Written by the Fiveable Content Team • Last updated September 2025
Verified for the 2026 exam
Verified for the 2026 exam•Written by the Fiveable Content Team • Last updated September 2025
Definition
Bandwidth refers to the maximum amount of data that can be transmitted over a network connection in a given amount of time.
Related terms
Latency: Latency is the delay between when data is sent and when it is received. It's like waiting for a package to arrive in the mail - even if you have high bandwidth (a wide pipe), if there's a long latency (slow delivery), it will take longer for your data to reach its destination.
Throughput: Throughput measures how much data can actually be transmitted over a network in practice. It's like measuring how many cars can pass through a toll booth in an hour - even if you have high bandwidth (a wide road), if there are too many cars trying to go through at once, throughput may be limited.
Data Transfer Rate: Data transfer rate refers to how quickly data can be transferred from one device or location to another. It's like measuring how fast you can copy files from one USB drive to another - higher data transfer rate means faster file transfers.