AT&T Low-Income Internet Guide

AT&T offers one low-cost internet option called Access. Qualifying households pay $30 per month for up to 100Mbps.

According to AT&T’s site, it’s possible to qualify for a lower-priced Access offer if the maximum available speed at your home is 50Mbps or less (and if you do not need unlimited monthly data).

Is 100Mbps speed considered good internet speed? According to our proprietary research and data, yes. Internet speeds up to 100Mbps easily cover internet browsing, streaming, and gaming.

There are two ways to qualify for AT&T’s Access program (you do not need to qualify for both):

1. You or someone in your household participates in a qualifying government assistance program
2. Your household income is 200% below the federal poverty guidelines.

(Of course, you must live in one of the 25 states where AT&T service is available to qualify at all.)

AT&T’s Access program includes the following:

• Free Wi-Fi installation
• No equipment fees
• No deposit
• No annual contract
• Unlimited data

One caveat to this Access program is that you cannot submit information if you are 16 years old or younger. The information would need to be submitted by a guardian.

And while customers need to re-certify their eligibility for the program once a year, the online application process is straightforward and simple.

When funding ended for the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), people who were already using the ACP discount automatically qualified for the AT&T Access program, and their bill was completely covered. However, ACP is no longer available, and it's worth it to explore how other low-cost internet programs exist to help customers stay connected.

Participating in one of these programs provides qualification for AT&T’s Access program.

• Bureau of Indian Affairs General Assistance
• CEP eligible schools
• Early Headstart
• Federal Pell Grant
• Federal Public Housing Assistance
• Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations
• Headstart
• LIHEAP (Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program)
• Medicaid
• NSLP (National School Lunch Program)
• School Breakfast Program
• SNAP
• SSI (Supplemental Security Income)
• TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families)
• TTANF (Tribal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families)
• Tribal Head Start
• Veterans and Survivors Pension benefit
• WIC (Women, Infants, Children)

Your household could also qualify based on income.

AT&T customers can also combine AT&T Access with Lifeline, a federally-funded program that could give you a further discount on your internet service. Lifeline provides discounts for voice lines, wireless service, and internet plans. You could get an extra $9.25 discount on internet services, and up to $25 if you live on eligible Tribal Lands.

Similar to qualifying for the Access program, customers can qualify for Lifeline if they earn 135% or less than the Federal Poverty Guidelines, or if they are enrolled in specific government assistance programs. Lifeline even provides assistance for survivors of domestic abuse and sexual trafficking. 

If you can’t qualify for AT&T’s Access program, don’t worry.

You could always apply to Lifeline and see if you can qualify for the Lifeline discount on its own.

Alternatively, with some smart bundling moves, AT&T’s fiber internet plans are actually incredibly affordable.

Every AT&T Fiber internet plan comes with free equipment, unlimited data, and free self-installation (much like the Access program). Plus, if you are an AT&T Wireless customer, you can (and should) add up some major internet discounts.

1. Save 20% every month: Bundle internet with unlimited wireless from AT&T and see a 20% discount on your internet bill every month.

• For example, if you bundle with AT&T’s cheapest fiber plan for $55 a month, adding an AT&T Wireless service would bring down your internet bill to around $44/mo. That’s not as low as $30/mo with Access, but that’s not too bad either! Plus, you’ll be getting 300Mbps speed, which will allow you to do much more with your internet connection.

2. Get six months of AT&T Fiber free: When you sign up for AT&T Wireless and purchase a new smartphone on installment, you can get six months of AT&T Fiber internet for free.

• You must pay for the first six months of internet service, but then AT&T will send you a reward card to pay for your internet service for the second half of the year. This is an absolute steal when you consider that you’d only have your wireless bill and a smartphone payment for six whole months (no internet bill to worry about!).

AT&T offers five fiber plans ranging from $55 to $155 per month for speeds from 300Mbps to 5,000Mbps. While there is one AT&T Internet Air plan for its 5G service, we recommend fiber (always).

According to our data on the average price of internet, people pay an average of $81.27 per month for fiber internet. This means that even the cheapest AT&T Fiber plan for $55 per month is impressively affordable.

AT&T is almost $20 cheaper than Google Fiber’s cheapest plan, which starts at $70 per month. Verizon Fios is also another big fiber competitor and its internet plan for 300Mbps starts at around $50 per month (that’s a $5 difference between Verizon and AT&T, so you’re not losing out on much).

Enter your zip code below into our search tool to see the other internet options actually available in your area.

To apply for AT&T’s Access program:

1. Enter your address on AT&T’s site to see if AT&T offers home internet at your address.
2. After you confirm that AT&T is available to you, check the qualifying income table. You may also need to provide some documentation for the government assistance program you participate in (for example, a copy of the approval letter for the Pell Grant, copy of the rental agreement confirming Federal Public Housing Assistance, or copy of Medicaid health insurance card…etc.).
3. After you submit, check your email from SheerID Verification (verify@sheerid.com) and follow the instructions in the email for next steps.
4. If you have any further questions, you can reach out for assistance at:

Even if you can’t qualify for the low-income plan from AT&T, there are ways to still get a great deal on high-speed internet for an affordable price.

When you sign up for autopay and paperless billing on your AT&T internet bill, you can save $10 per month in the snap of a finger. The autopay must come from a debit card or checking account. You only get a $5 discount if you set up autopay with your credit card.

If you plan to bundle your AT&T Wireless service with an internet plan, maximize the discounts you can get on your wireless service.

Here are some eligible groups and organizations that can save $10 per month (and potentially get an extra 25% off) on their bill:

• Business employees
• AARP members
• Union members
• College students
• Military, veterans
• First responders
• Nurses and physicians
• Teachers
• Seniors 55+
• Seniors 55+ in Florida

Are you actually using the internet speed you pay for?

There’s a good chance that maybe an AT&T rep talked you into Gig speeds when you first signed up. Most people can do most of their internet activities with 300Mbps, which is the cheapest plan AT&T Fiber offers. If you’re paying for the 500Mbps plan or even the 1Gig plan, there’s a good chance that you’re paying almost $30 more than you need to.

Consider downgrading your plan to see if the speeds are adequate for you. And pocket that extra money.

Sometimes, you just need to break up with your internet provider. Unless you’re stuck in the middle of nowhere, you probably have internet options … and those options are probably affordable too.

Check out what other providers are available in your zip code. See all of your options for free in seconds.