If you’re living in the city that never sleeps, you’ll need an internet connection that's both fast and reliable. New York has several internet service providers, but not all are worth your money.
What is the best internet provider in New York?
After hours of research and testing, Verizon Fios is CNET's recommendation for the best internet service provider for most New Yorkers thanks to its fast, symmetrical fiber-optic speeds and competitive pricing. New York City also boasts a variety of other top-tier providers, including Optimum, Astound Broadband and Spectrum, making it easy to find a plan that fits your needs and budget.
Optimum offers the fastest internet speeds in the city, with plans reaching up to 8,000Mbps in select areas, but at a premium price of $280 a month. For a more affordable option, Astound Broadband provides the cheapest plans among major providers. Plans start at $30 a month for 300Mbps speed go as high as $70 for the 1,500Mbps plan -- an excellent value for high-speed internet.
To help you decide, we’ve broken down the best internet providers in Manhattan. If you’re in the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens or Staten Island, check out our specialized guides for internet options in those boroughs.
Our methodology CNET considers speeds, pricing, customer service and overall value to recommend the best internet service in New York City across several 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 closely read providers' terms and conditions and, when needed, 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 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 New York City. 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. Discounts and promotions might also be available for signing a term contract or bundling multiple services. To learn more about how we review internet providers, visit our full methodology page.
New York City internet providers compared Provider Internet technology Monthly price range Speed range Monthly equipment cost Data cap Contract CNET review score Astound Broadband
Read full review Cable $30-$70 300-1,500Mbps Free modem None None 7 Optimum
Read full review Cable/Fiber $40-$280 300-8,000Mbps (varies by location) None None None 6.2 Spectrum
Read full review Cable $30-$70 100-1,000Mbps Free modem; $10 router rental (optional) None None 7.2 T-Mobile 5G Home Internet
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