The United States is the hub of world connectivity. All the major businesses and economic platforms are rooted in the country. To keep this connectivity on the rise, high-speed internet is a basic necessity. As such, there are now thousands of internet service providers in the USA, that offer various types of connectivity options.
In fact, there are about 2,881 internet providers in the US. But which one is the best for you and fulfills your requirements?
In this blog, I’m going to give you details about the types of internet available in the USA their advantages and disadvantages, their maximum achieved speed, and all about the cheapest service providers and the prices of their plans.
Types of Internet Available in the USA
Dial-Up Internet
Dial-up internet connection is a very old way to establish a connection. The dial-up connection service providers have a dedicated line to their company, whoever buys their services is provided with a company-dedicated number. You have to call them with the device you want to have an internet connection on and they connect you to their internet-providing modem. This way was used before wired or wireless routers were invented.
Dial-up internet has been around since 1992, although it is an old internet. its base is laid on the existing communication patterns. It is easily accessible in most areas. Another advantage of dial-up internet is cost-effective and is not prone to any internet signal disruptions.
However, Dial-up internet has become outdated in terms of technology, activities like online streaming online gaming, and working from home have become rising trends that require more internet speeds and cannot be performed with dial-up.
It uses PTSN a network that helps to locate and establish its connection. The technology is old and hasn’t faced any upgrades.
Dial-up only offers a maximum speed of about 56 kbps (varies according to location). Which is not even up to the minimum requirement of 21st-century technologies. Moreover, Your phone and internet are connected to the same line you cannot use both at once. Due to the extremely low internet speeds, you cannot play high graphic quality games or any interactive games, you cannot stream any high-quality movies. Which just eliminates the purpose of having an internet connection.
Pros:
- Easily accessible
- Wide availability range
- Cost-effective
- Resilient to signal disruptions
Cons:
- Outdated technology
- Old network infrastructure
- Not reliable
- Extremely low internet speeds
- One connection line for phone and internet
DSL (Digital Subscriber Line)
A digital subscriber line more commonly known as DSL, is a broadband that uses copper telephone lines to provide services. DSL has revolutionized itself according to the rising trends and is still commonly used. DSL transmits data by passing high-frequency signals throughout the copper wire.
Although DSL uses telephone lines to provide internet, unlike dial-up you can use your phone and internet at the same time without connection loss. DSL provides a fast and stable internet connection. You won’t need to worry about any additional installation costs as a DSL connection uses telephone wires to provide internet. You will just have to pay for the internet service for which you can get cost-effective plans you can subscribe to your (ISP). DSL provides you with a maximum internet speed of 100 Mbps and a maximum upload speed of 20 Mbps, which allows playing high graphic games and interactive games and enables you to stream 4k movies.
Though DSL is a good option there are some disadvantages to using this connection. DSL internet speed varies by location if you are close to your DSL ISP provider then you will have better internet speed but the further you are from the ISP the lower your internet speed is going to be, and the cost depends on the location you want the connection. DSL uses copper wire to transmit data. Copper wires are metallic and easily allow electromagnetic signals to hinder the connection. It may also result in slow internet speed or complete loss of internet. Mostly, DSL plans have data limits so you can only use a certain amount of internet, and if you exceed the limit you might have to pay a penalty. The limits are usually not so low but gamers who use excessive internet can easily reach the limit and would have to pay an overage fee.
Pros:
- Fast and stable internet
- You can talk on the phone and surf the internet at the same time
- No installation cost (if you already have TV cable wires)
- Download 4k movies, play high graphic quality games
Cons:
- Internet speeds vary according to location and distance from the ISP
- Costs vary according to location.
- Can be required to buy phone or TV services
- Data caps.
- The connection can be hindered
Cable Internet
Cable internet uses the same infrastructure as cable television and transmits data using radio signals. Around 87% of the US population uses cable internet as of 2024. It was first introduced in the mid-90s when the usage of broadband networks rose to popularity. Because of the long-time existence of this broadband, it is available in almost 90% of the USA. Cabel Internet has the most promising speeds out of all (except fiber), has been recorded faster than DSL, and is much cheaper.
Cable internet has a wide availability range. It is readily available in all 50 US states. Cable internet plans can reach a maximum speed of about 1,200 Mbps.
Cable internet plans and their highest internet speed cost $120/per month and the cheapest internet costs $20.00/ per month. It is also very easy and cheap to install if you already have a wired house, however, in case you don’t have the wiring the service providers do offer professional installment.
