The average US internet bill is $63 per month. Here’s how you can reduce it

If you’ve been with the same ISP for a while, it probably seems like it’s getting more expensive every year. Actually the price is Reason #1 that people choose not to have a home internet connection at all.

A CNET analysis of available Internet plans found that the average cost of Internet in the U.S. is $63 per month for all available speeds, with auto-pay discounts applied. This price does not include equipment rental costs, which on average add another $15 to your monthly bill. That brings the total to about $78 a month for home Internet — almost exactly the $75 that Consumer Reports reports found when it analyzed 18,359 internet accounts in 2022.

It’s a big expense, of course — especially when you consider price increases that many ISPs build into their plans – but there is a price for Internet growing more slowly than general inflation. According to art FCC analysisThe inflation-adjusted cost of internet fell by 19% between 2009 and 2009. and 2023

To find out the real cost of internet in the US, I turned to CNET’s ISP database, which is updated regularly by entering nationwide addresses for 27 of the largest providers.

There is a huge range of prices available. Astounded, Mediacom, Xfinity and Ziply Fiber all offer plans starting at just $20 per month. Ziply also has the most expensive (and fastest) internet plan in the country by a mile: $900 a month for a ridiculously overpriced 50Gbps plan.

For many people, $63 a month probably sounds like a pretty good deal. If you’re paying significantly more than that, consider it a wake-up call. There are steps you can take to lower your costs, such as negotiating your bill, buying your own equipment, or switching to a cheaper plan. But the best option may be to switch providers altogether. There was one an unprecedented federal investment in the Internet infrastructure over the past few years, along with new technologies such as 5G home internet. If you haven’t evaluated your options in a while, you might be surprised to find some new ISPs on the block.

Internet price according to connection type

How much you pay for internet is heavily influenced by the type of connection you use. This analysis confirms what many rural internet customers have known for years: rural providers are the most expensive, slowest connections around.

DSL and satellite Internet — often the only options in rural areas — were the slowest connections so far. DSL was particularly slow, with an average download speed of just 40Mbps, which is not up to par The FCC’s minimum definition of broadband Internet.

Satellite internet was prohibitively more expensive than other types of connections. Satellite providers averaged $110 per month for a 100Mbps download speed.

Cable Internet prices usually start out pretty low, but these providers will most likely raise your prices in a year or two (or both). Fiber internet was also on the more expensive side, but plans don’t usually come with price increases. The average price for fiber Internet was $75 a month in the first year and $83 in the third — much less than cable’s $28 jump from the first year to the third.

Equipment charges

About half the internet plans I looked at include a monthly equipment fee, but you always have the option to do so buy your own modem and router instead of renting it every month from your ISP. The average equipment fee was $15 per month. The rise of broadband and Spectrum have the lowest equipment costs, at $10 per month, while Starlink has the highest, with a required upfront equipment purchase of $499 to $2,500.

The following providers do not charge for additional equipment:

Some suppliers raise prices after a year or two

Aspiring accounts are one of the most frustrating parts of being an internet customer, and this analysis revealed exactly how much your bill will grow in year two (or three).

Although the average price in the first year was $63 per month, it rose to $76 in the second year and $80 in the third year. Some of the providers with the steepest price increases were Mediacom ($50 in the second year), Spectrum ($20-$30 in the second year), and Cox ($28 in the third year). Here are the average price increases associated with each provider:

Garbage charges

These are the extra fees that ISPs add to your bill for vague purposes like “network support” or “technology service.” Fortunately, they are largely a thing of the past. Altice, the company behind Optimum and Suddenlink, was forced to pay $15 million in a class action in 2023 for this type of fee. I found only five providers that currently charge garbage fees.

With that in mind, I wouldn’t be shocked to hear about ISPs adding fees after you sign up that weren’t mentioned while you were shopping. Consumer Reports’ analysis is in 2022, but it found 13 ISPs that have junk fees on their bills.

How to lower your internet bill

If you’re paying too much for your internet, there are a few steps you can take reduce your monthly expenses. Here’s what you can do:

• Buy your own modem and router: This is the low end of reducing your internet bill. If your provider charges you for equipment, buy your own modem and router it will almost always pay for itself in the first year. I learned this the hard way myself when I was spending almost $1000 equipment rental from Xfinity for six years. You can usually get both for just over $100. CNET’s pick for the best wifi router it currently goes for $75 and you can get a decent modem for around $50. Just make sure it’s compatible with your ISP before you pull the trigger. As an added bonus, you may also see a nice increase in internet speed.
• Negotiate with your current provider: ISPs used to be willing to work with customers when prices got out of hand, but that has changed somewhat in recent years. Still, sometimes getting a better price is as simple as calling your ISP and asking for it. Before you call, do some research on what rates they offer to new customers and what plans competitors in the area offer. And if there is a store in your area, visit it in person. Many customers have had better luck talking face-to-face than trying to get a real person on the phone.
• Downgrade your plan: Many of us probably pay more internet speed than we really need. The average internet plan offers 600Mbps download speed – enough to stream Netflix in 4K on 40 TVs at once. The speeds advertised by the providers are for a wired connection and Wi-Fi will slow it down significantly, but you get the idea. If you’re getting speeds above 500 Mbps, I recommend considering whether you can handle a slower plan.
• Switch provider: If all else fails, the best way to get a better price on the internet is to change ISP generally to take advantage of first year pricing. You can see exactly which providers are available to you by entering your address in FCC Broadband Card. From there, you’ll need to enter your address on each provider’s website to find details about their plans and prices.