How to Speed Up Your Downloads on qBittorrent for Windows

If qBittorrent takes ages to download torrent files and the download rate is extremely low, it is likely that your Internet connection is not strong enough to help the torrent client download files faster. If changing your Internet connection isn't an option, or if you already have a decent connection, you can increase your download speed by adjusting some qBittorrent settings.

Below we will show you the best settings to configure in the qBittorrent client to speed up your downloads.

1. Basic tips to follow before optimizing qBittorrent

Before you start optimizing the qBittorrent client, here are some tips you should follow to get the best download speed:

• Be sure to choose a healthy torrent file. Healthy torrent files have a high seeder-to-leecher ratio, which means that seeders outnumber leeches. Most torrent websites display this information, so choose the file with the most seeders.
• Disconnect all devices connected to the same Internet connection and close all active downloads and processes using your network resources. This step will allow qBittorrent to use the maximum bandwidth and download torrent files faster.
• Using VPNs and proxy servers can help us overcome the limits that our ISPs impose on us when downloading torrents. However, in some cases, using them can result in even slower download speeds. Disable those connections if you are using them.
• The connection speed and stability of Ethernet connections tend to be better than their wireless counterparts. The more stable the network, the longer it will maintain the connection with its peers, which will increase the download speed. For this reason, if available, use an Ethernet cable to connect to your router.
• The DNS servers assigned to you by your ISP are not always the fastest. Alternatives like Google's public DNS are more stable and provide faster response times. So, change your DNS server to stabilize your connection and get faster speeds.
• Whitelist the qBittorrent client in the Microsoft Defender firewall and temporarily disable third-party antivirus and other security software. This will ensure that these security suites do not interfere with the download process.

After performing these basic checks and fixes, you can now adjust qBittorrent to offer the best download speed.

2. Make sure the upload and download limits are set to infinity

The download limit in the qBittorrent client refers to the maximum speed at which torrents can be downloaded. No limit means that the client can use all available resources and get the highest download speed possible. Upload limit, on the other hand, refers to the maximum speed at which files downloaded to your computer are shared with other peers or leechers.

The upload and download speed limits are set to infinite by default, and it is recommended not to play with these limits. Most of the time, users throttle upload rate to save bandwidth and get faster download rates, but torrent client blocking mechanism compromises download rates when upload rates are limited, thus it makes the download process much slower.

So go to the Tools tab and select Options... Then go to the Speed tab and set the Increase and Discharge speed limits to infinity(∞).

In some cases, limiting your download speed to a value slightly higher than you'd like to achieve increases your overall download speed. So if you have that figure in mind, limit the download speed for that and see if it makes any difference. If this negatively changes your download speed, don't forget to revert it.

3. Modify privacy settings

Go to the BitTorrent tab on the Options qBittorrent window and make the following changes there:

• ensure the Enable DHT (decentralized network), Enable peer-to-peer exchange (PeX), and Enable local peer detection the boxes are checked. These features increase the number of torrent sources and improve the stability of torrent downloads.
• In the dropdown menu next to encryption modeselect allow encryption.
• Deactivate torrent queue and planting limits if they are enabled.

• Check the box next to Automatically add these trackers to new downloads. After that, visit a website with up-to-date torrent trackers, such as list of torrent trackersand copy the tracker list. Then paste those trackers into the box at the bottom of the BitTorrent tab. Then click Apply and hit OK.

4. Configure connection settings

Here's how to configure qBittorrent connection settings correctly if you've changed them before:

• Select TCP and µTP as your favorite Peer connection protocol.
• Make sure the box next to Use UPnP / NAT-PMP port forwarding from my router It is checked.
• Setting a blocked or closed port on your client will prevent qBittorrent from connecting to all peers, which will reduce download speeds. To make sure that doesn't happen, click the random button next to the Port used for incoming connection several times to see which port offers the best download speed.

• He maximum number of connections per torrent is set to 100 default; try increasing this number to see if it makes a difference.
• If you have been using a proxy server, select None in the dropdown menu next to Guy.

5. General tips to download files faster on qBittorrent

The instructions provided so far should have already sped up the download speed of the qBittorrent client, but for an even faster download, follow these tips:

• Do not download multiple torrent files at the same time. This will allocate all available bandwidth to download a single file, resulting in a faster download.
• qBittorrent allows users to prioritize downloads when more than one torrent file is downloaded at the same time. Torrent clients can allocate more resources to priority downloads and finish them first. So, prioritize the torrent that you want to download faster.
• The time you run the torrent download also has a significant impact on the download speed. If you download the torrent when more seeders are available, you will definitely get a faster download. While there are some exceptions, it's best to torrent during the day in the US.

Speed ​​up the download rate on qBittorrent

Watching qBittorrent take ages to download a file is not a pleasant experience. Here's how to configure qBittorrent settings to download files faster. Be sure to follow all the preliminary instructions, configure the client settings according to the recommended settings, and follow the recommendations at the end of the article to speed up the download process.

If these settings don't improve your download speed, your ISP could be throttling your connection. In that case, you need to subscribe to a faster internet package or change your ISP.