Alaska is known for many things; natural beauty, former vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin, the place that the Simpsons escaped to in their 2007 movie, and of course, bears. Now, they’re known for having the slowest average Internet speed in the country too, a study says.
During the first quarter of 2014, Alaska’s average Internet speed was found to be 7MBps. That trails Arkansas, Kentucky, and Montana. All three of those states were found to have an average Internet speed of 7.3MBps.
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Some of the nation’s most populous states, which are located on the US’ coasts, are in the middle of the pack in terms of Internet speedy-ness. For instance, New York’s average ‘net connection speed is rated at 11.5MBps, good for 14th fastest in the nation. Then there’s California, which weighs in with an average connection speed of 10.9MBps, which ranks as the 20th fastest in the USA.
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Virginia takes the crown for the fastest average Internet connection speeds in the United States, weighing in with 13.7MBps. Directly behind it are Delaware, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and the District of Columbia. Those states boast rates of 13.1, 13.1, 12.9, and 12.8MBps, respectively.
Take a closer look at which states are higher up on the chart, and which are lower down. Do you notice anything interesting? We sure did. The five states with the fastest average Internet speeds are all pretty small, while significantly larger states with much bigger populations like California, New York, Texas, Montana, and others, are lower down on the totem pole.
So what does this mean? Well, it’s quite simple. Logic dictates that it’s much easier to wire up a smaller state with fewer people, than it is a larger state with much more folks in it. Be sure to keep these variables in mind as you pore over these stats.