Plug in your address to see if you're overpaying for internet
$42,450,000,000. That’s how much the U.S. government is spending to bring affordable, reliable, high-speed internet to all the places that don’t have it. Politics aside, that’s a heck of a lot of money.
By now, we all know how important it is to have a strong connection — for work, school, fun and life in general. But what happens if you move and realize, “Uh oh, the internet here stinks.”
Do this before you start packing
Here’s a must-do step: Check the internet before you sign that lease or fork over a down payment. There’s a decent chance the prices and speed you’re used to are vastly different in your new potential neighborhood.
Most major U.S. cities have the same carriers, like Verizon, AT&T and CenturyLink. But depending on your location, you could get a drastically different internet speed than another city … at the same price point.
The Markup created a handy map tool to check the internet speeds in 45 major cities. Here’s the lowdown on what they found and how to use the map yourself.
Even if you’re not moving
Markup analyzed data from over a million internet plans across 45 U.S. cities from four of the nation’s biggest internet providers: EarthLink, CenturyLink, Verizon and AT&T.
Researchers found the worst internet deals disproportionately popped up in the poorest, most diverse and historically redlined neighborhoods in all but two investigated cities. Oof.
The internet’s Big Four also use “tier flattening,” meaning they charge the same rate for different internet speeds, which can vary drastically. How is that legal?
How to use the map
Eager to take the map for a test drive? Here’s how:
Is your ISP throttling your speeds? Here’s how to check
Websites seem sluggish and downloads take forever. It’s frustrating — especially when you’re paying for high-speed internet.
First, make sure it’s not just you. When I’m unsure if slow speeds or timeouts are part of a more significant issue, I hit Down Detector to see if others reported the same problem. Tap or click for a direct link and a few other tricks if a website won’t load.
Tech Tip: Set your browser to start fresh or reopen your tabs on startup
High-speed internet makes everything better. You can stream to your heart’s content or open 20 tabs when researching a new recipe to try out.
You may be paying for fast service, but your internet speeds rely on more than just bandwidth. Your browsing habits and the health of your computer also impact how fast your system works. Tap or click here for five ways to speed up a slow browser.
Travel tech tip: How to pause cable and internet service while you're away
High-speed internet has reached the point where we see it as a given in our everyday lives. We use it for work, pleasure, social media, communication and idle late-night browsing when we should otherwise be sleeping.
Want faster satellite internet? The price of Starlink's new tier is out of this world
If you live in a busy city, you can be excused for taking fast, reliable internet service for granted. Internet service providers prefer densely populated areas for the more extensive potential customer base, which means more subscribers.
Starlink satellite internet passes 100K customers - How to subscribe
Elon Musk never ceases to amaze us. If Tesla wasn’t innovative enough, SpaceX has continued to skyrocket productivity, giving NASA a run for its money. SpaceX is sending civilians to space. Tap or click here to see when you can get a spot?