How Do You Calculate IP Camera Bandwidth Requirements?

Calculating the necessary Internet speed for your security camera system is essential in optimizing your system and reducing unwanted costs. While there are various online IP camera network bandwidth calculators, it’s worth knowing the simple IP camera bandwidth calculation formula and the factors that influence its usage.

In the ideal environments, four main variables determine your IP camera’s bandwidth usage, including resolution, frame rate, compression, and video length.

Top 4 Elements that Affect IP Security Camera Bandwidth/Internet Speed

Resolution. The higher the resolution of the camera, the more bandwidth required to transmit video streaming.
FPS (Frame Rate per Second). The higher the FPS rate, the more bandwidth usage needed.
Video compression codec. Compression codec-wise, H.264 HD IP cameras require lower security camera internet speed requirements for video streaming due to better compression than MJPEG.
The quantity of your IP security cameras. The number of IP cameras connected also influences the required Internet speed.

The above four variables interact with each other in determining the IP camera bitrate, subsequently affecting the required bandwidth.

IP Camera Bandwidth Calculation Formula:

Bandwidth (Mbps) = Bitrate (Main) * N + Bitrate (sub) *M

Where N and M represent the number of IP cameras for the main stream and sub-stream, respectively.

You can check the bitrates in your IP cameras’ specifications or consult with security camera company staff.

For instance, if you have one IP camera with a main stream of 6144 kbps and another with a sub-stream of 1024 kbps, the necessary IP camera bandwidth relies on:

Required Bandwidth = 1 * 6144 kbps + 1 * 1024 kbps =7168 kbps = 7.168 Mbps

IP Camera Bandwidth Requirement
Resolution	H.264	MJPEG
1MP (1280*720)	2 Mbps per camera	6 Mbps per camera
2MP (1920*1080)	4 Mbps per camera	12 Mbps per camera
4MP (2560*1440)	8 Mbps per camera	24 Mbps per camera

In addition to internal factors that affect IP camera bandwidth, external factors like the installation site can also impact IP camera data usage calculations.