An Honest WOW! Internet Review, According to Customers

WOW! offers cable and fiber internet at competitive prices, making it an excellent option for folks in the South and Midwest.

Wow
WOW! Internet
3.9 out of 5 stars
3.9
Starts at$30/mo
  • Icon Blank

    4/5 - Speed and reliability
  • Icon Blank

    4.5/5 - Dollar value
  • Icon Blank

    3.3/5 - Customer experience
man popping out of a laptop with a speech bubbles with Wi-Fi, thumbs up, piggy bank
Brianne Sandorf
Oct 16, 2024
Icon Time To Read7 min read

If you want home internet that makes you say “Wow!” then you might have to go with … WOW!. This fiber and cable service offers reasonably-priced plans with no contracts, no data limits, and the option of a price-lock guarantee.

“I love it. It's reliable, and it's a great price,” says Gary LaPointe, who’s been with WOW! Internet in Dearborn, Michigan since 2015.

But WOW! has its drawbacks. It’s only available in a few places in the US, and we heard a few stories about issues with sales and customer service personnel.

Info Box

Here's why you can trust us:

Why should you trust Reviews.org? Because we are real people writing these reviews, and we talk to real people in order to do our research.

Our brand partners do not see or approve our articles before they are published, but we make a commission if you click an affiliate link. Learn more about Reviews.org on our About Us page.

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See if you’re a potential WOW! customer.

Get to know WOW!—plans and pricing

WOW! Internet offers four cable internet plans ranging from $30 to $95 per month and four fiber internet packages from $30 to $185 per month. 

Plan
Price
Download speed
Internet type
Details
300 Mbps$30.00/mo.300MbpsCable
600 Mbps$45.00/mo.600MbpsCable
1 Gig$60/mo.*1GbpsCable
Internet 1.2 Gig$95/mo.1.2GbpsCable
Fiber 100$30/mo.Up to 100 MbpsFiber
Fiber 1 Gig$80.00/mo.^1GbpsFiber
Fiber 3 Gig$100/mo.^3GbpsFiber
Fiber 5 Gig$185/mo.°5GbpsFiber
* wow-internet-internet-1-gig
*Price per month with AutoPay. Taxes and equipment extra. Package not available in all areas.
*Price per month with AutoPay & paperless billing. Additional equipment, taxes, and other fees extra. Fiber not available in all locations.
^ *Price per month with AutoPay & paperless billing. Additional equipment, taxes, and other fees extra. Maximum speeds based on wired connection and customer equipment capable of delivering 3 Gig speeds. Fiber not available in all locations.
° *Price per month with AutoPay & paperless billing. Additional equipment, taxes, and other fees extra. Maximum speeds based on wired connection and customer equipment capable of delivering 5 Gig speeds. Fiber not available in all locations.

Roughly half of WOW’s plans are cable-fiber hybrids, meaning there are some fiber-optic lines in the network, but the connections between this wider network and residences are copper cable. Though that doesn’t sound like a big deal, the material connecting your home to the service network really impacts internet speeds. Luckily, WOW! also has some FTTH plans as shown in the table above.

All of WOW!'s cable plans are well-priced and don't require contracts or data fees, but there are some strings attached. For instance, you must enroll in AutoPay to be eligible for the 300 Mbps plan at $30 monthly. And if you want the WOW! Price Lock Promise (which we heartily recommend), your monthly bill goes up to $35.

According to WOW!'s website, the full-fiber, or FTTH, plans range from 100Mbps for $30 to 5Gbps for $185. Like with the hybrid plans, these prices require you to enroll in AutoPay. But unlike the hybrid plans, the fiber plans don’t appear to have the Price Lock Promise Option.

Whatever plan you choose, your monthly cost also includes your WOW! modem or Hybrid Connection Pack, which saves you a few bucks. 

You can get a great deal with WOW! Internet. WOW!’s prices are competitive, even next to big cheeses like Google Fiber or AT&T.

You can also compare WOW! to other providers like T-Mobile 5G and Xfinity.

Which WOW! Internet plan is right for you?

WOW! Internet's 600 Mbps plan hits the sweet spot between speed and price. With 600Mbps, most households can easily stream in HD or 4K, game online, and video chat without a problem—even with several devices connected. Unless you have a big household or super heavy internet use (in which case we'd recommend upgrading to gig speeds), the 600 Mbps plan should work perfectly for most people looking for solid performance at a decent price.

WOW! fees for modem and installation

Equipment rental fee

Included in monthly price

Professional installation fee

$99

Self-installation activation fee

$10

Data as of 06/18/2024.

Where does WOW! Internet get its name?
Info Box

Living up to a name like WOW! seems a tall order, but there’s a reason for it. WOW! stands for Wide Open West, and its headquarters are in Englewood, Colorado—although curiously, WOW! isn’t available in Colorado anymore, so HQ probably doesn’t use its own service.

