Provider Reviews

Industry-leading fiber internet speeds and strong reliability from AT&T AT&T Fiber can support all your data-intensive internet activities, now and in the future. AT&T continues to lead the industry with 5 Gig (5000 Mbps) internet speeds available in select areas and more speed on the way. When you add no contracts, no equipment fees, no data caps, and a reputation for reliable customer service, AT&T is a superior choice for all-fiber internet. In areas where only AT&T copper service is available, customers should also check other options and compare speeds and pricing.

Kinetic by Windstream offers fast, reliable fiber and solid DSL Kinetic currently provides fiber internet to about one-fifth of its customers and DSL internet to the rest [1]. Usually, that might be a recipe for customer dissatisfaction because of DSL’s lower speeds. But Kinetic’s DSL is faster than most, which allows the ISP to avoid some of the issues that other DSL providers face. While Kinetic’s fiber internet offerings still far outclass their DSL internet, they get good ratings for both. Like every other provider that offers DSL or fiber internet, Kinetic will give you much better prices for fiber than for DSL. Kinetic’s fiber internet will be a strong performer at good prices. But their fast DSL still won’t be as good as cable. You might want to pick Kinetic DSL if your only other choice is satellite or LTE, but not if you have a cable or fiber option instead from another ISP.

Quantum Fiber brings superior internet speeds and reliability at an appealing price Quantum Fiber is a new, all-fiber brand owned by parent company Lumen Technologies. Lumen is the seventh-largest ISP in the U.S., based on its combined internet service of both all-fiber internet and DSL. In total, Lumen serves about 3 million customers in 16 states [1]. Quantum Fiber is the all-fiber brand of Lumen. A second DSL-based brand also owned by Lumen is known as CenturyLink. We will review CenturyLink’s DSL service separately, as the two brands are very different in what they offer customers. Quantum Fiber is a very strong choice for internet service that earns good customer satisfaction ratings. If you sign up for Quantum Fiber, you’re going to get lightning-fast speeds and reliable service. Quantum Fiber offers clear, low pricing for fiber speeds that run up to 960 Mbps, or about 1 Gig. Fiber speeds will provide you with an internet connection that can handle any use you want from a home internet connection, including heavy streaming and gaming.

CenturyLink’s DSL internet has the limitations of an older technology CenturyLink is a DSL internet provider owned by a parent company known as Lumen Technologies. Lumen is the seventh-largest ISP in the U.S., based on its combined internet service in both DSL and fiber. Lumen serves a total of about 3 million customers [1]. CenturyLink is the DSL brand owned by Lumen. The fiber brand of Lumen is now known as Quantum Fiber. This review will focus on the CenturyLink DSL half of the Lumen brand. We will cover Quantum Fiber in a separate review, because the two brands provide very different technologies. If your only available internet is CenturyLink, your DSL connection is likely to be slower than if you have cable or fiber. Customer satisfaction for CenturyLink is below average in many places. DSL speed can vary widely depending on your neighborhood and even on the wiring in your home. But CenturyLink, like most DSL companies, will charge you the same $50/month for a slow 10 Mbps download speed as for 100 Mbps download speed. It’s luck of the draw, with no price break for slower service. DSL customers just aren’t getting the same kind of value that fiber customers are getting. And that’s one probable reason that Lumen separated its two brands. Now, it should be easy to tell what you’re getting – mostly.  CenturyLink is DSL, and Quantum Fiber is all-fiber. On websites that still mix the two names, though, the speeds of each plan will often be a giveaway. CenturyLink is available in 16 states since it sold half of its DSL network to Brightspeed in 2022. It has a very unusual coverage footprint: think of it as the Western half of the United States, minus California and plus Florida.

Brightspeed is a new provider with a large existing network, offering customers a planned transition from DSL to fiber Brightspeed is a brand-new ISP that started its internet service to customers in October 2022. Brightspeed bought out many networks previously owned by CenturyLink. That purchase instantly made Brightspeed the 12th-largest ISP in the U.S. [1] The company’s mission is to bring fiber internet to as many customers as possible, as soon as possible. Brightspeed currently has gigabit fiber service up and running in six states. The internet provider plans to build out fiber to an impressive 3 million locations in the next five years [2]. Brightspeed’s goal to provide fiber to underserved areas is a worthy one. By creating more lightning-fast fiber infrastructure for those who don’t currently have access, Brightspeed will bring opportunity to at least 20 states in the Midwest, South, and on the East Coast. Customers will have ample support for remote jobs and responsive, smooth access to thousands of educational options online. All Brightspeed customers get the advantages of unlimited data and no contracts. Brightspeed also offers competitive, transparent pricing for their fiber plans. If customers are still on DSL, they will have to be patient with slower speeds while they wait for the fiber to arrive. The good news is that fiber is coming soon, based on the buildout plans.

