People once saw the internet as a luxury. Now, over three-quarters of American households have an internet connection. In recent times, it might be the only way to connect with faraway friends and family. Although there are many internet providers in the United States, not all of them will work for you. Some might be too expensive, while others might be too slow. Moreover, not all of them are available nationwide.
So, what sets one ISP apart from another? And how do you choose which one is best for you? There might be only a handful of things to factor in before choosing an ISP. And one of the most significant ones is customer satisfaction. The rule of thumb is simple: Whenever you call an internet and cable customer care number, someone should promptly be able to listen to you. Response and resolution time can make all the difference in customer experience. So, if you are looking for an ISP with stellar customer ratings, this list could be helpful.
AT&T
AT&T lives by its slogan – you deserve the best. The ISP is known to provide excellent services and has received multiple accolades. The company boasts of 99% reliability and customer satisfaction. They claim to have consistent speeds even at peak times. This claim has been verified by The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) as well.
AT&T offers DSL, fiber, and hybrid fiber connections for users across the country. Hybrid fiber uses a mix of cable and fiber wiring. The consistent speed of internet and cable bundle offers to make AT&T a favorite for many households in the USA. Moreover, you don’t need to sign a contract with AT&T, and the speed can range from 10 Mbps to 100 Mbps.
Spectrum
Spectrum is one of the few companies offering a hybrid fiber-coaxial broadband service. It might be the reason most people end up choosing Spectrum in the first place. Moreover, according to FCC, 93% of Spectrum users usually get the speed they are paying for. So, not only does Spectrum offer flexible packages, but makes good on its claims too.
Spectrum offers residential packages with no data caps and also caters to businesses. The commercial packages’ speeds can range up to 10 Gbps fast connections. It is one of the best internet service providers in the country, and the service keeps improving. Another plus side is that users don’t have to sign long-term contracts, and the service runs on a monthly basis.
Xfinity
If you are the kind of person that values reliability, Xfinity might be the best choice for you. According to the FCC, 85% of Xfinity customers got 95% or more of the advertised speed. Moreover, customer satisfaction has steadily improved over the years for the provider. Xfinity offers DSL, fiber optic, and cable TV as well.
There are six cable plans and two fiber plans. Most of the packages have a data cap of over 1TB. If you choose Xfinity, you might be able to get a bundle package as well. So, you can pair your internet with a cable TV or phone connection for much lower rates.
Verizon
The flagship service from Verizon is the fiber-optic network. So, it goes without saying that Verizon offers great upload and download speeds. Verizon is one of the largest internet providers in the country and boasted over 6.2 million FiOS connections by the end of 2020. The company also offers other services like cable TV and phone. But it doesn’t push its customers to get other services with their broadband package.
Verizon offers the most flexible fiber-optic network plans. None of the packages have a data cap which sets them apart from all others. The increasing number of clients is a testament to its fantastic and reliable service. So, if you choose Verizon, you can rest assured that you have made the right choice.
CenturyLink
According to the FCC, the customers usually got lesser speeds than advertised with CenturyLink. But the company hasn’t seen better days since 2016 and is moving onwards and upwards. The provider recently saw a whopping 6.8% increase in the American Customer Satisfaction Index. So, it is safe to say that better days are incoming for CenturyLink customers.
The company mostly offers DSL packages which could explain slower speeds. But in places with CenturyLink Fiber availability, the connections are much more reliable. There might be room for improvement, but it still beats most DSL-centric ISPs in the USA.