Best Cheap Internet Packages for 2022
We’ve compared all the plans from every major internet provider to bring you the best Wi-Fi deals across the US.
Spectrum Internet
Price: $49.99/mo.
Speed: Up to 300 Mbps
Connection type: Cable
We’ve gathered up the best affordable internet plans from major providers across the US—each one costs around $50 per month. Our top recommendation is Xfinity Connect More because of its 200 Mbps download speed, high data allowance, and affordable price.
Recommended cheap Wi-Fi providers
- Xfinity—Best for cable
- Verizon Fios—Best for fiber
- AT&T—Best for DSL
- Xtream powered by Mediacom—Best rural internet alternative
- Spectrum—Fastest
- Cox—Runner-up
- CenturyLink—Unlimited data for DSL
You shouldn’t have to pay through the nose for high-speed internet, and these ISPs recognize that. Read on to learn about any standout deals, equipment, or add-ons you can get with these cheap internet Wi-Fi providers.
Best cheap Wi-Fi plans
| Plan | Starting price | Download speeds up to | Connection type | Designation | Sign up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Xfinity Connect More | $40.00/mo.* | 200 Mbps | Cable | Best for cable | View PlanRead Xfinity review |
| Verizon Fios Internet 200/200 | $49.99/mo.† | 200 Mbps | Fiber | Best for fiber | View PlanRead Verizon review |
| AT&T Internet 100 | $55.00/mo.‡ | 100 Mbps | DSL | Best for DSL | View PlanRead AT&T review |
| Xtream Internet 200 | $39.99/mo.§ | 200 Mbps | Cable | Best rural internet alternative | View PlanRead Xtream review |
| Spectrum Internet | $49.99/mo.‖ | 300 Mbps‖ | Cable | Fastest | View PlanRead Spectrum review |
| Cox Internet Essential 100 | $49.99/mo.¶ | 100 Mbps | Cable | Runner-up | View PlanRead Cox review |
| CenturyLink Simply Unlimited Internet | $50.00/mo.˚ | 100 Mbps˚ | DSL | Unlimited data for DSL | View PlanRead Centurylink review |
Data effective as of post date. Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change.
* for the first 12 mos. w/ 1-yr. agreement
† w/ Auto Pay + taxes & equipment charges
‡ for 12 months plus taxes & equip. fee. $10/mo equip. fee applies.
§ For the first 12 months.
‖ For the first 12 months. Standard rates apply after year 1. No additional charge for modem; other equipment, install, taxes, fees & surcharges may apply. Speeds may not be available in your area.
¶ for 12 months w/1-yr. service agr.
˚ Rate requires paperless billing and excludes taxes. Additional fees apply. Speeds may not be available in your area.
We’ve chosen widely available internet service providers (ISPs) that offer at least 100 Mbps on their less-expensive plans. You could save money if you stooped to lower speeds, but bandwidth matters, and a few saved bucks aren’t going to soothe the pain of a connection that buffers or drops out during your Netflix marathons. We want to get you cheap internet and cable, not a headache.
Unfortunately, “widely available” doesn’t always translate to “anywhere near you.” Pop your zip code in below, and we’ll tell you which providers service your area. No worries—we don’t keep your data or send it to anyone else.
Best for cable: Xfinity Connect More
Xfinity bumped up its speeds in many areas of the US, which means you might be able to snag 200 Mbps for only $40.00 per month. For the record, that’s an amazing price among cheap Wi-Fi plans.
And right now, Xfinity is pairing its internet-only plans with its new streaming device and service Xfinity Flex. Sign up with Xfinity Connect More, and you’ll get a Flex unit and its companion voice remote for no extra charge. Xfinity Flex is no Roku, but free stuff is rarely a bad thing.
Xfinity’s prices for internet-only plans vary by region, so check out our table below to see how much Xfinity internet costs across the country. If you’re looking for more Xfinity internet deals, check out our Xfinity cheap internet and prepaid internet guides.
