How to Limit Internet Speed on Other Wi-Fi Users?
By using the IP or MAC address of a user’s device, you can easily limit their internet speed. Simply log in to your router and use the IP or MAC address to set their download and upload limit. Different routers use different terminologies therefore the process may slightly differ depending on your router.
When you live in a large family or with a group of people, you may find that you suffer from dealing with slow internet speed but have to pay a huge bill for it at the end of the day. This can be frustrating. It is because normally, the bandwidth in a network is shared amongst the devices connected to that network. Because of the large number of people, it means more devices are connected. This reduces the amount of bandwidth each device gets, including yours, resulting in the slow internet speed you experience. It is made worse especially if you have users who tend to download large files or gaming consistently because they take up most of the bandwidth.
The good news, however, is there is a simple solution that gets you faster internet sped without completely disadvantaging the rest. While it is possible to block other users from your network completely, you could opt to limit their internet speed. By limiting their bandwidth use, you free up more for you, meaning faster internet speed for you.
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Limiting Internet Speed for Other Wi-Fi Users in Your Network.
To limit the internet speed for other users on your network, there are several things you need. These are Router’s IP address and log-in credentials and the IP addresses for the devices used by other Wi-Fi users.
The router’s IP address is normally at the back of the router. Alternatively, you could use the default IP address. The login credentials could either be the default, also found at the back of your router, or the credential changed the default to. If you can’t find the default IP address and login credentials for your router, you can browse the router’s brand to get them.
As for the other users, the easiest way to get their IP and MAC address is through the router. Normally, the router keeps a list of all the devices connected to it. Depending on the model, the list could be located in different places within the router’s terminal.
With the prerequisites, the general process involves you logging in to your router and using the user’s IP address to set limits on the uploading and downloading. However, because there are different router models, different terminologies may be used hence once again, the process may differ slightly. Below is a summary of the process for some of the common routers:
Router Model |
List of IP addresses |
Limiting Internet Speed process |
TP-Link |
· Log in to the router
· Click DHCP · Select Client’s list · This list contains the MAC and IP addresses of all devices connected · Select the IP address of the device you want to limit · Copy the address |
· Logged in to the router
· Select Bandwidth control · Click on Rule List · Enter IP address under IP range · Key in minimum and maximum Download and upload limit under Egress and Ingress bandwidth. · Click Save |
D-Link |
· Log in to the router
· Click on Status · Select Client’s list (list of MAC and IP addresses for all connected devices) · Select IP address to limit · Copy IP address
|
· Still logged in to the router
· Click on Advanced · Select Traffic control · Select Add · Paste IP address under Source IP · Key in minimum and maximum Upload limit under Up Floorand Up ceiling respectively · Key in minimum and maximum Download limit under Down Floor and Download ceiling respectively · Click on Add Rules to save changes |
Digisol |
· Log in to the router
· Click on Status · Select ActiveClient Table (list of MAC and IP addresses for all connected devices) · Select IP address to limit · Copy IP address
|
· Still logged in to the router
· Click on Advanced · Select QoS Setup · Select Add · Paste IP address under SourceIP · Key in minimumUploadlimit under Up Floorand maximumUploadlimitunder Up ceiling · Key in minimumDownloadlimit under Down Floorand maximumDownloadlimitunder Down ceiling · Click on Add to save changes |
Tenda |
· Log in to the router
· Select Advanced · Click on DHCP Client List · Select the IP addressyou want to limit · Copy address |
· Still logged into the router
· Select QoS · Click on Bandwidth Control · Check box Enable · Paste IP address under IP Address · Under Upload/Download, select Download · Key in the preferred Bandwidth range · Click on Add to List · Click OK |
iBall |
· Log in to the router
· Click DHCP · Select DHCPClient’s list(list contains the MAC and IP addresses of connected devices) · Select IP address to want to limit · Copy the address |
· Logged in to the router
· Select Bandwidth control · Check box Enable IP QoS · Key in IP address under IP range · Change Mode to Maximum Bandwidth Limit · Key in maximum Bandwidth limit · Key in a name under Description · Check box Enable · Click Save |
Huawei |
· Log in to the router
· Click on Online Devices (contains the list of connected devices) · Select device to limit
|
· After selecting the device, you wish to limit
· Select Speed limit · Turn on the speed limit · Key in maximum and minimum Download speed |
Asus |
· Select an IP address from Target list under Bandwidth Limiter, in the router’s terminal. |
· Log in to the router
· Go to QoS · Select Adaptive QoS · Click on Bandwidth Limiter · Click on Apply · Under Bandwidth Limiter, click on Target · Select an IP address from the drop-down list · Key in maximum upload and download limit under download and upload bandwidth · Click “+” · Click Apply |
Other Ways to Restrict Internet Speed
While you can limit other user’s internet speed, some routers like Netgear and Linksys control the internet speed limit, by giving you priority. They do this through your device’s MAC address. To achieve this here are the processes you can follow:
- Netgear routers
Log in to router and go to Advanced>Select SetUp>Click on QoS Set Up>Choose Add PriorityRule>Priority category>Select MAC addresses>Priority>Apply
- Linksys routers
Log in to the router and go to Application & Gaming>QoS>Upstream Bandwidth>Select MAC address>Priority>High>Save.
Alternatively, there are other ways to restrict bandwidth usage without limiting speed for others or prioritizing your device. Some of these alternatives include:
- Setting Active hours, by limiting internet access to fixed hours of the day during specified days of the week.
- Setting up Guest Access option, which saves you from sharing your password with others who in turn share it with more people. Plus, you can set up a speed limit for the guest network as well.
- Use internet filters that block certain websites that take up a lot of data, freeing up more bandwidth in your network.
Conclusion
With so many options to restrict how much bandwidth is used within your network, you no longer have to worry about slow internet or dread getting the bill at the end of it. The steps listed are simple to follow so you do not need third-party assistance.
We tried to include as many routers as possible. If your router is not a part of the list and the steps do not apply to it, you can always, browse for the process of limiting internet speed on your router. Alternatively, you could contact customer support for guidance or check community forums such as Reddit or Quora to see what other users have done.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. How many Wi-Fi users’ internet speeds can I limit on my network?
The number of users whose internet speed you can limit depends on the capacity of your router. If your router allows up to 50 connections at a time, then you can limit up to 50 users.
2. Does the internet speed depend on the number of users connected?
Yes, but not entirely. The bandwidth in your network is shared among the connected devices. More usersdo mean more devices, therefore, an increasing number of times the bandwidth has to be divided. This results in slower speed. Similarly, if there were fewer users who had multiple devices each, connected to the network, this still does slow down the speed, by increasing bandwidth sharing.