Internet

Best Internet Providers in Providence, Rhode Island

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What is the best internet provider in Providence?

Verizon Fios is the best internet service provider for most households in Providence. Verizon Fios also offers symmetrical speeds up to a gigabit with no data caps, contracts or monthly equipment costs. If Verizon Fios isn’t available at your address, Cox Communications and T-Mobile Home Internet are also solid picks for home broadband.

If you’re shopping for the cheapest plan or the fastest speeds in the area, Cox is the provider you should consider. For $20 per month, Cox customers can reach speeds up to 250 megabits per second, the lowest price you’ll pay in Providence for internet access. Cox also offers speeds up to 2 gigabits, costing $90 monthly. 

CNET considers speeds, pricing, customer service and overall value to recommend the best internet service in Providence across many categories. Our evaluation includes referencing a proprietary database built over years of reviewing internet services. We validate that against provider information by spot-checking local addresses for service availability. We also do a close read of providers’ terms and conditions and, when needed, will call ISPs to verify the details.

Despite our efforts to find the most recent and accurate information, our process has some limitations you should know about. Pricing and speed data are variable: certain addresses may qualify for different service tiers, and monthly costs may vary, even within a city. The best way to identify your particular options is to plug your address into a provider’s website. 

Also, the prices, speed and other information listed above and in the provider cards below may differ from what we found in our research. The cards display the full range of a provider’s pricing and speed across the US, according to our database of plan information provided directly by ISPs. At the same time, the text is specific to what’s available in Providence. The prices referenced within this article’s text come from our research and include applicable discounts for setting up automatic payments each month — a standard industry offering. Other discounts and promotions might also be available for things like signing a term contract or bundling with multiple services. 

To learn more about how we review internet providers, visit our full methodology page.

Best internet in Providence, Rhode Island

Speed range

300 – 2,000 Mbps

Price range

$50 – $120 per month

Our take – Besides being one of the country’s largest 5G home internet providers, Verizon offers fiber connectivity to select households in the northeast. Approximately 95% of Providence residents will be covered by Verizon’s fiber and 5G networks. Verizon Fios offers three plans, ranging from $50 for 300Mbps to $90 for a gigabit. These plans include unlimited data and don’t require a yearly contract or monthly equipment fee.

... Or call to learn more: (877) 545-6781

Check with Verizon

Speed range

300 – 2,000 Mbps

Price range

$50 – $120 per month

Connection

Cable, some fiber

Speed range

25 – 2,000 Mbps

Price range

$40 – $100 per month

Our take – If you want to bundle your internet and cable service, check out Cox Communications. Available to most Providence households, Cox offers the cheapest and fastest plans in the city. While you won’t be required to sign a contract or pay for equipment, all plans have a 1.25TB data cap.

... Or call to learn more: (877) 541-1140

Check with Cox

Connection

Cable, some fiber

Speed range

25 – 2,000 Mbps

Price range

$40 – $100 per month

Connection

Fixed wireless

Speed range

72 – 245 Mbps

Price range

$60 per month

Our take – Like Verizon’s 5G network, T-Mobile offers home internet through a fixed wireless connection. T-Mobile Home Internet costs only $50 per month for speeds up to 245Mbps and includes no data cap, equipment fee or contract.

... Or call to learn more: (877) 687-6988

Check with T-Mobile

Connection

Fixed wireless

Speed range

72 – 245 Mbps

Price range

$60 per month

Source: CNET analysis of provider data.

Source: CNET analysis of provider data.

How to find internet deals and promotions in Providence

The best internet deals and the top promotions in Providence depend on the discounts available during that period. Most deals are short-lived, but we look frequently for the latest offers. 

Providence internet providers, such as Cox, may offer lower introductory pricing or streaming add-ons for a limited time. Others, including Verizon and T-Mobile, run the same standard pricing year-round. 

For a more extensive list of promos, check out our guide on the best internet deals. 

Source: CNET analysis of provider data.

What’s a good internet speed?

Most internet connection plans can now handle basic productivity and communication tasks. If you’re looking for an internet plan that can accommodate videoconferencing, streaming video or gaming, you’ll have a better experience with a more robust connection. Here’s an overview of the recommended minimum download speeds for various applications, according to the FCC. Note that these are only guidelines — and that internet speed, service and performance vary by connection type, provider and address.

For more information, refer to our guide on how much internet speed you really need.

• 0 to 5Mbps allows you to tackle the basics — browsing the internet, sending and receiving email, streaming low-quality video.
• 5 to 40Mbps gives you higher-quality video streaming and videoconferencing.
• 40 to 100Mbps should give one user sufficient bandwidth to satisfy the demands of modern telecommuting, video streaming and online gaming. 
• 100 to 500Mbps allows one to two users to simultaneously engage in high-bandwidth activities like videoconferencing, streaming and online gaming. 
• 500 to 1,000Mbps allows three or more users to engage in high-bandwidth activities at the same time.

How CNET chose the best internet providers in Providence

Internet service providers are numerous and regional. Unlike the latest smartphone, laptop, router or kitchen tool, it’s impractical to personally test every ISP in a given city. So what’s our approach? We start by researching the pricing, availability and speed information drawing on our own historical ISP data, the provider sites and mapping information from the Federal Communications Commission at FCC.gov.

But it doesn’t end there. We go to the FCC’s website to check our data and ensure we consider every ISP that provides service in an area. We also input local addresses on provider websites to find specific options for residents. We look at sources, including the American Customer Satisfaction Index and J.D. Power, to evaluate how happy customers are with an ISP’s service. ISP plans and prices are subject to frequent changes; all information provided is accurate as of the time of publication.

Once we have this localized information, we ask three main questions:

1. Does the provider offer access to reasonably fast internet speeds?
2. Do customers get decent value for what they’re paying?
3. Are customers happy with their service?

While the answer to those questions is often layered and complex, the providers who come closest to “yes” on all three are the ones we recommend. When it comes to selecting the cheapest internet service, we look for the plans with the lowest monthly fee, though we also factor in things like price increases, equipment fees and contracts. Choosing the fastest internet service is relatively straightforward. We look at advertised upload and download speeds and consider real-world speed data from sources like Ookla and FCC reports.

To explore our process in more depth, visit our how we test ISPs page.

Internet providers in Providence FAQs