New kid on the block: Fidium Fiber offers good pricing, fast fiber Fidium Fiber is a new fiber internet service provider that launched in late 2021. Fidium Fiber is currently available in 8 states: California, Illinois, Maine, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Vermont [1]. Prices are good for all Fidium Fiber plans, with their lowest-priced plan starting at 50 Mbps. Maximum speeds go up to 2 Gigs at monthly prices that are very competitive for that level of speed. A Wi-Fi 6 gateway rental is included with the monthly fee, and Fidium Fiber requires no contracts or data caps. 

Good speeds and prices from major national provider Optimum is a major national cable internet provider. Most of Optimum’s 4.3 million subscribers receive cable internet service. But the ISP is also rapidly adding more all-fiber connections with symmetrical speeds. Optimum is the internet brand name of Altice USA, which rolled the company formerly called Suddenlink into the Optimum brand in 2022 [1]. Altice/Optimum is the 6th-largest ISP in the nation [2]. Optimum seems to check off all the right boxes for many of its offerings. You will have no data caps and no required contracts with Optimum internet plans. You will also get free equipment rental included with your monthly plan price. And Optimum’s prices are good. We'll give you an overview of what else to expect from an Optimum internet connection.

Viasat delivers quality satellite internet with good range of prices and speeds Viasat is one of three major U.S. satellite internet providers, the other two being HughesNet and Starlink [1]. The chief advantage of satellite internet is its wide availability. If you have an unobstructed view of the southern sky, you can get satellite internet access at your home. People in rural and remote areas have relied on satellite internet for decades. Satellite internet can also be a great backup plan for small businesses in the event of severe outages for cable or fiber internet. Satellite internet service does have some unique characteristics based on its technology. It will be more expensive than most other forms of internet service. Your internet connection with satellite will be slower than with cable or fiber. But with Viasat’s new satellite just launched and more new satellites on the way, you will get faster speeds than satellite has ever offered before. Viasat and HughesNet have dominated the U.S. satellite internet market for years. Starlink is a newcomer from Elon Musk’s SpaceX [2]. Though Starlink shows promise, it is still too new to have a trusted operational track record. There are long wait lists for Starlink in some areas [3]. Viasat, by contrast, will get your internet up and running in an average of 3-5 days. Viasat also offers unlimited standard data and high data allowances for high-speed data.

Metronet offers fiber internet’s superior performance with good promotional prices Metronet is the largest private fiber ISP in the nation, and the tenth-largest fiber provider overall. After a merger in 2022, Metronet now serves customers in over 200 communities in 16 states [1]. Metronet’s map is divided into three major areas: a large swath of the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic, four contiguous states in the south and southwest including Louisiana, Texas, New Mexico and Colorado, and finally Florida down in the southeast. Metronet started in Indiana and built out fiber internet with wired service to neighboring states. And Metronet is continuing an ambitious buildout program, with a goal to build 500,000 fiber passings in 2023 [2]. That’s good news for customers in their coverage area, because Metronet is a very strong internet provider and all of their internet connections are all-fiber (FTTH). Metronet tends to build in areas that lack another fiber provider, which is a win for customers.

Spectrum offers gigabit speeds and great bundle deals Spectrum is one of the two largest internet service providers in the country. Like its rival Xfinity, Spectrum is a cable internet company that uses hybrid fiber-coaxial (HFC) technology. HFC brings you much faster speeds than old-fashioned coaxial cable internet. In select areas, Spectrum has started to offer 2 Gigs download speed and in most other areas can deliver up to 1 Gig (1000 Mbps). Spectrum’s promotional prices for new customers are very good, and still remain reasonable when your 12-month promotion ends. The company also offers outstanding bundling deals, with cell phone lines currently only $29.99/month with your internet plan. Spectrum has two big advantages over Xfinity. Spectrum’s pricing is much simpler, and Spectrum has no data caps. That’s why we give Spectrum the edge after comparing the two biggest cable internet providers head-to-head.

