Best No Contract Internet Providers

There was a time when most internet companies required contracts. Now the opposite is true: Most ISPs are contract free. While some people may miss the security of knowing your price stayed locked in for a year or more, we think it's better to be free.

With more ISPs than ever before, there are more deals to take advantage of. With a contract-free plan, you can cancel your service at any time to switch to a better or cheaper ISP. Or, you can at least threaten to do so when you’re negotiating with your current ISP.

When we asked internet customers what they thought on Quora, we found many people who agreed. Chris Summers said they preferred contract-free “because if a competitor has a similar plan at a cheaper price, I can always move when I want to.”

I can tell you I prefer a no-contract plan, but as others have pointed out, it can be a mixed bag. Contracts generally involve a lower price for some part of the term, but they also usually have early termination fees—although if the company will enforce that varies.

Tim Wort writes, “With more options, there are more opportunities to switch. More competition. You don’t want to be locked in.”

So we all agree. The only question left is this: What no-contract plan should you choose? We’ve got five great suggestions. We’ll start with our favorite all around no-contract ISP: Verizon.

Verizon Fios isn’t just the best month-to-month Wi-Fi provider—it’s one of the best internet service providers, period. That’s because the company offers superfast symmetrical speeds, great prices, tons of perks, and, of course, no fees or punishments for canceling service.

In an analysis of our own proprietary data from thousands of internet customers, we also found that Verizon Fios has the lowest average latency, at just 13.28 ms. That low latency, plus the high-speed fiber connection, make Fios one of the best providers for gaming and working from home.

On top of all this, Verizon currently has a four-year price guarantee on its Fios 1 Gig and 2 Gig plans and a three-year price lock on its 500Mbps plan. That means that you can get the benefits of having a contract (a stable price) without any of the drawbacks (being locked in with a single provider with cancellation fees).

Here’s a look at all the Fios home internet plans that Verizon is offering right now. Keep in mind that these plans are available only in the Northeastern U.S. (you can learn more about Verizon Fios availability in our standalone review). People in other parts of the country might still be able to get onto Verizon’s 5G Home Internet.

All of Verizon’s plans are contract free, so you don’t have to worry about negotiating that. Also, Verizon’s Wi-Fi router and modem rental fees are baked into the prices you see above, which we love. But there are some other tricks for getting the best price.

First of all, be sure to sign up for Verizon Fios online. When you order your internet service through Verizon’s website, the company will waive the normal $99 installation fee. Woohoo!

Even better, you can get up to $25 off your bill every month (that’s $300 a year) if you’re on an eligible Verizon Wireless unlimited data plan. You get the mobile network with the best coverage and a discount on a no-contract internet plan. It’s win-win!

T-Mobile’s 5G Home Internet service makes it very easy to sign up for contract-free high-speed internet. All you have to do is order online, set up your equipment, and you’ll be online.

The fact that T-Mobile’s 5G home internet service is so easy to set up—there’s no need to run a wire into your house—and the fact that you can keep the service when you move, make it perfect for folks who move around a lot. You can get service almost anywhere in the United States (T-Mobile claims that their internet service is available to over 50 million homes).

T-Mobile 5G Home Internet offers only two plans. They offer unlimited data and download speeds up to 245Mbps. That might not be enough for homes with 10+ connected devices or for serious online gamers, but it's plenty for most folks.

Of course, there are no contracts with T-Mobile’s 5G Home Internet service. That—plus the easy set up—makes it the ideal as a stopgap internet solution when you’re between apartments or homes.

We found one user on Reddit who was planning to move in a few months when their Xfinity Internet contract came to an end. Because they didn’t want to renew their yearly contract with Xfinity, they had to find another way to get internet at their location for just a few months. They ended up going with T-Mobile.

“I’m lucky and I live within one mile of a T-Mobile 5G tower, and I’m getting 700Mbps average speeds with a peak of 1.2Gbps,” the Reddit user said. They recommended that other people in the same situation give it a try.

T-Mobile recently added its 5G Internet Plus plan for $70 a month. We don’t love that price, but it’s still a decent deal when you consider that there are no equipment rental fees or other charges to worry about. And with Internet Plus, users get additional Wi-Fi equipment and 24/7 tech support.

You can also cut down that monthly price if you sign up for (or are already signed up for) certain unlimited data plans from T-Mobile. If you have a Go5G Next, Go5G Plus, or Magenta MAX phone plan, then T-Mobile’s contract-free internet is just $40 to $50 a month!

AT&T’s fiber-optic internet plans are some of the best in the industry. They give you superfast symmetrical speeds for reasonable prices. While the company doesn’t have a price lock guarantee like Verizon does, it's still a great deal overall for contract-free internet.

Here’s a detailed look at the AT&T’s no-contract fiber plans.

As you can see, AT&T’s internet plans go all the way up to 5,000Mbps! That’s way more speed than most households will need. Even huge families with dozens of connected devices that stream HD video could get away with AT&T’s 1,000Mbps plan.

This is especially true because, according to our proprietary data from almost 1,000 individual AT&T Fiber customers, the company actually gives you the speeds you pay for. AT&T fiber customers who took our speed test were regularly seeing speeds in the 300–900Mbps range.

