Throttling is when a network deliberately slows your data speed, typically as a soft cap on heavy users or after you've used a certain amount of data on an "unlimited" plan.
How it works
You can still use data — pages load, apps work — but everything is slower. Streaming may drop to lower quality, large downloads crawl, video calls get patchy. Throttling usually resets at the start of your next billing month.
When it happens
- After hitting a Fair Use Policy roaming cap
- After hitting a soft cap on "unlimited" plans
- During congested peak hours on some plans
- After using a lot of tethered data on plans that limit it
How to check
Carrier websites publish throttle thresholds (sometimes buried). Fuse doesn't throttle — your plan's data limit is your real limit, no soft caps.