Is my tested download speed the same as my actual download speed

[Backtothere]

So Before I changed providers I had a 4.0Mb/s Download speed on speedtest.net however I would only download files at a maximum of 400Kb/s.
Now that I have Fibre I have a download speed of 40Mb/s tested both in the line and on Speedtest.net however when I actually download something I have a download speed of 4.0MB/s.

So My question is if I have a 40Mb/s download speed is that the same speed as a 4MB/s Download speed?

 

[snowctrl]

Be aware MB/s and Mb/s are different - MB is megabytes and Mb is megabits - a megabyte is 8 times a megabit

 

[13thmonkey]

as above a 4Mb/s speed would equate down to about 400KB/s so that's normal.

 

[Backtothere]

Be aware MB/s and Mb/s are different - MB is megabytes and Mb is megabits - a megabyte is 8 times a megabit

So I am right in thinking that 40Mb/s would download at 5MB/s?

 

[Ytyoussef]

Indeed, but it depends on where you're downloading the file from, and what type of connection you're using. That's why 4 MB/s isn't surprising, you could get up to 5 MB/s, but not everything is going to allow you to download at that speed.

 

[g90814]

Sounds like you are doing pretty well for a 40Mbps connection, you'll rarely be able to download at 100% of your connection speed, even getting 50% is pretty good.

 

[snowctrl]

Your antivirus maybe be slowing your apparent download speed as well... What are u using? Bitdefender, for example, on Normal settings will dramatically reduce perceived download speed on all but the very fastest hardware

 

[Backtothere]

Your antivirus maybe be slowing your apparent download speed as well... What are u using? Bitdefender, for example, on Normal settings will dramatically reduce perceived download speed on all but the very fastest hardware

I only have scanners like Malware Bytes on my main PC, I have Norton on my Laptop which I use for downloading things as I found it is good at performing Live updates and can scan for a virus on files while they are being downloaded.
But anyway which settings would I need to change to make sure Norton isn't slowing down my internet speed.