Most importantly, please note that your throughput (speed) depends not only on your PC, but also your ISPs backbone, the connectivity/congestion of the server you're downloading from (as well as every router on the way to you), distance between the server and client, Internet congestion at the time, etc.
The best time to test is when general Internet traffic is low, i.e. 3-6 AM.
It's a good idea to clear Temporary Internet Files after each test to get a correct reading, otherwise files might be cached locally.
1. The easy way: Use one of the many available web-based Online speed tests, we have one on SG as well.
2. The right way: The most reliable speed test is by downloading multiple large files from different distant servers (not within your ISP's domain). In order to average throughput over multiple connecctions you would need a program such as
Net Stat Live from AnalogX installed and running.
Try downloading large files from a fast server, such as Adobe, Happy Puppy or the Lucasarts FTP
