What’s the Cheapest Xfinity Internet Plan?

Xfinity Internet has some of the lowest prices in the industry. Xfinity’s Connect plan gets you online with one of the fastest internet providers in the country for as little as $20 a month. Here’s a closer look at Xfinity’s cheapest standard plan.

$20 a month is a very good price for a 150 Mbps internet plan. But you might be able to get an even cheaper deal with Xfinity with the Internet Essentials plan. However, only certain low-income households will be able to sign up.

In order to qualify for the Internet Essentials plan from Xfinity, you need to meet one of the following criteria:

• Participate in assistance programs like the National School Lunch Program, housing assistance, Medicaid, or SNAP
• Enroll in the Affordable Connectivity Program

Also, anyone who has been signed up for another Xfinity plan in the last 90 days, or owes money on any Comcast account, will not be eligible.

So, what do you get with this exclusive plan? Here are the deets.

One big benefit of Xfinity’s Internet Essentials plans is that they aren’t subject to the same nasty price hikes the company institutes with other plans (we’ll talk about those more below). These aren’t promotional prices, but real, bare-bones prices.

The Internet Essentials plans also give you benefits like free modem and Wi-Fi equipment rental, free internet training, access to Xfinity’s Wi-Fi hotspots, and the opportunity to buy a computer for just $150.

As an Xfinity customer myself, I can say that the company is not necessarily transparent about its prices. Yes, you can get bargain aisle prices on very fast and reliable cable internet plans, but those prices will go up after your first year or two of service. The company definitely doesn’t go out of its way to advertise this fact.

As one Xfinity customer we interviewed said, "I wish that they would treat their new customers the same as their existing customers.” I couldn't agree more.

So, how bad are these price hikes? Here’s a quick look at what your plan pricing could look like after the promo prices end with different Xfinity plans.

As you can see, some plans can more than triple in price after the promotional period ends. That’s not ideal.

Luckily, Xfinity’s cheap internet plans don’t require a contract. So you can cancel at any time and move to another provider. This also gives you leeway to negotiate with Xfinity when your promotional price period ends. Here are some tips.

There are plenty of tricks for lowering your Xfinity internet bill, like choosing a speed that reflects your household bandwidth usage or buying your own Wi-Fi equipment. But getting out of Xfinity’s price hikes can be a more tricky maneuver.

When we talked with one Xfinity customer in Connecticut, Bill Holmes, he told us about one possible workaround. When his price hikes with Xfinity were getting intolerable, he and his wife just canceled the service, and then signed up again under her name. “She’s a brand new customer, so we got a two-year [deal] for $39.99 a month,” he said.

Another, more straightforward way to deal with price hikes from Xfinity is to negotiate. There are plenty of Comcast Xfinity customers on Reddit who can provide examples of their successes (and failures) in negotiating a lower price with Xfinity customer service.

If you’re not finding a cheap plan from Xfinity that hits the spot, or if your cheap Xfinity promotional price has ended, you might want to consider some other cheap ISPs. Here are some of our favorites.