We hope you're enjoying home broadband with O2.

When you use high amounts of data it can affect other people on the network. Using less data means you're more likely to stay within your usage limit, if you have one. Here are some tips about reducing the amount of data you use:

Be aware. Make sure you know what's happening 'online' in your house that could be leading to higher usage levels. It could be someone downloading lots of large files, or watching a lot of iPlayer or online videos 

Peer-to-peer software like BitTorrent or Utorrent download and upload large files, so you might be using more data than you realise

File sharing programs might run all the time in the background. Turn off the 'auto start' setting to stop this 

BBC iPlayer: switch to a newer version and it should use less data. Check your settings on iPlayer and select Standard Definition (SD) instead of High Definition (HD). This will also download less data.

Ask around - Someone in your house might be using the net a bit more than you realise. Ask everyone to use a bit less. Bear in mind that if you have several computers online, more data will be used.

Lower your download speed - Most file sharing programs let you set a maximum download speed. To use less data, set your maximum download speed to low.

Keep things secure. Set up the wireless security settings/ password on your router. It will keep your personal data secure and stop anyone in your neighbourhood from logging onto your wireless internet connection. If somebody does this, they are contributing to your overall usage and they will also be slowing down your connection.

Multiple devices: do you have several laptops/ connected devices/ smart phones on wifi all using the internet at the same time? If this sounds like your home, then it's likely you'll be using a lot more data as they'll all be contributing to your overall usage level each month. If your data use is higher than you would like (for your package), then think about if all these devices need to be on at the same time.

Download an application that will monitor your usage in real time - Our usage tools on My Broadband (only available for our latest packages) only update at certain points within the month. So if you're using a lot of data, use an independent broadband usage tool which will give you a more frequent summary of your usage levels.

There are lots of these available to download for free and it will show you how much you're downloading more frequently. Try searching for 'broadband usage counter' to see what's available. DU Meter is an easy and simple usage tool. You could try DU Meter, which is easy and simple to use and simple.

The simplest solution is to download and upload less.