Chile Takes Lead in LATAM’s Internet Speed Race

Chile has the fastest data download speeds in Latin America, according to Ookla’s study report based on an analysis of massive amounts of broadband internet traffic.

With an average speed of 219 megabits per second (Mbps), Chile is well ahead of the region’s largest economy, Brazil, where Internet download speeds average 95.95 Mbps.

Broadband internet speeds are also relatively good in Panama, which is ranked 24 out of more than 200 countries examined in the report. What has surprised analysts is the tiny Caribbean country of Saint Lucia, whose maximum download speed stands at 87 Mbps.

Broadband speeds are relatively good in Colombia, Dominica, Trinidad & Tobago and Barbados as well. Mexico still seems to be lagging behind when it comes to speeding up its data networks.

At just under 2 Mbps, Cuba is at the bottom of the ladder, behind Venezuela, whose download speeds average 14 Mbps.

In the speed league table, Paraguay ranked 57 with 68 Mbps,  followed by Peru, with 59 Mbps.

“Chile has set the standard for other countries to follow in fixed broadband. With 5G networks expanding into every nook and cranny, Chile can also defend its leadership in mobile broadband,” said Lourenço Lanfranchi, Ookla’s Director for Latin America.

With 165 million subscribers, Brazil is home to the most Internet users in Latin America, followed by Mexico, with 96 million users.

Less than 50% of the population in Latin America and the Caribbean has access to fixed broadband internet, and only 9.9% have fiber internet access. Many rural areas have patchy network coverage due to expensive network equipment.

In some countries, the cost of a GB of data is 2% of the average family income.