Safari internet speed test 170mbps vs Google 790bps, why??

[Milan254]

I have Mac air 13 M1 2020. Reformat Mac 4x and the same thing happens either with OS Monterey or Ventura 13.1 or 13.2. Mac running fresh installation, nothing else on it.

When I run the speed test (tried few of them) with Safari and wired connection 1GB the speed is around 170mbps, install Google Chrome and speed is around 790mbps. Don’t understand how this could be and as I said I’ve reinstalled the Mac four times. However, running the Speedometer 2.1 Browser Bench the speed is about the same for Safari or Google at 350.

 

[tstafford]

Which speed test are you using? I tend to use www.fast.com. But I think you have to take all of this with a grain of salt. For instance I have 1.2 GB Comcast which is wired in to my Studio after a long run from the house to the garage office (and it goes thru a 1 GB switch) yet I still routinely get results in the 1.2-1.4 GB/sec which seems sort of impossible. FWIW - Chrome and Safari are generally close in their results w/ Safari routinely returning a slightly higher number.

And Speedometer shouldn't be impacted by your bandwidth anyway. It's supposed to be testing the performance of the computer and the browser.

 

[Milan254]

I just tested Fast.com 330, Whistle out 211, Speed one 156 using Shaw communications but 720 using Telus communications. Weird!!

Google is mostly the same on all around 750.

 

[usagora]

Have you tried downloading a larger file on both browsers (the same file from the same site) to see if you actually notice Safari is slower?

 

[Milan254]

Sorry I did not do that but I will definitely test it and let you know

I forgot to mention my second laptop is HP running windows 11 and both Google and Safari run at the same speed of 750. Maybe I’ll call my network provider and see if they have any answers.

Just called my Shaw service provider, talk to tech support and no answer. On their end the speed is over 800mbps

 

[galad]

Check if you have iCloud Private Relay enabled or not.

 

[bogdanw]

Safari is working

Disable iCloud Private Relay https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT212614
and Hide IP address https://support.apple.com/guide/safari/privacy-sfri35610/mac

 

[Fishrrman]

I'd recommend trying the free utility called "Speedtest" to check your internet speeds.

 

[Milan254]

Update: No I don’t have Private relay enable on iCloud, however I’ve tested the network speed thru terminal (networkquality -s) it was normal at 711mbps, I also tested a large file download and it was the same speed between Safari and Google, so, than I disabled most of the Safari preferences and again tested few sites. Google Mlabs, speedtest.net by Ookla etc and all sites now report speed around 750, the weird stuff like Fast.com, Shaw speed test, speedone still report only 170 to 320mbps, so it is obvious it is not my Mac, my network provider or my settings, it’s just Safari on my Mac just doesn’t like some of the websites. At any rate, for all practical purposes the Safari runs the same as Google except for some weird? Sites. Good enough for me. It’s just beyond my knowledge to figure it out, but thank you for all your help!!

 

[bogdanw]

It depends on what server every site uses to test the speed.
If your ISP has servers registered for speed tests on speedtest.net and they are automatically selected, is like testing LAN speed
So, fast.com might be using servers from another ISP, maybe one that is closer to your location (small latency), but doesn’t support the same speeds.

 

[Milan254]

Make sense to me, and talking to my network provider tech support they should have mentioned it.
Just for curiosity, can one of you guys test your Safari speed on this website, “ Shaw speed test “ and let me know what you getting comparing to like Google MLab.
PS:I bought this Mac only couple of months ago, for decades only used Windows PC, and I just love my Mac.
The difference for me is the screen display and Safari look. I just find it so much easier on my old eyes.

 

[Airforcekid]

Few possibilities:
Is private relay turned on? Safari going through Apple's VPN will be a bottleneck

Google Chrome is famous for not respecting DNS settings its possible Google DNS is pointing you to a more efficient server with better peering agreements. https://chromeisbad.com/ I would download Brave and see if the results still conflict.

 

[Milan254]

Update: So after couple of days of trying different things I came across several posts where people have problems with their USB-C hubs, (I only had the Amazon basic unpowered USB – C 3.1 with ethernet ) so I was going to give it a try, went to BestBuy and bought the Anker 8 in 1 USB -C powered hub. I also had to buy Apple 67W power adapter for the 30W adapter that came with my Mac Air 13 M1 2020 just was not charging my laptop enough due to the fact the Anker needs 15W power just to live. And what do you know all the above tests including Shaw speed test Fast.com Mlab, Ookla and Meter.net All!! Past with flying colors around 801 Mbps. Actually Fast.com on Amazon hub reported 350Mbps now reading over 900mbps. So yes, there could be many reason why the internet speed is fluctuating and all over the place and the hub was just one of the reasons.

 

[HDFan]

can one of you guys test your Safari speed on this website, “ Shaw speed test “ and let me know what you getting comparing to like Google MLab.

Shaw 935
MLab 901

I have MLab to be unreliable, randomly reporting 1/3 the speed of Speedtest.

 

[NNZ]

TURN OFF iCloud Private Relay!!

Setting up my new M2 Max Studio, I was going round in circles changing DNS, ethernet you name it. Was getting 600mbs download on my iphone and around 200mb on the new mac in Safari. With a wired connection turning off iCloud Private Relay increased the speed to 1.3GPS in Safari. YIKES...

 

[Boyd01]

This was covered earlier...

Update: No I don’t have Private relay enable on iCloud,

 

[mbarbieri77]

Update: No I don’t have Private relay enable on iCloud, however I’ve tested the network speed thru terminal (networkquality -s) it was normal at 711mbps, I also tested a large file download and it was the same speed between Safari and Google, so, than I disabled most of the Safari preferences and again tested few sites. Google Mlabs, speedtest.net by Ookla etc and all sites now report speed around 750, the weird stuff like Fast.com, Shaw speed test, speedone still report only 170 to 320mbps, so it is obvious it is not my Mac, my network provider or my settings, it’s just Safari on my Mac just doesn’t like some of the websites. At any rate, for all practical purposes the Safari runs the same as Google except for some weird? Sites. Good enough for me. It’s just beyond my knowledge to figure it out, but thank you for all your help!!

I have the exact same issue. Couldn't explain better. Chrome 750; Safari 150, sometimes even less.

 

[mbarbieri77]

For me it was the Private Relay. When "off", testing fast.com on Safari went up to 500Mbps. Thanks for all the people that helped in this thread.

 

[Boyd01]

Just tried the fast.com link that was posted earlier and got 670Mbps with Safari 15 on Monterey. I was streaming music on Sirius/XM during the test, FWIW. I don't have iCloud Private Relay (this requires a subscription, doesn't it?)

I have Verizon FIOS 500, however a couple months ago they sent me an e-mail saying that I was now on FIOS 600 although there have been no changes to anything and the price is the same. They said that testing revealed their former 500mbs plan was actually fast enough to call 600, so they changed the name! 🤣