Pando Networks, a company specializing in delivering large quantities of online information to other companies, has released its most recent Global Internet Speed Study, which ranks 224 countries on their internet speed and download completion rate.

The findings are based on the data from 27 million downloads by 20 million computers between January and June of 2011.

According to the report, the worldwide average download speed is 580KBps, which places the U.S. in 26th place at 616KBps. However, provider matters. In a press release, Pando reveals that in the U.S., Verizon customers enjoy average download speeds of 1,056KBps, much higher than the national average, but still only half as swift as the fastest country on the list.

The top 15 is dominated by Asia, Eastern Europe, and Scandinavia, with Eastern Europe making a surprisingly strong showing. Although, according to Ars Technica, this is perhaps not so surprising considering the recent push towards lightening fast broadband in countries like Lithuania (#4 on the list).

As Pando CEO Robert Levitan states in a press release:

The disparities we found were striking. While, in general, developed economies outpaced the developing world in average download speeds, big names such as the US, UK, France, China and Canada were not even close to being the fastest. Instead, we saw high speeds in markets such as Eastern Europe where focus on infrastructural development and favorable geography promote a higher level of connectivity.

Check out below to find out which countries topped Pando’s Global Internet Speed list in 2011.

• South Korea - Average Connection Speed: 2,202 Kbits/second

• Romania - Average Connection Speed: 1,909 Kbits/second

• Bulgaria - Average Connection Speed: 1,611 Kbits/second

• Lithuania - Average Connection Speed: 1,463 Kbits/second

• Latvia - Average Connection Speed: 1,377 Kbits/second

• Japan - Average Connection Speed: 1,364 Kbits/second

• Sweden - Average Connection Speed: 1,234 Kbits/second

• Ukraine - Average Connection Speed: 1,190 Kbits/second

• Denmark - Average Connection Speed: 1,020 Kbits/second

• Hong Kong - Average Connection Speed: 992 Kbits/second

• Netherlands - Average Connection Speed: 934 Kbits/second

• Finland - Average Connection Speed: 917 Kbits/second

• Moldova - Average Connection Speed: 915 Kbits/second

• Taiwan - Average Connection Speed: 860 Kbits/second

• Norway - Average Connection Speed: 801 Kbits/second

Related articles

• A Look At Who’s Winning The Global Internet Speed Race [Infographic] (techcrunch.com)
• South Korea tops in Internet download speed: study (physorg.com)
• Which Country Has the World’s Fastest Internet? [INFOGRAPHIC] (mashable.com)
• The World’s Average Download Speed is 580KBps [Information Superhighway] (kotaku.com)
• Broadband Lessons From Eastern Europe for Africa (blogs.wsj.com)