Cheapest Xfinity internet plans by region
| Package | Price | Max download speed | Region | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Connect | $19.99/mo.* | 75 Mbps | West | View PlanRead Xfinity review |
| Connect More | $39.99/mo.* | 200 Mbps | West | View PlanRead Xfinity review |
| Connect | $20.00/mo.* | 75 Mbps | Central | View PlanRead Xfinity review |
| Connect More | $40.00/mo.* | 200 Mbps | Central | View PlanRead Xfinity review |
| Performance Pro | $39.99/mo.* | 400 Mbps | Northeast | View PlanRead Xfinity review |
| Blast! | $59.99/mo.*** | 800 Mbps | Northeast | View PlanRead Xfinity review |
*For the first 12 mos. w/ 1-yr. agreement
***For the first 24 months with a 1-year agreement.
Data effective as of publish date. Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change.
Best for fiber: Verizon Fios Internet 200/200
We can describe Verizon Fios Internet 200/200 in three words: fast, fast, and fast.
Since this cheap internet plan is fiber-based, your internet will run on some of the fastest and most reliable internet lines in the US. Forget about internet that slows down during peak usage hours—Verizon Fios will snatch the word “buffering” right out of your vocabulary.
And Verizon Fios boldly touts its matched download and upload speeds in the plan name—as it should. Many ISPs don’t even tell you what their upload speeds are because they’re so darn slow. But with Verizon Fios Internet 200/200, you won’t have to sit on your hands for hours waiting for a simple video or large photo file to upload.
Instead, you can look forward to getting all your cool Tik Tok videos online ASAP. Verizon Fios will put you this much closer to being the next big thing.
And the situation only gets better if you live in the New York market area. In that region, the 200/200 plan becomes 300/300, so you get even faster speeds for the same low price. We’re super jealous.
Best for DSL: AT&T Internet 100
AT&T Internet 100 could give you up to 100 Mbps for $55 per month‡—but it might have only lower speeds in your area. Be sure to verify if you’re getting a good internet speed before you sign up.
If you’re lucky enough to live in an area where AT&T Internet uses a fiber connection instead of a DSL connection, you can trade up the AT&T Internet plan for the Internet 300 plan, which offers 300 Mbps for the same price of $55 per month.‡
Check the speeds you’ll get with AT&T Internet in your area before you decide on this cheap internet plan. But if the speeds are a good fit, we say jump on it.
‡ for 12 months plus taxes & equip. fee. $10/mo equip. fee applies.
Best rural internet alternative: Xtream Internet 200
Xtream powered by Mediacom isn’t as widely available as bigger networks like Xfinity and Spectrum. But if it’s available in your town, we recommend Xtream’s Internet 200 plan. Sure, though there’s an even cheaper internet plan that offers 100 Mbps for $19.99 per month˚, but it comes with a nasty little 200 GB data cap.
Internet 200 comes with a 1,000 GB data cap instead. That’s much more reasonable—you can watch Netflix and scroll through Instagram without worrying about being penalized for going over your data allowance.
Don’t skimp with Xtream. Our recommended plan may cost $20 more per month than the starter plan, but you’ll save yourself a lot of headaches (and overage fees) in the long run.
˚ For the first 12 months.
Fastest: Spectrum Internet
Spectrum Internet is the most affordable of Spectrum’s three internet plans. And even though this cheap Wi-Fi plan costs nearly $50 per month, you’ll save a bunch on Spectrum’s equipment. In fact, Spectrum will even throw in a Wi-Fi router with your plan for zero more dollars. Since most providers lease those at about $10 per month, you’re getting some serious savings on cheap Wi-Fi.
Spectrum Internet recently increased the download speed of its lowest package from 200 to 300 Mbps, making it the fastest plan on this list. Meanwhile, Verizon recently lowered its cheap plan from 300 to 200 Mbps. In the words of the Jonas Brothers, oh, how the tables have turned!
Spectrum also offers an affordable TV plan with competitive prices for premium channel add-ons. Check out our Spectrum cable TV guide to learn more about Spectrum’s TV offerings.
Runner-up: Cox Internet Essential 100
While Cox Internet Essential 100 doesn’t stand out for anything in particular, we felt it necessary to mention. This tidy little plan meets our price and internet speed requirements, so we recommend giving it a look if you’re in Cox’s network area.
However, if the internet competition in your area includes Verizon Fios, AT&T, Xfinity, or Spectrum, we recommend looking at those provider’s cheapest plans first. While Cox did well on our recent customer satisfaction survey, those four internet providers shone brighter.