Signing up for a no-contract Wi-Fi plan with AT&T is easy to do online. Just beware that you might see a couple of unpleasant fees.

There’s a $10 equipment rental fee that you can skip if you invest in your own Wi-Fi router device. Unfortunately, you won’t be able to skip the installation fees, which cost $35 for self-installation and $99 for professional installation.

You can lower your monthly AT&T bill if you have a qualifying mobile plan from AT&T Wireless. Customers with an unlimited data plan will see $20 a month cut from their internet bill, which would make that no-contract AT&T Internet 300 just $35 a month!

AT&T customers can save $5 a month by paying with a credit card or $10 a month by paying with a debit card or bank account.

If you want the very best internet that money can buy, Google Fiber is the way to go. Its plans are not particularly cheap, but they are contract free. Plus, you’ll get the exceptional reliability and customer service that Google is known for. When we interviewed Chance Carter, a Google Fiber customer in Provo, Utah, they said, “I’ve never had a problem with it. In fact, it’s the first internet provider I haven’t had an issue with.”

Just how fast is Google Fiber? Let’s put it this way: It’s the only company that has ever received a 5/5 rating in our “speed and reliability” stress test. In our proprietary speed data from thousands of customers, Google Fiber routinely tops the list on both download and upload speeds. This finding is backed up by independent data from Ookla, which found that Google Fiber has the fastest average download speeds in five of the states where it operates.

Here’s a quick peek at Google Fiber’s no-contract internet plans.

The biggest issue with Google Fiber isn’t the performance or even the cost (you get a great deal, megabits-per-dollar wise). It’s the limited availability that makes it hard to sign up.

Currently, Google Fiber is available only in select cities, like Atlanta, Denver, Des Moines, and Salt Lake City. You can see if Google Fiber is available in your city by using this nifty zip code tool.

Google Fiber offers the best internet performance in the industry, and they know it. That’s why the company doesn’t have to offer any sweetheart deals or bundle discounts. The prices you see here are as good as it gets.

Luckily, you won’t have to worry about hidden fees. There are no installation fees, equipment rental fees, or, of course, early termination fees.

Astound Broadband offers incredibly cheap, contract free cable internet plans. You can get online with 300Mbps speeds for around $35 a month (after fees). That’s about as good as it gets from a megabits-per-dollar perspective.

The biggest drawback to Astound Broadband is that its prices and policies can be a little confusing. For one, there are two different services associated with Astound: Grande and RCN. Astound offers slightly different RCN and Grande plans in different regions.

But here’s a look at some of Astound Broadband’s plans available.

If those prices look too good to be true, it’s because they kind of are. These are promotional prices, and they will go up by a significant amount after the first 12 months. This is why it's so important to get a contract-free plan. You can get fast, cheap internet for a year, and then you can switch when the price hikes kick in.

Another sneaky way that Astound extracts money from customers is with fees.

The company charges a one-time $10 activation fee and something called a “Network Access and Maintenance Fee”. Plus, equipment rental can be $20 or more a month (which is why we suggest buying your own).

We don’t know any way to get around the activation and Network Access fees. Just be sure to keep an eye on your bill so you can flag any new fees or fee increases.

With the providers we’ve highlighted here, it’s easy to get a cheap, no-contract internet plan. Here are a few tips to help you keep your internet bill low for the long haul.

• Bundle: You can save money on your internet plan when you bundle with other services, like mobile and cable TV.
• Get the right plan: Many people end up paying for more internet bandwidth than they actually use. Figure out exactly how many Mbps you need before you pick a plan.
• Know the deals: Keep a close eye on the websites of the ISPs in your area. There are often limited time deals for new customers who switch and, with a contract-free plan, you’ll be in the perfect position to move over to a new provider.
• Buy your own equipment: Paying upfront to buy your own modem and Wi-Fi router can save you money and boost your internet performance in the long run.
• Negotiate: If you feel like you’re not getting a good deal on your internet, call up your Wi-Fi provider and tell them. You might be able to negotiate a lower rate, especially if you threaten to move to a competitor.
• Change providers: If none of that works, find a cheaper plan! You can see all of the options in your area by using the tool below.

These are the final standings of the best no-contract internet providers.

• Verizon Fios: Get the perfect mix of performance and price with Verizon's fiber internet plans.
• T-Mobile 5G Home Internet: T-Mobile makes it easy to sign up, set up, and use its 5G Home Internet, making it the perfect short- or long-term solution.
• AT&T Fiber: AT&T's high-performance fiber internet gives you more bang for your buck than any other no-contract ISP.
• Google Fiber: If speed is what you care about, then Google Fiber is the answer. It’s ideal for huge households, serious gamers, influencers, and other very online
• Astound Broadband: Astound isn’t the fastest internet in the world, but its prices are the lowest. Just be sure to read the fine print!

Before we wrote this review of the best no-contract ISPs, we did a lot of research. We interviewed customers, read third-party data, saw what the internet company’s had to say, and checked our own data from thousands of individual internet customers. We narrowed down our list by focusing on the following criteria:

1. Price
2. Download and upload speed
3. Network technology (fiber, cable, etc.) and reliability
4. Customer satisfaction
5. Availability