List of ISP in the United States
Table of Contents
List of ISP in the United States 1
How Many Internet Service Providers Are There in the United States of America? 1
Xfinity 2
Spectrum 2
CenturyLink 2
WOW! 3
AT&T 3
HughesNet 3
Cox 3
Mediacom 4
Frontier 4
Bottom Line 4
Internet access has become a staple for every American household. As the demand for high-speed internet is increasing, competition between different internet service providers (ISPs) is also increasing and hence most ISPs are struggling to stay at the top in customer satisfaction surveys.
How Many Internet Service Providers Are There in the United States of America?
There are around 2,673 internet service providers in the United States. Some of them offer only one type of connection, while others offer multiple types of internet services. Here is a list of different types of internet services available to the residents of the United States:
Internet Service Provider Types | Total Number of Providers |
Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) Providers | 881 |
Copper Providers | 234 |
Cable Internet Providers | 449 |
Fiber Internet Providers | 1,317 |
Fixed Wireless Broadband Internet Provider | 1,583 |
Mobile Broadband & LTE Providers | 51 |
If you live in an urban area, then the most common types available there are cable, DSL, and fiber internet services. While for rural area residents, satellite and DSL internet is more common. Here is a list of the top internet providers in the United States.
Xfinity
With a presence in approximately 39 states across the US, Xfinity is one of the best residential cable internet service providers in the country. It offers the best coverage to the residents of Florida, Illinois, and California. Almost 112.1 million people in the United States have access to Xfinity services.
Xfinity offers multiple internet deals and bundles. You can enjoy speeds ranging from 25 Mbps to 1 Gbps. Speed goes up to 2 Gbps in select areas. The starting price of its internet plans is as low as $24.99 for a 25 Mbps plan.
It also offers its fiber internet services to approximately 18,000 people in the United States. You can also avail its internet plans by bundling them with its TV and phone services.
Spectrum
Introduced in 2014, Spectrum is the second-largest residential cable internet service provider in the United States. It provides cable internet services in around 44 states of America. Almost 102.7 million people can easily access its internet services. This internet service provider offers the greatest coverage in New York, California, and Texas. Its internet services portfolio includes fiber and broadband.
Even if you are low on budget, you can easily afford its internet plans that provide speed up to 100 Mbps. Spectrum offers a download speed of up to 200 Mbps for 12 months at just $49.99 without any data limits. If you need a speed that is three times better than this, then you have to pay $20 more every month to enjoy up to 400 Mbps. Similarly, to get speed up to 940 Mbps, you have to pay an extra $60 per month.
Listed below are the few reasons behind the popularity of internet by Spectrum bundles:
- They don’t come with any data caps
- It offers internet-only plans
- You get a free modem
- You can enjoy safe browsing with its free antivirus software
CenturyLink
CenturyLink internet service has footprints in 37 states of the United States. It offers DSL and fiber internet services and is a comparatively cheaper option. The best thing about CenturyLink’s internet is its Price for Life offer. You can buy any internet plan without worrying about any price changes in the future.
You can get speeds up to 100 Mbps for $49. However, for a fiber internet with speed up to 940 Mbps, you have to pay $65 per month.
Just like Spectrum, CenturyLink also offers internet-only plans. That said, you’re more than welcome to get internet-only plans with speed limits up to 1 Gbps.
WOW!
With the widespread coverage in Ohio, Illinois, and Michigan, WOW! delivers internet services across 10 states in the United States. If you are looking for an internet service provider that offers its services without any contracts or data limits requirements, then WOW may be a preferable option for you.
WOW offers cable, DSL, and fiber internet services to its customers. You can get speeds up to 200 Mbps at prices starting from $49.99 per month. Its fastest internet plan that offers 1000 Mbps costs approximately $79.99 per month.
AT&T
Ranked as the 2nd largest DSL internet service residential provider, AT&T offers internet services in around 22 states in the United States. It provides the best internet coverage in three states – Texas, California, and Florida.
Apart from DSL, AT&T also offers fiber and fixed wireless internet. Its fiber services are available to around 36 million US residents, which makes it the largest provider of fiber services by coverage area.
The starting price of its internet plans is $49.99. It offers internet plans in 3 categories– traditional DSL, high-speed DSL and fiber optic. Traditional DSL gives speeds starting from 0.8-5 Mbps, high-speed DSL with Fiber in the Loop gives 10-100 Mbps. And AT&T Fiber brings speeds up to 940 Mbps via a Fiber to the Premises connection.
In case you are looking for ways to save more with internet plans, we would recommend you to buy AT&T internet plans by bundling them with other AT&T products. This way you can enjoy high-speed internet at easily affordable rates.
HughesNet
HughesNet is one of the best satellite internet service providers in rural areas of the United States. It provides internet services in all 50 states and has more than a million subscribers. It requires you to sign up for a 2 years contract to avail of its services.
With the highest coverage in New York, California, and Texas, HughesNet provides internet access to almost 308.7 million residents in the United States. Its internet plans start from $59.99 and go up to $149.99 per month. You can enjoy speed up to 25 Mbps, but with data limits of up to 50 GB.
Cox
The internet service provider offers competitive prices but limited availability, Cox Communication provides cable internet services in 18 states of America.
Cox provides multiple internet-only plans. You can easily choose the one that best fits your internet speed needs. With Cox internet, you can get up to 10 Mbps in just $29.99 per month. In case you need a high-speed internet plan, then you can get up to 940 Mbps in $99.99 per month.
The major advantages of buying Cox internet service are fast download speeds, regular network updates, promotional rates, and price lock-ins. However, you have to face the problem of slow upload speeds.
When purchasing Cox internet services, you have to sign a two years-long contract with the service provider. Like many other internet providers, all of its residential internet plans come with a 1 TB data limit, which is a lot for an average internet user. In case, you have a large household with high internet speed needs, we would recommend you to opt for providers with unlimited internet plans.
Mediacom
With great availability in the United States, Mediacom offers internet plans starting from 60 Mbps at $39.99 per month. You can enjoy online games with a low ping rate and limited lags.
Mediacom allows you to enjoy up to 100 Mbps by spending an extra $10 and 200 Mbps in by an additional $20. If you want to opt for an internet plan with more Mbps, there is a difference of $10 among all its deals.
Frontier
Frontier provides cable, DSL, and fiber internet services across 26 states in the US. It is a better option for those looking for affordable internet plans. You can get up to 25 Mbps in a $27.99 monthly payment. Frontier also offers a high internet speed up to 940 Mbps for $74.99 per month. All of its plans are without any data caps.
It also offers fiber internet plans in limited areas including Florida, California, and Texas. It has many advantages like strong rural availability, high upload speeds on FIOS plans, and reasonable entry-level internet plans. However, its DSL service users often complain of low internet speeds. Moreover, you have to pay for installation and equipment charges.
Just like many other internet service providers, Frontier offers good internet services in urban areas while rural residents often complain about a weak internet connection.
Bottom Line
Almost all areas in the United States have access to more than one internet service provider(isp). It is both an easy and difficult task to choose the best internet provider to meet your daily browsing, streaming, and gaming needs. One simple rule is to filter out the list of internet service providers on the basis of your state, residential area, and internet speed requirements. This way you can make the right choice that best suits your needs!