Aren’t we all! Thankfully, fiber-optic internet gets you both fast speeds and superb reliability. And while you might think fiber internet in your area or within your price range is still a dream, we assure you, it’s not. Many internet service providers (ISPs) have expanded their fiber footprints to bring speedy internet to much of the US–and at pretty reasonable prices. But which of these fiber ISPs deserves your money? Let’s take a look at our top five fiber providers based on plans and prices, internet speed, and reliability. Some fiber connections still rely on copper DSL or cable lines to connect to your home, and both DSL and cable connections can slow down your internet speed–even if the rest of your connection is fiber. Here’s a quick look at what these abbreviations mean in terms of your fiber internet, and if you want to get technical, check out our fiber-optic internet guide.
Fiber to the home (FTTH)
Also called fiber to the premises (FTTP), this connection is optimal because the fiber-optic line goes straight into your home. That means your internet connection won’t slow down because it has to travel over a cable or DSL line to get to your house.
Fiber to the curb (FTTC)
In this situation, the fiber connection ends at the nearest utility pole or box (not an actual sidewalk curb). To get the signal the rest of the way to your house, your internet service provider (ISP) uses coaxial cables. The distance your internet signal has to travel over coaxial wires is likely short, so you shouldn’t see significantly slower speeds than a true FTTH connection. But this type of connection is still slower than a full-fiber connection.
Fiber to the neighborhood (FTTN)
This setup builds a fiber connection to a neighborhood and serves hundreds of customers by running DSL or cable lines to each home. If you live close to the node, you probably won’t experience slower internet speed. But if you get unlucky and live on the other side of the neighborhood from the node, your internet connection will likely slow down quite a bit as it travels over those cable or DSL lines. Granted, this plan could come with an FTTN connection. That means your internet speed might not reach the advertised 940 Mbps speeds if you live far away from the main fiber node. But at that price, getting close to gig speeds is still a deal. On the plus side, though, AT&T gives you unlimited data with its fiber plan. That’s perfect for any heavy internet users or large families who do a lot of file sharing, downloading, or working from home. You can find out more about its fiber and DSL internet service in our in-depth AT&T internet review. HighSpeedInternet.com reported that AT&T earned fifth place for customer satisfaction with internet speed and sixth place for reliability.2 So we expect you’ll get the internet speed you were promised. Hooray for fewer disruptions to your normally scheduled Avatar: The Last Airbender binge session! On top of that, there’s no need to sign a contract with Verizon Fios Home Internet. That’s a big win in our books. Learn more in our Verizon Fios Home Internet review. But most likely, you won’t need that much internet speed to enjoy binge-watching British TV shows on Netflix. (Who, us?) So instead, we recommend the Internet 200/200 plan. It comes at a stellar price, and 200 Mbps is enough speed for most families who love to stream movies and TV shows or conquer raid bosses in online games. But what good is a fast internet if you experience outages all the time? Luckily, Verizon Fios Internet also claimed first place for customer satisfaction in its reliability, according to HighSpeedInternet.com.2 That means, Verizon Fios customers are pretty darn happy with the ISP’s ability to keep them online any time of day or night. Its four fiber internet plans come with decent price tags–though we think the Frontier Fiber Internet 500 plan is the weakest of the pack. Still, any Frontier Fiber plan gets you a true FTTH connection, which means you’ll cruise through the internet at high speeds. And according to our speed score analysis, Frontier’s got the creds to prove it’s one of the speediest ISPs out there. But all of these perks come with a one-year contract—so make sure you won’t move or need to change your service during that time if you can. We go into detail on contracts, data, and prices in our full Frontier internet review. HighSpeedInternet.com also found that Frontier customers were pretty satisfied with its speed and reliability. It ranked ninth overall for download speeds and eleventh for keeping people connected to a reliable service.2 Of course, you can’t get CenturyLink fiber internet everywhere. But where it does show up, it happens to be a pretty good deal. It comes with no contract, is a true FTTH connection, and it’s offered in many cities not covered by the big fiber internet providers. (Check out a full list of cities with CenturyLink’s fiber internet.) We’re especially happy to see more than a few Midwest cities on that list since the Midwest tends to be overlooked by the big ISPs. Even so, CenturyLink offers unlimited data and contract free options on all its internet packages. This means you won’t have to pay any overage fees for high data consumption or early termination fees (ETF) should you choose to switch providers at any point during your subscription. You can dig into more details in our CenturyLink internet review. But even without options, rest assured you’re getting a good deal. The price CenturyLink charges for its 940 Mbps download speeds is highly competitive—not many other ISPs offer such a low price. And did we mention those 940 Mbps speeds are going to