10 Cheapest Internet and Wi-Fi Providers 2022

We chose AT&T Fiber, CenturyLink, Xfinity, Spectrum, and WOW! Internet as our top cheap internet providers. And while your internet costs depend largely on where you live, these internet service providers (ISPs) all offer at least one cheap internet plan at or under $50 a month.

To find these cheap Wi-Fi plans, we dug through pricing data, fees, and fine print. We also made sure these plans offered at least enough speed and data for you to, you know, actually use your internet connection rather than wait for everything to load. And we considered how service areas are limited, which is why you won’t see Astound Broadband, powered by RCN or Grande in our top five.

Read on to see how these ISPs provide the most value without upending your budget.

If you’re searching for a cheap Wi-Fi plan, you might be tempted to focus on price only. But there are a few more things you should consider including internet speed, additional fees, price hikes, and contracts.

1. Promotional prices: Most ISPs start you out with a low price, but you’ll typically see a price bump after 12 to 24 months.
2. Autopay and paperless billing: Almost every advertised price you see for internet assumes that you’ll sign up for autopay and paperless billing. Make a note to yourself to not skip this step—we’ve had friends lose out on discounted prices because they forgot to change their billing settings.
3. Internet speed: An affordable internet plan isn’t worth it if you can’t actually use the internet. Look for speeds of at least 50 Mbps—or check out our internet speed guide for recommendations.
4. Data caps: A data cap can quickly become a money sink if you continuously use more than you’re given. Most ISPs charge a pretty penny for extra data, so be sure that your cheap internet plan comes with enough data to keep you going for a month.
5. Equipment fees: Will you rent equipment? If so, factor in the monthly rental fee. But remember: You’ll end up saving money if you bring your own equipment instead.
6. Installation fees: Don’t forget about installation—these fees range anywhere from $50 to $100. But some ISPs now offer self-installation kits at no extra cost, so you could save some cash there.
7. Contracts and early termination fees: If your cheap internet plan comes with a contract, beware of a potentially hefty early termination fee (ETF). If you cancel your contract early, you could pay up to $500.

Our resident internet expert, Juan, shares some tips for finding cheap internet—along with traps to watch out for. Plus we've got some related reads to help you too.

• The Best Internet Service Providers
• How Much Internet Speed Do You Need?
• How to Lower Your Internet Bill
• How to Get Low-Cost Internet Assistance
• How to Get Free Internet and Wi-Fi

AT&T Fiber offers some of the lowest starting prices out there, if not the lowest. And those low prices also come with fiber internet speeds and reliability, which makes AT&T a great value choice for anyone who needs their internet at 110% every day.

Even after your promotional price ends, the cost of the AT&T Fiber Internet 300 plan is just above $50 a month for 300 Mbps download speeds.

To top it off, your AT&T Fiber internet comes with unlimited data. So you won’t need to worry about paying for overages or for extra data.

AT&T Fiber also has one of the lowest equipment rental fees. And though you’ll need to sign a contract, its ETF maxes out at $180. That’s far lower than the $500 or more some providers charge if you cancel service early.

• Look for deals: AT&T is constantly offering deals on its internet service. Whether it’s a Visa rewards card or a streaming subscription, these bonuses only sweeten an already great deal.
• Negotiate for free installation: It never hurts to get on the phone and ask for free installation, especially since AT&T Fiber’s fee is one of the steeper charges around.
• Use your own equipment: If possible, forego the $10 monthly equipment rental fee and use your own router. This could save you $120 a year—that’s about the cost of a quality router.

View AT&T Fiber Internet Plans | Read Full AT&T Internet Review

AT&T provides internet in 21 states, including California, Texas, Michigan, Mississippi, Tennessee, Florida, Georgia, and Illinois.

That’s a pretty big coverage area, but its fiber internet service is mainly available in big cities and suburbs within those states. That includes cities like Anaheim, CA, Austin, TX, and Skokie, IL.

Pretty much all of AT&T’s three fiber internet plans come at a great price. But if you don’t need those faster speeds, Internet 300 is still the best deal.

An ISP committing to no price hikes is almost unheard of, but a locked-in price comes standard with CenturyLink. So while its estimated annual cost looks pricey, keep in mind that you’ll pay that same price year after year as long as you remain in good standing.

Your CenturyLink internet plan also comes with unlimited data, which is a huge bonus if you work from home or download a lot of large files. (Like video games.)