What makes this review legit?

Our fact-based research process centers on interviews with internet customers across the country, helping us understand how internet services hold up against diverse needs and challenges.

To put together this review, we talked with former and current WOW! customers, spent way too much time on the WOW! website, turned over stones in the dusty corners of the internet, tested WOW! customer service, and exchanged several emails with a WOW! spokesperson.

how we review products and services

Our breakdown of WOW! Internet features

For all our internet reviews, we give a rating based on three main criteria—speed and reliability, dollar value, and customer experience—which we then average to make an overall score.

Want to know how WOW! stacks up? See our full take below.

Overall score: 3.9/5

Speed and reliability

internet speed
4.0/5.0

WOW! Internet performs adequately in terms of both speed and reliability. Reviews.org’s proprietary speed test data shows that WOW!’s average download speed is 125.53Mbps, which isn’t shabby. In fact, it’s faster than some big-name providers.

On its website, WOW! offers “99.9% network reliability.” While that’s a bold claim, customers agree Reviews.org that WOW! is a reliable service. “It's been rock solid for me, generally even during power outages (for as long as my battery backup at home lasts),” says Gary LaPointe in Dearborn, Michigan.

Reddit user throwawaydakappa also has a positive take: “The speed has been great 95% of the time. Every once in a while I get an unstable connection with an intermittent speed.”

HighSpeedInternet.com tells a different story, though. Its 2023 customer satisfaction survey puts both WOW! speed and reliability just below average.

Dollar value

dollar value
4.5/5.0

The best deal WOW! offers for home internet is the 600Mbps plan for $45 a month. Most home residences are served best with speeds ranging between 300Mbps and 500Mbps, so that more than covers you at less than 10 cents per Mbps. Similarly, the best fiber WOW! deal is 500Mbps at $50 per month, which is almost as good a value.

According to LaPointe, WOW! Internet is an excellent deal.

He signed up for WOW! cable internet in 2015 for $29.99 a month for 30Mbps download speed. Now he pays $30 a month for 300. “I'm only paying one cent more than I was nine years ago for 10 times the speed,” he enthuses.

And the facts don’t lie: WOW! offers a lot for not-that-much money. It doesn’t have contracts, data caps, or separate equipment rental fees. Its installation and activation fees are modest, and you have the option of a price lock guarantee with certain plans. The plan costs are also more than reasonable for the advertised speeds.

Customer experience

customer experience
3.3/5.0

WOW!’s customer service is fine at best.

Reddit user throwawaydakappa says they once experienced a 20-minute outage followed by two hours of unstable service, and customer support was less than helpful. “The support on the phone claims the fiber terminal/modem doesn't actually have logs or a control panel anyone can access, but I think they're just poorly trained and not given the tools to support customer issues,” they say.

Similarly, HighSpeedInternet.com ranks WOW! Internet just below average for customer satisfaction, while the American Customer Service Index ranks WOW! slightly above average for fiber and slightly below for non-fiber (through the category "All Others").

I’d also like to point out that WOW!’s availability is quite limited. In some cases, even if you move even a single state away, you can’t stay on WOW!’s customer roster.

How long it took to get a real human on the phone: I wasn’t able to connect with a person. The WOW! phone bot wanted me to enter my account number, even after I selected the phone tree option to indicate I’m not a customer.

How the chat service is: The chat is apparently only for current customers—you have to enter an account number to get anywhere.

Overall quality

overall quality
3.9/5.0

WOW! delivers satisfactory speed and reliability, and it definitely offers excellent value. Customer service is fairly lacking, which while typical for internet service providers, is a letdown. All in all, though, you really can’t go wrong with this lesser-known internet provider, which offers impressive value that gives it an edge on much bigger internet brands.

WOW!—what deals and promotions can you get?

Want to save money on WOW! Internet or get discounts on other services? Check WOW!’s latest deal!

deals badge
You can save $10 each month on YouTube TV for one year when you bundle it with WOW! Internet service.

WOW! add-ons and perks


Discounts on WOW! mobile plans

Sign up for mobile after signing up for internet


WOW! Whole Home Wi-Fi

Sign up starting at $5 when you enroll in WOW! internet


What do customers think of WOW!?

Gary LaPointe of Dearborn, Michigan is crazy about WOW! Internet. He’s used a variety of WOW! cable plan options over the last nine years. “I've tried higher speeds up to 1Gbps, but the higher speeds were basically for two different reasons: higher upload speeds (most of the lower plans were only 10 Mbps up, and when I was teaching from home, I wanted a little higher upload speed) AND higher data cap (in some areas, they implemented a data cap and higher speed plans had higher caps).”

Through it all, LaPointe has staunchly remained a WOW! customer.

“It's been rock solid for me, and it's great speed for the price.” - Gary LaPointe

It’s not all sunshine and roses, though. Some WOW! customers definitely have frustrating experiences.