Earthlink is known for great customer service but higher prices and varying internet connection quality Earthlink’s chief difference from most other national ISPs is that Earthlink is a third-party seller. In other words, Earthlink is partnering with other major internet companies who actually provide the technology for your internet service. Your service through Earthlink might come from AT&T, CenturyLink, Frontier, Verizon, or Viasat. That means your type of connection through Earthlink can vary from super-fast fiber internet all the way to slow DSL internet. You will know which type of internet connection you are purchasing when you sign up for service. Just as with any other provider, you will have an idea of your approximate speed and performance when you buy. The catch is, you will pay more because Earthlink doesn’t own the networks it uses. Why would you choose a service that costs more? Well, Earthlink is known for very solid customer service in an industry that has historically struggled in that area [1]. And Earthlink offers service in less-populated areas without many other providers. That means there may be some places where Earthlink is one of your top options for internet speed or reliability

Ziply Fiber moves toward all-fiber service with great pricing and performance, but many customers still only have DSL option Ziply Fiber is another newcomer to the world of internet providers, and thus far, the word on Ziply Fiber is mostly positive. Ziply Fiber provides a mix of all-fiber and DSL connections across its coverage area, with a goal to move to all-fiber as quickly as possible. With Ziply Fiber, you will get some of the best fiber internet prices in the industry. Ziply Fiber is also on the leading edge of fast fiber speeds, with an amazing 50 Gigs available across its service area as of October 2023 [1] Ziply Fiber launched in 2020 when it bought Frontier’s Northwest footprint in four states: Washington, Idaho, Montana, and Oregon [2]. At the time, only 30% of the network was fiber and the rest was DSL. In 2021, Ziply Fiber stated a goal to move to 80% fiber by 2024 [3]. With Ziply Fiber’s commitment to fiber expansion, great pricing, unlimited data, and free installation, there’s a whole lot to like about this newcomer ISP. The only downside is that a high percentage of their customers still have only DSL access, which brings higher prices and lower internet performance.

Verizon Fios delivers lightning-fast speeds and competitive, straightforward pricing Verizon Fios is the premium all-fiber internet service that Verizon offers to its customers, in addition to its well-known mobile and fixed wireless networks. The all-fiber-optic network of Verizon Fios is popular in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic. Though Verizon is the 4th largest internet service provider in the nation, Verizon Fios is currently only available in 9 states and the Washington DC area [1]. It’s quite a claim to fame that Verizon took the #1 spot in customer satisfaction in the J.D. Power national survey for its region [2]. What’s more, Verizon beat the competition by a large margin. Verizon Fios offers superfast, symmetrical speeds up to 2 gigabits in select areas. Offering a choice of several plans and attractive, low prices, Verizon Fios is one of the best internet plans you’ll find on the market today.

Lumos Fiber is building out a strong, fast network in 3 states Lumos Fiber is one of the many regional fiber internet providers that are bringing big changes to rural and small town America. Lumos is currently operating in North Carolina and Virginia, with plans for buildout in South Carolina soon [1]. Lumos Fiber grew out of a very recent merger in August 2022. Neither of the companies in that merger was new. In fact, one of the companies that merged to form Lumos Fiber was over one hundred years old. That company was North State Communications, which started in 1905 in High Point, North Carolina as North State Telephone. North State had upheld a good reputation among customers for decades. North State was also an early builder of fiber-optic line. As far back as 2009, North State was offering fiber internet at 80 Mbps download/30 Mbps upload, which was pretty impressive for a small regional internet provider at that time [2]. North State merged with Lumos Networks of Virginia to form Lumos Fiber, and the new ISP is now expanding its coverage area in NC, VA, and SC [3]. This ISP formed by the merger is so new and comparatively small that you won’t find Lumos Fiber in the major national customer satisfaction surveys online. We are lucky that one of our writers lives in the coverage area in North Carolina, so we can give you the local scoop on how people feel about Lumos Fiber. Word-of-mouth reports indicate that many customers really like their Lumos Fiber service and often recommend the company as the best local internet provider. In Lumos Fiber’s coverage area, they are often the only fiber game around. Customers really like the fast speeds, reliability, and a choice of low monthly prices that are much better than Spectrum’s cable internet prices.