On the downside, the bulk of CenturyLink internet plans are DSL. And while you might get lucky and snag the max 100 Mbps speeds, it’s possible you could be stuck with 40 or even 20 Mbps. It all depends on where you live.

That’s also why the CenturyLink Simply Unlimited Internet plan’s price per Mbps differs so much. If you luck out and get 100 Mbps, you’ll pay less per Mbps than you would if you got 20 Mbps speeds.

CenturyLink also offers a fiber internet plan along with its DSL service, but it’s limited to big cities. But it’s a good deal if you live in an area where it’s offered, and we’d recommend fiber over DSL internet any day.

• Compare your options: We’re not gonna lie, CenturyLink isn’t the most amazing deal if all you can get are its slower download speeds. If you’re stuck with options at 40 Mbps or slower, check around and see if there are faster ISPs in your area.
• Ask for free installation: That $99 installation fee can really drag your first bill down. See if you can avoid it by asking for a free installation deal. You might be pleasantly surprised by the answer.
• Use your own equipment: Renting CenturyLink’s modem costs $180 a year, and that’s more than most brand new modem and router combos cost. So save some cash and buy your own.

View CenturyLink Internet Plans | Read Full CenturyLink Internet Review

If you live in a rural area, CenturyLink is definitely worth checking out. But it also may be worth checking out Optimum and Kinetic by Windstream to see which offers more coverage in your area. You’ll find CenturyLink DSL internet service in 36 different states, stretching from Washington on the West Coast all the way to North Carolina on the East Coast. Not to mention several states in between, like Colorado and Minnesota. 

But Centurylink’s fiber internet plan is available only in 19 different cities. That includes Phoenix, AZ, Denver, CO, Orlando, FL, and Omaha, NE.

CenturyLink offers only two official plans, but both are a great deal.

Xfinity is known for low promotional prices, and the speeds you get are decent too. On top of that, Xfinity regularly offers deals. That could net you a Visa rewards card or a streaming service subscription on top of an already low starting cost for internet.

Comcast also upgraded its slowest internet plan last year, bumping the download speed up from 25 Mbps to 50 Mbps. That’s a better starting speed: 50 Mbps should allow you to stream, game, and work from home if you’re not sharing the internet with lots of devices or other people.

One thing to keep in mind with Xfinity is that the prices and plan names change depending on where you live. So our recommended cheap internet plan, the Connect plan, may go by a different name and price in your area. But generally, Xfinity’s 50 Mbps plan is affordable and offers good value.

You should also keep in mind that all Xfinity internet plans come with a 1.2 TB data cap. While most of us won’t come close to using this much data in a month, you may want to look elsewhere if you run a home business or freelance as a creative professional.

Xfinity has options to add data, but they’ll cost you $10–$30 extra per month. And more data won't fix those slow upload speeds of 3 Mbps. At that upstream speed, your FaceTime or Zoom calls will probably stutter and lag.

• Look for online deals: Xfinity usually offers deals on its internet service, and almost always has a deal ready for teachers and students.
• Renegotiate your price before your contract is up: Set up a reminder on your phone to call a week or two before your 12- or 24-month contract is up. Then call Xfinity and ask if there are any deals you’re eligible for. We’ve had Xfinity reps surprise us with deals on upgraded speeds and bundles in the past.
• Bring your own equipment: Xfinity’s xFi modem-and-router combo is fairly pricey to rent. It’ll cost you $168 over the course of a year, which is about how much a decent modem-router combo costs anyway. So buy your own and save some money over the long term.

View Xfinity Internet Plans | Read Full Xfinity Internet Review

Xfinity internet is available in 40 states stretching from California to Maryland. You’ll most likely find it in states like Washington, Delaware, Massachusetts, Florida, and Pennsylvania.

Prices and plan names may vary depending on where you live, but we’ve found that these Comcast Xfinity plans tend to have great value.

Spectrum’s prices start high, but so do its speeds. And with no contracts, unlimited data, and one of the lowest equipment fees we’ve seen, Spectrum’s cheapest internet plan offers a good value.

In fact, if you just need a Spectrum modem, it comes included with your plan. There’s no extra cost per month to rent it. Now that is a customer-friendly approach to equipment if we’ve ever seen one.

But the real star of the show is Spectrum’s Contract Buyout program. If you’re stuck in a contract with your current ISP and want to swap, Spectrum will pay up to $500 to buy out that contract if you swap to its service.

Despite this perk, we wouldn’t recommend any other Spectrum plans if you’re looking for cheap internet. The Gig plan especially—it comes in at one of the highest prices for gigabit speeds we’ve seen. And the installation fee for the Gig plan is $199.99. That’s like a lead weight tied to your first bill.

