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At a time when a massive shift to working from home has highlighted the critical importance of fast internet connections, the services broker Cable has published a global study of broadband speeds around the world.

To compile the new "Worldwide Broadband Speed League 2020", researchers tested broadband Internet speeds in 221 countries and territories around the world. 

They found that the global average for broadband speed is 24.83 megabits per second (Mbps), a figure that has risen by more than 50% when compared to 2019.

As for the rankings, Liechtenstein is the country where internet users enjoy the fastest average broadband speed, which is an impressive 229.98 Mbps. 

At the other end of the table, the average connection in South Sudan only offers 0.58 Mbps, which is 394 times slower than the speed for Liechtenstein.

In practical terms, this means that downloading a 5GB HD movie, which would take less than three minutes in Liechtenstein, will take more than 19 hours and 31 minutes, to complete in South Sudan. 

Not surprisingly, the majority of countries with the fastest average connections are in Europe and North America. The United States and Canada are respectively placed 20th and 34th in the ranking with average speeds of 71.30 Mbps and 52.60 Mbps.

Here is the list of the top-10 countries in world with the fastest average broadband speeds: 

  1. Liechtenstein
  2. Jersey
  3. Andorra
  4. Gibraltar
  5. Luxembourg
  6. Iceland
  7. Switzerland
  8. Hong Kong
  9. Monaco
  10. Hungary