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My Internet speed isn't fast enough.

Canadians increasingly rely on the Internet in their everyday lives and deserve access to high-quality Internet services.

If you’re unsatisfied with your current Internet speeds, you should contact your Internet service provider or consider finding the right plan for your needs. Providers are responsible for the equipment they offer and their quality of service.

You can also contact the Commission for Complaints for Telecom-television Services (CCTS), which is an independent organization dedicated to working with consumers and service providers to resolve complaints about telecommunications and television services. Contact the CCTS:

…but what are you doing about making sure everyone has fast Internet?

The CRTC, Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED), and other partners each have a role to play in ensuring that all Canadians have access to high-quality Internet and cellphone services.

How we are taking action through the Broadband Fund

In 2019, the CRTC launched the Broadband Fund to help improve access to high-speed Internet and cellphone services to Canadians in rural and remote areas that didn’t have the same level of service as those in in urban areas. Large Canadian telecommunications companies contribute the funding that the CRTC allocates under the Broadband Fund.

Also in 2019, ISED published High-Speed Access for All: Canada's Connectivity Strategy with targets to connect 90% of Canadians to high-speed Internet by 2021, 98% of Canadians by 2026, and 100% by 2030. These targets align with the CRTC’s targets.

At the end of 2021, 99% of Canadian households had access to LTE cellphone services, and 91.4% of Canadian households had access to the following services:

  • 50 megabits per second (Mbps) download speeds (data accessed from the Internet, including visiting web sites, downloading pictures, and streaming or downloading music and videos).
  • 10 Mbps upload speeds (data transmitted through the Internet, like uploading images or videos to a website or to a cloud storage site).
  • the option of having unlimited data capacity per month available.

To date, the CRTC has selected over 50 projects to receive funding from the Broadband Fund. The selected projects have been awarded over $300 million to improve high speed Internet and cellphone services for more than 230 communities. This represents nearly 45,000 households and nearly 540 kilometres of major transportation roads.

Learn more about the selected projects that will benefit from the Broadband Fund.

The CRTC is also taking action to improve the Broadband Fund and launched a consultation in March 2023 to review and improve its policy.

How we track Internet speeds

The CRTC conducts research to track Internet speeds in Canada. This includes:

  • Ongoing performance assessments: We assess the performance of high-speed Internet access across Canada with the help of Internet service providers, broadband measurement specialist SamKnows and Canadians.
  • Ongoing promotion of competition: We are taking action so that Canadians can benefit from lower prices, more choice, and innovative services by:
    • increasing cellphone competition in Canada by helping regional competitors expand;
    • reviewing our approach to the Internet services market to promote competition;
    • continuing to provide funding to increase cellphone and high-speed Internet services in Canada’s rural, remote, and Indigenous communities; and
    • exploring options to make home phone and Internet services in the Far North more affordable, reliable, and competitive.

Find out about ISED’s programs that support high-speed Internet access for all Canadians, especially in rural and remote communities.

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