• Use the Contract Buyout: You could save up to $500 in ETFs by switching to Spectrum and signing up for its buyout program.*
• Use your own router: Spectrum includes a modem with your plan at no cost, so why not bring your own router to save $60 each year?
• Ask about free installation: Spectrum charges a $19.99 installation fee—unless you choose it’s Gig plan. Either way, it never hurts to ask if the sales rep can sweeten the deal with free installation.

View Spectrum Internet Plans | See Spectrum Contract Buyout | Read Full Spectrum Internet Review

You’ll find Spectrum internet in 42 different states. It’s mainly focused in the Northeast along with Wisconsin, Ohio, and North Carolina.

Like we mentioned, the Spectrum Internet plan is the cheapest internet plan Spectrum offers. But if you absolutely need more download speed, the Ultra plan might still be a good deal for you.

WOW! recently dropped its data cap from unlimited to a max of 3 TB, but even with this (frankly frustrating) change, the ISP still offers some great deals.

If you’re looking for the cheapest WOW! Internet plan, look no further than Internet 100. Even at its standard rate, it rings in under $50 a month and comes with a decent data cap of 1.5 TB.

This speed works great for a small family who enjoy streaming and gaming together. And if one of you works from home, 100 Mbps download speeds should keep your connected devices running smoothly even through those Zoom calls.

WOW! also regularly offers deals, such as discounted promotional prices for your first year of service or a free modem rental for your first few months. That can make your first year cost even lower.

And hey, the price for Internet 100 right now is one of those deals. 

• Wait for a deal: We’ve seen deals on WOW! internet for up to $20 a month off your plan, along with deals for free installation and free modem rental. So waiting for a deal before you switch to WOW! could save you a couple hundred dollars or more.
• Use your own router: Bring your own router and you could save up to $168 each year. Guess what? That’s about how much a high-quality router costs on Amazon too.
• Make sure you get enough data: WOW!’s internet plans feature data caps, and while that’s quite a bit of data, you still want to be aware and monitor your data use. No one likes a surprise overage fee, right?

See WOW! Internet Plans | Read Full WOW! Internet Review

WOW! internet is available in various metro areas of 9 states: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, South Carolina, and Tennessee.

Pretty much all of WOW!’s internet plans come at affordable prices, especially if you sign up during one of the ISP’s promotions. Just keep an eye on that standard pricing to make sure it won’t bust your budget after your first year is done.

• AT&T Fiber Internet 300: $55.00/mo.^*, 300 Mbps download speeds, unlimited data
• CenturyLink Simply Unlimited Internet: $50.00/mo.^**, up to 100 Mbps download speeds, unlimited data
• Xfinity Performance Starter Plus: $34.99/mo.^†, 50 Mbps download speeds, 1.25 TB data cap
• Spectrum Internet®: $49.99/mo. for 12 mos., up to 200 Mbps download speeds (wireless speeds may vary), unlimited data
• WOW! Internet 100: $29.99/mo.^††, 100 Mbps download speeds, unlimited data (in some areas)
• Verizon Fios Home Internet 200/200: $39.99/mo.^‡, 200 Mbps download speeds, unverified data cap (but likely unlimited)
• Astound Broadband, Powered by RCN 250 Mbps Internet: $34.99/mo.^‡‡, 250 Mbps download speeds, unlimited data
• Optimum 300 Mbps Internet: $30.00/mo.^§, 300 Mbps download speeds, unlimited data
• Mediacom Internet 100: $19.99/mo.^§§, 100 Mbps download speeds, 200 GB data cap
• Astound Broadband, Powered by Grande Cable Internet 300: $35.99/mo.^¶, 300 Mbps download speeds, unlimited data

Finding cheap internet doesn’t always mean going for the lowest price. To round up our top picks that won’t bust your budget, we considered the following:

• Promo pricing and what your price becomes after the promotional period
• Extra fees, like installation and equipment or device rental
• Any red flags in the fine print

Red flags in the fine print is why you’ll find Optimum lower on the list. We took a look at a list of its fees and were startled by the sheer number of extra charges you might rack up, plus we were appalled at the fact that every Optimum customer now pays a “network enhancement fee.”

And sky-high installation fees are one of the reasons why we don’t recommend Spectrum’s Gig plan. (Not to mention it has a very high monthly price for the speed you get.)

Still have questions about how to get cheap internet? We can help.