Reddit user throwawaydakappa had an inconsistent experience with WOW! customer service. When they initially interacted with a door-to-door WOW! salesman who offered them a discount, “I was impressed,” throwawaydakappa says. “They actually showed up the next day. They got everything installed.

“45 days later my service was disconnected for non-payment. Weird, cause my first month is supposed to be free.”

Need to contact WOW! customer service or tech support?

Try either of these:

  • Call 1-866-496-9669
  • Use the chat

Where can you get WOW! fiber service?

“WOW! is bringing its state-of-the-art, all-fiber network to new markets to meet the rising demand for fast and reliable broadband,” says WOW! Internet spokesperson Debra Havins. However, Havins declined to comment on locations of WOW!’s fiber internet service.

From customer reviews, we know there are fiber customers in parts of Florida and Michigan, and we expect WOW!’s fiber service will spread. Hopefully, the company will be more transparent about where WOW! Fiber is available in the future.

In the meantime, if you can’t get WOW! Fiber, you can still take advantage of the hybrid cable service, which is getting an upgrade alongside the fiber expansion. “In tandem, WOW! is upgrading its legacy hybrid fiber-coaxial (HFC) networks to expand its capabilities and meet the changing needs of customers,” says Havins.

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Have thoughts about home internet?

We’re eager to hear from internet customers about their experiences with their home Wi-Fi. Contact us at info@reviews.org to share your thoughts, recommendations, and hot tips.

Where is WOW! available?

WOW coverage map

WOW! is only available in certain Southeast and Midwestern states. Despite the name, you can’t get it in the Western US. Check this list of WOW!'s top cities or enter your zip code below to find out if WOW! is available in your neighborhood.

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See if you live in a WOW! service area.

WOW! vs. the competition

WOW! Internet definitely holds its own with the competition. While WOW! is less available than Xfinity and Spectrum, both its cable and fiber services compare well to rivals.

For instance, most of WOW!’s fiber plans compare well to similar plans from Google Fiber, even beating some of them. Google Fiber gives customers 2Gbps for $100 a month—but WOW! sells 3Gbps for the same price.

Compare internet providers and prices
Service
Prices
Download speed
Upload speed
Connection type
Details
WOW! Internet$30-$185**100-5000 Mbps20–5,000MbpsCable-fiber hybrid and fiber
Google Fiber$70-$150††1000-8000 Mbps1000-8000 MbpsFiber
AT&T Fiber$55-$245‡‡100-5000 Mbps100-5000 MbpsFiber
T-Mobile 5G Home Internet$50.00–$70.00/mo.^^72–245Mbps15–31Mbps5G
Verizon Fios Home Internet$49.99-$109.99°°300-2300 Mbps10-2300 MbpsFiber
Spectrum Internet®$25-$7050-1000 Mbps***4-35 MbpsCable and fiber
Offers and availability vary by location and are subject to change. Data verified as of the article's publication date.
** With AutoPay & paperless billing. Equipment, taxes, data allowance, and other fees extra. Other restrictions apply to usage-based plans.
†† Plus taxes and fees. Upload/download speed and device streaming claims are based on maximum wired speeds. Actual Internet speeds are not guaranteed and may vary based on factors such as hardware and software limitations, latency, packet loss, etc.
‡‡ Price after $5/mo Autopay & Paperless bill discount (w/in 2 bills). Plus taxes $ fees. Limited availability. May not be available in your area.
^^ w/ Auto Pay. Regulatory fees included in monthly price for qualified accounts. See full terms.
°° Price per month with Auto Pay & without select 5G mobile plans. Fios plan prices include taxes & fees
*** Limited time offer; subject to change; valid to qualified residential customers who have not subscribed to any services within the previous 30 days and who have no outstanding obligation to Charter.

Want WOW!? Find it in your area.

If you’re interested in getting WOW!, check and see if you live in one of its service areas.

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Find WOW! Internet near you.

FAQs

Yes. Our speed test shows that WOW!'s average download speed of 125.53 is faster than many big-name providers. Plus, WOW! offers both cable and fiber options, with speeds ranging from 100 Mbps to a whopping 5 Gbps. With eight different plans, including various prices and speeds, WOW! Internet has something for just about every household.

WOW! delivers solid speed and reliability. Customers told Reviews.org that the service stays dependable even during power outages, and they experience strong speeds more than 90% of the time.

Brianne Sandorf
Written by
Brianne has a degree in English and creative writing from Westminster College. She's spent the last 10+ years writing professional, research-based content about technology, luxury retail brands, chicken sandwiches, and everything in between. Before joining Reviews.org, Brianne wrote safety and security content for ASecureLife.com. Her pieces and quotes are published across the web, including on MSN.com, Social Catfish, and Parents.com. Brianne loves to read, write, travel, cook, and spend time with her family. Contact her at brianne@reviews.org.

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