What’s the Cheapest Xfinity Internet Plan?

Xfinity’s cheapest internet plan is the Connect plan. The Connect plan starts at $19.99 per month for 150Mbps download speed in Western states but is offered for $30 in other areas. After a year of service, your plan will go up to $57 per month when you include the $10 autopay discount. Depending on where you live, you may have equipment included with your plan, otherwise you can opt for a gateway rental for $15 per month, or use your own for free. The professional installation also costs $100, or you can pay $39.99 to install it yourself. Xfinity plans come with a 1.2TB monthly data cap, but this is plenty for most households.

$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: this includes the National School Lunch Program, housing assistance, Medicaid, SNAP, and others, or were previously enrolled in the Affordable Connectivity Program with Xfinity
• Haven’t had Xfinity Internet within the last 90 days
• Doesn’t owe money on any Comcast account that is less than one year old (waived for new Xfinity customers until the end of 2024)

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, no credit checks, free internet training, access to Xfinity’s Wi-Fi hotspots, and the opportunity to buy a computer for just $150.

Xfinity offers many plans that range from 150Mbps up to 2,000Mbps download speeds in some areas. Plans cost between $19.99 up to $95 per month, and contracts are generally for 12 to 24 months. All plans come with 1.2TB of data usage every month, which is plenty for most households. Equipment is sometimes included as part of a promotional deal, but otherwise it costs $15 per month to rent, or you can supply your own. Installation costs $100 if you book a professional technician or $39.99 if you it yourself.

Yes, Xfinity's internet prices go up after the first 12 to 24 months, depending on your plan and area of service.

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. Below is a table of Xfinity's Western U.S. prices (other areas may have different prices).

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. The best way to go about this is to arm yourself with knowledge of the providers available in your area who are offering cheaper plans and using this knowledge to leverage a deal with 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.