Deciding the right bandwidth for your website is a critical decision that you need to make after considering in all key factors. To help in this regard, this post delves into numerous dynamics that are be considered in order to determine the right bandwidth for a website.
‘Bandwidth’: Deciphering the Meaning
Before we get to calculations, you need to understand the meaning and significance of bandwidth. In plain words, it is the volume of data transferable in a given time frame measured in per-second intervals via any transfer medium, such as the web. Therefore, any website that receives heavy traffic requires appropriate bandwidth in order to ensure a lag-free user experience. At the same time, however, if you opt for more bandwidth than you require (even with all possible fluctuations), you’ll be overspending on maintaining your website.
The Illusion of ‘Unlimited Bandwidth’
When it comes to selecting a bandwidth, it is apparent that you’d neither wish to purchase more bandwidth by paying extra, nor limit it to a degree that affects website performance. Keeping this in mind, ‘unlimited bandwidth’ plans that come at a fixed price may appear to be a safe solution to many organizations, usually large entities. The reality, however, is a bit different. While many hosting plans have gigantic thresholds, there is always a cap. Once the data transfer quota allocated to you exhausts, there is a radical decline in the transfer rate.
Estimating Your Bandwidth
Calculating the bandwidth required by your website may turn out to be a tricky affair; however, against all odds, it is imperative to ensure that the bandwidth you select precisely caters to the requirements of your website. Here is how you need to go about it:
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Estimate the average size of webpage (in KBs).
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Multiply the result by average number of visitors
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Multiply the obtained value by your website’s average number of page views per visitor.
Consider Possible Fluctuations
If the traffic received by your website reduces for any reason, you will not have any issues with your existing bandwidth; however, what if it spikes, and that too, instantly? Allocating extra space for such dynamics, therefore, is extremely important. Remember, redundancy factor can be calculated both including and excluding your visitors’ downloads.
Let’s assume that your earlier bandwidth calculation gave you the result ‘A’. Now, adding redundancy to it, the formula would look like:
- Total Bandwidth with Redundancy (without user downloads):
A x (Number of days in a month) x (Redundancy factor)
- Total Bandwidth with Redundancy (with user downloads):
A + [(Average download per day) x (Average File Size) x (Number of days in a month) x (Redundancy factor)]
A good idea about required bandwidth will always help you to identify a suitable web host. While you are at it, carefully examine as many options as possible. The deeper you dig, the better it would be. Hope this brief reads helps you select the right bandwidth plan for your website. Questions, comments, contradictions, additions – all inputs, welcome. For web hosting solutions, contact us via request a call back form.