Unlimited data for DSL: CenturyLink Simply Unlimited Internet
CenturyLink’s Simply Unlimited Internet is among the more expensive of our best cheap Wi-Fi plans, but it’s still a solid choice—as long as you can get those 100 Mbps download speeds.
CenturyLink will hook you up with the fastest speed it offers in your area (up to 100 Mbps) for $50 per month˚. But if you’re in an area where CenturyLink offers only, say, 15 Mbps download speeds, you still pay the same price. You should definitely check if CenturyLink offers a good internet speed in your neighborhood before you sign up.
With CenturyLink’s fiber internet plans ($30 monthly for 200 Mbps, $70 monthly for 940 Mbps), you’ll get much faster internet performance for the same price as CenturyLink’s DSL plan. But as with nearly every fiber internet provider, your neighborhood will need CenturyLink fiber coverage in order to qualify for CenturyLink’s fiber plans and the ISP’s fiber availability varies widely by region.
˚ Rate requires paperless billing and excludes taxes. Additional fees apply. Speeds may not be available in your area.
Ways to save on internet
If you want to pay even less for internet, here are some ways to lower your monthly bill.
Avoid overage fees
Many internet providers have data caps—and if you go over, you have to pay up big time. Read our data caps guide to see which providers have caps and how to avoid overage charges.
Buy your modem/router
Your internet provider may charge you $10 a month or more to rent your internet equipment. But some providers let you bring your own equipment instead. Check out our recommendations for modems and routers:
Get government assistance
Programs like Affordable Connectivity Program save low-income households up to $30 per month off internet. To learn more and see if you qualify, check out “Free and Low-income Internet Plans.”
Sign up for a slower internet package
This suggestion breaks our heart, but if you choose a slower internet plan, you’ll probably pay less on internet. To see if you can get by with slower internet speeds, check out our internet speed guide.
Our final take
Like anything else, you get what you pay for with internet service. That said, even though most US cities have only a couple of providers to choose from, cheap Wi-Fi deals are more attainable than you might think.
If it’s available in your area, fiber internet is our number one recommendation for optimal speed/price return, followed by cable internet. But if DSL is the only choice on the block, don’t despair: it still works just fine for being “old” tech, and it’s almost always the cheapest option available.
Cheap internet FAQ
Who has the fastest and cheapest Internet?
Spectrum Internet has the fastest cheap internet after its recent increase from 200 Mbps to 300 Mbps download speeds. It’s available for just $49.99 per month, which is great considering its competitors like Verizon charge that much for only 200 Mbps.
Head over to our Spectrum internet review to learn more.
Who has the cheapest Internet right now?
Right now, Xtream powered by Mediacom is the cheap internet provider with the best value, offering 200 Mbps at $39.99 per month. But we prefer the better customer service from Xfinity , which offers a plan with 200 Mbps for just a penny more at $40.00 per month. There are cheaper plans out there, but we don’t feel comfortable recommending anything with slow speeds and low data caps.
Can low-income families get free internet?
Yes, low-income families can often get assistance from the government to pay for their internet costs. Many ISPs even offer special discounted packages for low-income families, students, and seniors. Check out our guide to low-income internet plans to learn about how you can sign up for these plans—and which ones will save you the most money.
What’s the difference between Wi-Fi and internet?
Wi-Fi is internet service broadcast wirelessly, usually with an in-home router. Wi-Fi is a common term to replace internet, but it’s just the way many people access their internet service. The internet itself is this cool place we’re hanging out in right now.
How can I get wireless internet without cable TV?
If your internet provider used to require you to bundle your internet with cable TV, it almost certainly doesn’t anymore. You can call your provider and cancel your TV subscription—be sure to return your cable equipment so you don’t incur any extra fees. To learn more about how to get internet without TV and phone, check out our high-speed internet FAQ page.
Our methodology
For this article, we reviewed all available internet plans from major internet providers. We narrowed the list down to those that cost around $50 per month, offer at least 100 Mbps download speeds (a solid data rate for home internet), and have data allowances of at least 1,000 GB per month.
If you’d like to learn more about how we choose our top plans, check out our How We Rank page.