cover all your streaming, gaming, and working from home needs, and then some? Plus, CenturyLink earned tenth place for customer satisfaction with its internet speed.2 And customers also rated CenturyLink as eighth for reliability, which means a service outage isn’t likely to cut short your Overwatch gaming session. So don’t discard CenturyLink’s fiber internet plan as an option just yet. You’re likely to get the internet speed you were promised—or close to it. Want to learn more about the Kinetic Gig plan, contracts, and internet speed? Check out our Windstream review. Like we mentioned, the price you’ll pay for the Kinetic Gig plan changes based on where you live. The promotional price for this 1,000 Mbps plan ranges from $57 a month to $85 a month. Even at its highest price, $85 per month, Kinetic Gig isn’t the most expensive gigabit internet plan out there. But you’ll definitely find cheaper. That said, if you live in an area where Windstream offers 1,000 Mbps download speeds for closer to $57 a month, you’d pay less or about the same as you would for a gigabit internet plan from another ISP. Honestly, we’re not sure. Windstream earned the 32nd spot in our look at 38 internet providers’ speed test scores in 2021.1 But just like CenturyLink, Windstream also offers DSL internet plans that likely brought its overall score down a few notches. So, let’s take a look at it’s customer satisfaction scores to get a better idea of Windstream’s performance: Customers ranked Windstream in seventh place for customer satisfaction with internet speed.2 And as for reliability, Windstream also earned seventh place.2 That’s good to hear since a more reliable ISP means you’re less likely to deal with frustrating service outages on the regular. Taking all that into account, we think you’re more than likely going to get the speed you pay for with Windstream’s Kinetic Gig fiber internet plan. But keep an eye out, and if you think your download speeds are dipping, take a speed test to double-check.
AT&T Fiber: Best budget gig plan. If you’re able to find a price cheaper than what AT&T Fiber offers for its gigabit internet plan, we’ll be impressed. AT&T Fiber customers also ranked it reasonably well for internet speed and reliability.1,2 Verizon Fios Home Internet: Editor’s pick. With no contracts, competitive prices, and high scores for customer satisfaction and internet speed, Verizon Fios Home Internet is an excellent choice if you need fiber internet and live in its service area. Frontier Fiber Internet: Best for unlimited data. If you need a boatload of data to go with your fast fiber internet speeds, Frontier Fiber is worth checking out. We think its 500 and 1000 Mbps plans are fairly priced, and Frontier was ranked as the 12th fastest provider in the US.1 CenturyLink Fiber Internet plan: Best for no contracts. Don’t know how long you can commit to a fiber internet plan? CenturyLink’s Fiber Internet package won’t rope you into a contract, and it comes at one of the lowest monthly prices we’ve seen. CenturyLink customers were mostly happy with the ISPs internet speed and reliability too.1,2 Windstream Kinetic Gig plan: Best for underserved areas. Windstream wants to bring high-speed internet to rural areas, and its Kinetic Gig plan shows it’s serious. Windstream’s Kinetic Gig plan brings speeds up to 1,000 Mbps to lower-population areas, though it is one of the costlier gig plans out there. Still, Windstream customers were pretty happy with the reliability of their internet, so Kinetic Gig is likely well worth it—especially if no other ISPs service your area.2
Don’t forget that a local fiber internet provider might be a good fit for you too. You can see which ISPs offer the best deals in your area with our zip code checker below. That makes fiber internet perfect for anyone who uploads lots of files or relies on a steady internet connection to work (or keep the kiddos entertained). Fiber’s reliability and fast speeds also make it a great pick for connecting your home security system—something you don’t want going offline if you can help it. And when it comes to 4K content, our TV expert, Chantel Buchi, recommends Netflix. It comes packed with original shows in eye-popping Ultra HD (what Netflix calls 4K). But you’ll need the Netflix Premium plan if you want to get your hands on all that digital 4K deliciousness. And if you’re a content creator, fiber internet’s fast upload speeds should get your latest YouTube video, high-resolution art or photography, or your Twitch livestream online in a jiffy. In terms of speed and reliability, Verizon Fios Home Internet is king. We think its Internet 200/200 plan is a steal too. If you’re in the market for a home security system, our home security expert Mindy Woodall is keen on Vivint. Why? Because Vivint makes all of its equipment in-house, and it comes with some stellar features like video analytics, 4K image sensors, and night vision. What’s not to love? But you’ll need reliably fast internet to keep up with all those security cameras, sensors, and hubs. And that’s why we recommend fiber internet for top-of-the-line security systems like Vivint’s. All those Vivint cameras and sensors will need an internet connection to support them, and fiber’s fast speeds make sure your system can send and receive data in a snap. And, like we mentioned, fiber internet’s reliability also makes it a perfect match for a gadget-filled security system like Vivint’s. That said, we think Verizon Fios Home Internet is a great pick—again. But if you’re not in the Verizon Fios service area, AT&T Fiber offers a gigabit internet plan with some pretty top-notch reliability as well.
