How to limit download speed in Firefox

When you download large files, most of the time you want them to download as fast as possible. After all, the sooner they are downloaded, the sooner you can start using them. However, sometimes a large file downloaded at high speed can leave you with little bandwidth for other activities.

In cases like this, you may want to slow down the download so that you can use more bandwidth for other purposes. If you are a Firefox user, learn how to limit download speed in Firefox below.

Why would you want to limit download speed in Firefox?

Limiting the download speed may sound a bit counterintuitive. If you’re downloading a large file, you probably want it to download as quickly as possible. Limiting your download speed would mean that it will take longer to download the file.

However, there are situations where it may be desirable to limit the download speed in Firefox. For example, if you are downloading a large file at high speed, it may be consuming a lot of your bandwidth. If you’re trying to do something else that requires a lot of bandwidth, like streaming a TV show or movie, your content may start to buffer or play at lower quality.

By limiting your download speed, you can free up more bandwidth for other things like streaming.

Is it possible to limit download speed in Firefox settings?

Unfortunately, there is no native setting within Firefox that allows you to limit the download speed. In browsers like Chrome, it is possible to create a custom profile where you can set download and upload speed limits. In Firefox, this is currently not possible.

All is not lost, however. If you’re a fan of Firefox, you can still limit download speeds without having to switch to another browser. You can do this using a download manager or network traffic management application.

How to limit download speed in Firefox using a download manager

Using a download manager transfers the download of files from Firefox to a dedicated application. You can use this application to limit the speed at which your files are downloaded, leaving you free to continue using Firefox without high-speed downloads taking up all your bandwidth.

In this example, we will use free download manager.

To limit download speed in Firefox using a download manager:

1. Download and install the free Download Manager.
2. Next, open Firefox and go to the Free Download Manager Firefox add-on page.
3. Click Add to Firefox.
   
4. Click Add again to confirm the installation of the plugin.
   
5. When you download a file in Firefox, the Free Download Manager will open automatically.
   
6. Confirm the save location and click Discharge.
   
7. Once the download has started, click on the download speed dropdown menu at the bottom of the screen.
   
8. To reduce the download speed, select Half either Low.
   
9. The download speed will be limited accordingly.
10. If the download is still causing bandwidth issues on Low settings, you can choose to enable Snail mode by clicking the button snail mode icon.
    
11. This slows down the download to a crawl, allowing you to free up almost all of your bandwidth, but the download will still download at a very slow speed.
    
12. The best option is to choose the highest setting that won’t cause problems with your other activities. That way, your download will complete faster and you no longer have to worry about throttling download speeds.

How to limit download speed in Firefox using NetBalancer

Another way to limit download speed in Firefox is to use an app called network balancer. This app allows you to manage your network traffic and includes the ability to limit download speeds for specific apps.

With this application, you can limit the download speed of Firefox, which means that anyone else using your network will not have their performance reduced by high-speed downloading. Since you are limited to the download speed of the Firefox app, you must use a different browser for any other activity, such as streaming.

To limit download speed in Firefox using NetBalancer:

1. Go to the NetBalancer website.
2. Click Download NetBalancer and install the app once the download is complete. You may need to restart your computer once this is complete.
   
3. Once the app is installed, launch it.
4. In the menu on the left, click on the letter P.
   
5. Right click on Firefox.exe in the process list.
   
6. Select Download priority.
   
7. Click Limit.
   
8. Set the desired download speed limit in the Download priority limit box.
   
9. Click OK and your download will be limited to the speed you set.
10. You can now continue browsing, but you will need to use a different browser. Any web page you open in Firefox will be throttled, so you’ll have the same download speed limit you set above.

Take control of your download speeds

Learning how to limit the download speed in Firefox allows you to continue using the Internet when downloading large files without stopping everything. This is a useful trick to know, especially if you don’t have the fastest internet connection.

If you’re a fan of Firefox, there are plenty of other ways you can get more out of the popular browser. You can learn how to block ads in Firefox to keep annoying distractions at bay. You can learn how to enable or disable hardware acceleration in Firefox to improve performance or troubleshoot. And if you want to keep your browsing history to yourself, you can set Firefox to always run in private browsing mode.