On the downside, cable internet uses shared bandwidth and has limited bandwidth capacity, so during peak usage hours, the internet speed tends to slow down.
Pros:
- Wide availability range
- Fast speed
- Isn’t affected by bad weather
Cons:
- Shared bandwidth
- Internet speed slows during peak hours
- Data caps
Fiber-Optic Internet
Finally, we have arrived at the best internet type.
Fiber optic internet uses light rays to carry data through glass or plastic fiber wires. The light rays travel at immense speed to provide fast and secure internet. Fiber is now accessible to almost 56% of USA households, Fiber internet is highly reliable as it uses a non-metallic transporting medium eliminating any chances of electromagnetic interference and providing a secure network. Fiber internet also has the best speeds that no other internet broadband has achieved. Theoretically, it has the fastest speed of 22.9 petabytes, however, in reality for residential purposes, a maximum speed of 50 Gbps is available currently.
Fiber has a really low latency rate of about 8-12mms. Fiber internet can carry large amounts of data as its bandwidth capacity is very large. It has consistent internet speed no matter how near or how far you are from the provider the internet speed is always the same as advertised no matter how many devices you connect to the same internet line.
You might think that with all its perks fiber-optic internet must be expensive. But that’s not the case. In fact, it is way cheaper than cable or DSL.
Pros:
- Immensely fast internet
- Very reliable
- Secure
- low latency rate
- Large bandwidth capacity
- Consistent speed
Cons:
- Expensive
- High maintenance
- High installation cost
- Fragile wires
Satellite Internet
Satellite was first introduced in 1996, and has since been developing and improving its services. Satellite internet is the only connection available to all the rural areas in all 50 USA states.
Satellite has speeds of up to 220mbps and is available in the most rural and backward areas of the US. Satellite internet is very reliable, especially for people using satellite internet in extreme weather conditions.
Although the highest satellite speed is 220 Mbps, the average speed of satellite internet by all the providers is only 28.53 Mbps. Secondly, the latency rate of the satellite is very high about 550ms on a round trip you cannot play high graphic quality or interactive games.
Pros:
- Very fast speed
- Wide availability range
Cons:
- The average speed is lower than advertised
- High latency rate
- Data caps
5G Home Internet
5G home internet is considered an alternative to cable and fiber internet. Unlike cable internet, 5G uses cell towers to transmit data through signals. In 2022 around 162 million people had active 5G devices. Approximately 206 million people have coverage of 5G internet in the USA.
5G internet has a really low latency rate of 1-15 ms, making it the perfect option for playing interactive and high graphic-quality gaming. The tech has a maximum speed of 20 Gbps and is typically consistent. 5G internet is wireless it doesn’t have a lot of installation cost and the installation is super easy.
5G is not available in remote or rural areas because of limited cell towers. Although it has high download and upload speeds, they are not symmetrical.
Pros:
- Low latency rate
- No installation cost
Cons:
- Not wide availability range
- Low bandwidth capacity
- Security issues
- Not symmetrical upload and download speeds
- Installation cost
Cheap Fiber Internet Providers In The USA
EarthLink:
Earthlink is the cheapest fiber service provider and is available to approximately 33.4 million people and around 48 states in all of the USA, making it the third largest provider in the USA by coverage area and availability. Earthlink offers a 12-month price guarantee on its fiber plans and offers plans starting at $49.95/per month for 300 Mbps speed and the maximum fiber speed is 5,000 Mbps for $189.95/per month.
Spectrum:
Spectrum has 110.6 million plus customers in all of the USA and serves in over 42 US states. spectrum provides hybrid fiber coax and has affordable plans starting at $49.99/ per month with 300mbps download speed and 1gbps speed for $89.99/per month. Spectrum has no data caps and no contracts. They do provide professional installation on request for as low as $64 and you can install yourself with an activation fee of $30. And you can negotiate for lower rates as well.
Windstream:
Windsteam services are available in 18 USA states along the east and midwest coasts.
Windstream is the ninth largest internet service provider in all of us by coverage area. They also have cheap internet plans starting at $39.99/per month for 300 Mbps and 8,000 Mbps at $29.99/per month.
Conclusion
Selecting which type of internet according to your requirements is hectic, but with the help of this blog, you can determine which type best suits your requirements. Internet prices are also listed and the cheapest service providers are also listed. My favorite internet service provider is EarthLink because of their amazing and affordable internet plans. For more details on EarthLink and a detailed breakdown check out this blog EarthLink reviews.