends from 180 unique countries or regions during the third quarter of 2012.

During that time, the average connection speed increased in 43 states and the District of Columbia. Akamai employed its EdgeScape geolocation tool to determine the top 10 U.S. states with the highest connection speeds. Fast broadband is defined as speeds of 10 megabits per second (Mbps) or faster. Although the average connection speed declined nearly 10 percent quarter-over-quarter, Delaware, at 10.9 Mbps, reigns supreme as the state with the highest average connection speed.

Rhode Island saw the smallest increase in connection speed, with 7.2 percent, while the District of Columbia saw the largest increase, with 50 percent. Although New Hampshire ranked third with regard to the highest average connection speed, the state moved past Delaware in the third quarter to become the state with the highest level of broadband adoption.

Read the State of the Internet Report in full on Akamai’s website.

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