In this article we are going to take a look at internet speeds and explain what internet speed is recommended for mining.

Before explaining what kind of internet speed is recommended, we want to explain the basic terms like latency and bandwidth. 

We are going to use a water pipe as an example. Internet data transmission can be well illustrated and explained by comparing it to water flow inside a pipe.

What is latency?

Latency is how fast the data can be transmitted from A to B and back to A. This time is normally measured in milliseconds (ms). This is also called ping. We measure the time it takes for a packet to arrive to and back from the destination machine, a round trip.

Comparing it to a water pipe, latency is the time it takes for the water to reach the destination and come back. It does not matter if the pipe is big or small. All that matters is how fast the water reaches the destination. 

What is bandwidth?

Bandwidth is the amount of data that can be transmitted at the same time. Normally this is measured in megabits per second (Mbps).

Comparing it to a water pipe, this is the amount of water that can be sent in the pipe at the same time. The wider the pipe diameter, the more water it can carry at the same time. The lower the diameter of the pipe, the less water it can carry.

What kind of data is used when mining?

Mining uses very low bandwidth. The packages that are received on the miner and then sent back to the stratum (pool) are very small in size. The data packet (mining jobs) sent back and forth is only about a couple of bytes in size. 

But, these data packets, or mining jobs, need to be sent back and forth very quickly. If the job is sent to the stratum or pool too late, then the job is discarded and now you have a stale rejected share. You are not paid for rejected shares.

Latency does matter when it comes to mining. If you are located far away from the mining servers, then you might have higher stale rejection rates. The same can happen if your infrastructure has a bottleneck or causes high latency in any other way. You can read this article and see why latency matters when it comes to mining.

So, what is the minimum internet speed for mining crypto?

It is the latency that matters. For example, using a SIM mobile hotspot might result in higher latency. As long as the latency of accepted shares is below 70ms - 100ms, and there are no stale rejects you are fine. But there might be an issue when updating or downloading newer versions of the software.

Other than that, it is hard to tell what kind of internet you should get for your mining operations. If you can, we suggest trying the demo from the ISP or mobile hotspot. Even a 2 or 5 Mbps internet connection will work for relatively big mining farms.

If you are still not sure about what internet to get for yourself, then feel free to join our Discord or Reddit page and ask our company representative or other miners in the biggest mining community.