Unusually high data usage megathread

yep, i have never gone over the limit until the past 3 months (500+G over) and have already gone on the 500G mark this month.  Wonder why the bandwidth gone up so much the past few months

@tungster 

You can put the Xfinity modem in "Bridge Mode", and connect up your own Mesh system.

I check & record my usage every morning because we always go over by a lot. Today when I logged in I got this message: 

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@tungster wrote:

so I talked to their customer service today and we got only 2 choices for the unlimited data plan.  Either pay $30 or rent their modem for $25.   Their modem is cheaper but can it cover a large area?  I got Rings and a sprinkler system right outside of my garage and w/o a mesh system, I dont think this xfinity modem is powerful enough to cover t 4500+ square foots area.

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No, the gateway wifi cannot cover a large area (at least not in my case).  I live in a 3 bedroom apartment and the wifi does not make it to the third bedroom, so I have an access point installed in the middle of the apartment with an ethernet cable running to my netgear router.  I tried the WiFi from my xfinity gateway device, but it was too weak.

That's not a knock on the Xfinity (Arris) hardware.  My expensive netgear router doesn't provide strong wifi to the back bedroom either.

I believe Xfinity does have a mesh network solution available, though, if you want to give them some more money.

On the main topic of this thread: the usage meter does seem out of whack to me, but this is based on my completely unscientific observations.  Once I can get a full 2 or 3 days off from work I'm going to disconnect from the internet and see if the usage meter still climbs.

Someone in this thread mentioned reporting the issue to the state Attorney General.  I might suggest filing a formal complaint with the FCC, though this will cost something, I believe.  Before it gets to that point though, I would also suggest performing an experiment (like the one I mentioned above) to have the actual data to back up the claim.

Remember that you will need to leave your modem disconencted for at least 48 hours (72 would be even better) since according to Xfnity the usage meter can take up to 24 hours to update.

Still not working.

@ComcastTeds Unusually high data usage megathread 

. I have my entire AT&T DSL and Uverse history and not 1 time in 13 years did I ever top 700gbs in a cycle. I switched to Xfinity in June after being laid off from AT&T so no more loyalty right? Well they say I used 2800gb the 1st month and on the 16th of August they say I have used 1053gb. We were on vacation for 10 days 8/1-8/10 and everything in the house was disconnected because it was with us in another state. . It would be nice to see some employee somewhere stand up and say what is really going on. you have to search for this thread in order to even find it. They know exactly ehat they are doing. I will be cancelling my service and going back to the slower AT&T service unless real answer can be brought forward. They tried to say well make sure your wifi password is strong enough. My closest neighbor is almost 2000' away. I am pretty sure my aftermarket Asus isnt capable of that distance. We have 4 phones ( which are on at&t unlimited unless they happen to reach the max where they throttle) 1 desktop for gaming, chrombook, 2 laptops 1 firestick and DTV reciever. With as many posts in this thread it is CLEARLY not us, ITS YOU!!!!! It would be better if you at least said ok there is a problem and we are working on a resolution but no you will stick to your guns

@acutsing , I started charting my usage last month when Xfinity's Usage Meter showed 3 to 4 times as much usage as my Google Nest WiFi router recorded.

A couple of weeks ago, Xfinity's Status Page alerted me of "Scheduled Maintenance" in my area. The meter was more accurate for one day, then it went haywire again.

I bought a set of Asus XT8 ZenWiFi routers to see if maybe the problem was with Google Nest, but Asus also recorded a fraction of the usage Xfinity was claiming.

Last week, Xfinity alerted me to "Scheduled Maintenance" on 4 consecutive days, as you can see in the graph below, after 2 "Maintenances", there was another spike, but 2 more "Maintenances" seems to have made the meter more accurate in my case.

I know it's little comfort, but Xfinity may eventually perform "Maintenance" in your area too, and fix the problem.

Thanks for the info. They do "maintanece" on the node up the street at least once a week it seems. It has been a disaster with them. I was a new customer which required a drop to be buried and I specifically told the tech to note AT&T drop and another water line under sidwalk where they had to pull drop in. Asked to be extra cautious as wife was working from home and needed the AT&T internet until install day-2 weeks later. 1st thing they did was cut the att drop and leave. I still have holes in my landscaping from the contractor. AT&T is a terrible company but Comcast is far worse. 

@acutsing Monty Python-esque 😜

I have noticed my internet usage almost triple from May to July.  I can't get anyone at Xfinity to tell me what changed.  Our habits haven't changed and if anything, the 3 girls aren't in class during the summer so less usage.  When I use the data usage calculator I can't get anywhere near the amount of data they say my house uses without streaming 4K.  I am not intentionally streaming 4K, so I would like to know how I turn that option off.  In other words, I don't want it to default to 4K and only stream HD.  If I am only streaming HD, then I have no idea how to possibly get to the data usage they are showing and feel something is wrong since it more than doubled in a month

@rneuschaefer

Welcome to the same boat most of us are on.

We've seen a big increase once Comcast finally showed the data usage during the 'uncapped' months, but most people who paid attention to their usage patters saw a jump that doesn't correspond to any changes in their habits.

I myself saw a 2x usage jump during those summer months, even when school was no longer in session.  The only data usage going on there was normal work patterns and I definitely didn't see a large increase in video conferences.