WOW! delivers fast, reliable internet with very attractive pricing WOW! (WideOpenWest) serves customers in 6 states and is the smallest cable internet provider on our list [1]. WOW! serves over 538,000 subscribers, which is a small base compared to industry cable internet giants like Xfinity and Spectrum [2]. But WOW! provides a model of good internet performance, operational success, and general customer satisfaction. WOW! uses a hybrid fiber-coaxial (HFC) network, like the biggest national cable providers. That technology allows WOW! to provide up to 1 Gig (1000 Mbps) download speed and 50 Mbps upload speed. WOW! also features very low introductory plan prices, far lower than most cable internet providers. Though prices will rise after the first year, you’ll still pay about $20 less for most WOW! plan speeds than you would with Spectrum or Xfinity. WOW!’s only downside is that they do impose data caps, and for the lower-speed plans, your service will be capped at 1.5 TB monthly. But their higher speed plans also raise the data caps, so you will get a 2.5 to 3 TB allowance. WOW’s higher data caps are much less likely to trigger overage charges than the data caps for Cox or Xfinity. And WOW! scores above average for customer satisfaction too. WOW is also building out some all-fiber service, but that is still only available to a very small percentage of their total customer base.

Frontier has great fiber pricing, but DSL will be much slower and more expensive for the speed you get Frontier has the same split profile as other internet providers that offer both fiber and DSL. Frontier’s fiber internet offerings are outstanding across the board for both performance and pricing. But their DSL internet speed and cost will be mediocre compared to Frontier Fiber. About 42% of customers In Frontier’s coverage area are currently able to choose fiber. With an aggressive fiber buildout plan, Frontier plans to expand its fiber footprint to 10 million locations by 2025 [1]. And those fiber connections will be FTTP, meaning all fiber-optic line, all the way to your home. That’s good news, because the difference between DSL and fiber is night and day. Fiber internet will be much faster and more reliable, and you’ll get much more internet speed for the price you pay.

Gigabit speeds from cable internet, but higher-priced than competitors Cox offers fast, reliable cable internet service and in a few select areas, all-fiber internet. But mostly, when you order Cox service, you’re going to get very fast cable internet up to about 1 Gig. In fact, 99% of Cox’s customer base gets gigabit download speeds [1]. The lowest-priced plan will remain constant in price after the promotional period and has no monthly contract. All other plans go up by steep price increases of $25-40 after the promotional rate ends. Overall, you will pay more with Cox than with its cable or fiber competitors, in most cases. But Cox may still be your best option if you happen to live in an area with no stronger fiber or cable internet providers who will give you more speed for your dollar.

Xfinity has fast download speeds and the best promotional prices around, but higher long-term rates and fees Xfinity is a giant cable internet service provider that offers coverage to tens of millions of households across the United States. Xfinity’s introductory plan prices are some of the best in the industry at around $30/month for 12-24 months for first-tier plans. After the promotional period, though, customers will need to be aware of significant price hikes, including equipment rental fees. Though Xfinity’s HFC (hybrid fiber-coaxial) technology can’t provide the full symmetrical speed of an all-fiber network, it can offer gigabit download speeds. In some areas, Xfinity has introduced the all-fiber Gigabit Pro plan which does provide symmetrical speeds at a dizzying 6000 Mbps download/6000 Mbps upload. That top speed will cost you several hundred dollars a month, but it will certainly support any residential internet need.

HughesNet delivers solid satellite internet, but performance lags behind the competition HughesNet is the largest of three major satellite internet providers in the United States [1]. The other two are Viasat and Starlink. Satellite internet service is known for its coast-to-coast coverage and wide availability. For decades, people have relied on satellite internet as a necessity in rural areas without wired internet. You can get HughesNet in most households in the United States and in many locations in South America. All you need to get coverage is an unobstructed view of the southern sky. Satellite internet does offer slower speeds than most other internet technologies. You’ll also have to deal with a monthly data allowance that may restrict how much HD streaming or large file transfer you can do. And satellite internet service is more expensive than cable or fiber internet. HughesNet initially seems to offer lower prices than its main rival, Viasat. But a closer look reveals that Viasat prices are better based on the speed you’re getting per dollar. HughesNet speeds only go to 25 Mbps download, while Viasat’s go up to 100 Mbps and sometimes even 150 Mbps in selected areas. HughesNet has also had issues with low customer satisfaction ratings in national surveys, so overall, we recommend Viasat instead for satellite internet. But let’s break it down and see why.