Best Internet Providers in Dallas - CNET
AT&T Fiber - Best overall among internet providers in Dallas
- Prices from $55 - $180 per month
- Speeds from 300 - 5,000Mbps
- Unlimited data
Spectrum - Best availability among internet providers in Dallas
- Prices from $50 - $90 per month
- Speeds from 300 - 940Mbps
- Unlimited data
T-Mobile Home Internet - Best fixed wireless option among internet providers in Dallas
- Prices from $50 per month
- Speeds from 72 - 245Mbps
- Unlimited data
My grandmother lived in Dallas, and I can still taste the fantastic barbecue we'd devour whenever my family would visit. Oh, that delicious Texas brisket. Wait, I'm here to talk about broadband, not mouthwatering smoked meat. Thankfully, Dallas has quite a few home internet options, too.
That said, Big D disappoints when you compare its home internet speeds to those of some of the other top cities in the US. The Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington metropolitan area boasts the country's fourth-largest population, but according to Ookla's most recent reporting, Dallas managed only a 97th-place finish among the 100 most populated cities in the US. That puts it right behind Chicago, Seattle and Denver. No shame there, right? However, it's well behind Texas towns such as Austin, Corpus Christi, El Paso and San Antonio, all of which made the top 15.
Though it may be slow compared with its Lone Star State companions, Dallas still offers plenty of high-speed internet hookups. You can connect with fast fiber options from AT&T and Frontier. You can find consistently speedy cable connections from Optimum (formerly Suddenlink) and Spectrum. You could even lean into the growing 5G home internet movement and try Verizon 5G Home Internet or T-Mobile Home Internet.
Best internet providers in Big D
Our pick for the best overall ISP in Dallas is AT&T Fiber. But no matter where you live within the DFW, CNET can help you navigate your choices. Let's take a look at the best internet service providers in Dallas.
AT&T Fiber
Best overall among internet providers in Dallas
Product details
Price range $55 - $180 per month Speed range 300 - 5,000Mbps Connection Fiber Highlights Unlimited data, no contracts, equipment included
AT&T's internet service has a sizable foothold in the area, widely available throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth city limits. It's also worth noting that Dallas is one of the 100 cities where AT&T has rolled out its multigig plans. That's all great news. But still, many neighborhoods across the metropolitan area are not serviceable for fiber and therefore are left with AT&T's DSL service as the only option. Is that bad? Well, AT&T has already stated its goal of cutting its copper coverage in half by 2025, so that lets you know how outdated it has become. Conversely, it's tough to beat AT&T Fiber if you can sign up for it.
Availability: AT&T Fiber is available to from around 25% to 75% of Dallas residents, depending on location. For example, about 75% of those in the Cockrell Hill area can access AT&T's fastest plans, while coverage dips below 29% for those near the eastern border of the city, closer to Mesquite.
Plans and pricing: The five plans offered -- 300Mbps, 500Mbps, 1,000Mbps, 2,000Mbps and 5,000Mbps -- feature symmetrical download and upload speeds. The prices range from $55 for the 300Mbps plan up to $180 for the 5-gigabit tier.
Fees and service details: All plans boast unlimited data and no annual contracts or additional monthly fees for equipment. Also, new customers will receive an AT&T Visa Reward Card ($100 for the two lowest tiers and $150 for 1 gig and up).
Read our AT&T home internet review.
Spectrum
Best availability among internet providers in Dallas
Product details
Price range $50 - $90 per month Speed range 300 - 940Mbps Connection Cable Highlights Unlimited data, simple pricing, no contracts, modem included, free access to nationwide Wi-Fi hotspots
While AT&T boasts a wide footprint within Dallas-Fort Worth, Charter's broadband service Spectrum wins out for being even more ubiquitous throughout DFW. Even more appealing, customers won't have to fret over whether they're serviceable for fiber or the lesser DSL -- all Spectrum homes will have access to its reliable cable internet connections.
Availability: While AT&T's combined DSL and fiber plans reach just over 69% of Dallas homes, Spectrum tops that, making its cable internet service available to nearly 86% of DFW residents.
Plans and pricing: Spectrum aims to satisfy customers by keeping things simple. There are three plan options -- 300, 500 or 940Mbps download speed -- ranging in price from $50 per month to $90 monthly.
Fees and service details: With Spectrum Internet, your monthly costs include a modem rental and unlimited data. Though you will need to add $5 per month for a Wi-Fi router (which you can skip if you have your own), and your monthly bill will go up by $25 after your first 12 months, you're not tied into a term agreement with Spectrum. If you want to compare service with another provider, you can. Still, the consistency of Spectrum and its cable connections provide a welcome alternative to the less-reliable satellite, DSL and fixed wireless services you'll find in the area.
Read our Spectrum Internet review.
T-Mobile Home Internet
Best fixed wireless option among internet providers in Dallas
Product details
Price range $50 per month ($30 for eligible T-Mobile Magenta Max customers) Speed range 72 - 245Mbps Connection Fixed wireless Highlights Unlimited data, equipment included, no contracts, no additional fees
T-Mobile aggressively pushed its 5G home internet service in 2022, even introducing a Home Internet Lite version to help make the product available to more households. According to the Federal Communications Commission's National Broadband Map, it's available to over 95% of the area.
Availability: Although T-Mobile has decent coverage over the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington area, you'll still need to check that it's available at your location. To make sure, you can enter your address on the T-Mobile Home Internet site. Or you can plug in your mobile number if you're a T-Mobile customer.
Plans and pricing: T-Mobile keeps things simple, offering one plan for $50 per month. That one plan comes with download speeds ranging from 72 to 245Mbps, depending on your proximity to a cell tower and the number of subscribers in your area.
Fees and service details: T-Mobile Home Internet features unlimited data and no term contracts, making it an especially viable option for those only previously eligible for satellite or DSL service. It also targets traditional ISP service by offering a free, 15-day trial so potential customers can try it without breaking their current contracts and commitments. Additionally, T-Mobile offers a price-lock guarantee, so you don't have to plan for a nagging bill increase many internet providers hit you with after an enticing promo period.
Read our T-Mobile home internet review.
Internet providers in Dallas overview
| Provider | Internet technology | Monthly price range | Speed range | Monthly equipment costs | Data cap | Contract | CNET review score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Astound Broadband/Grande | Cable | $25-$60 | 300-1,200Mbps | $15 (optional) | None | None | 7 |
| AT&T | DSL/fiber | $55-$180 | 10-5,000Mbps | None | 1.5TB for plans under 100Mbps; None for all others | None | 7.4 |
| Frontier | DSL/fiber | $50-$155 | 10-5,000Mbps | None | None | None | 6 |
| Rise Broadband | Fixed wireless | $25-$100 | 25-1,000Mbps | $10 modem; $5-$15 router (optional) | 250GB or unlimited | None, but required for some promotions | 6.2 |
| Spectrum | Cable | $50-$90 | 300-940Mbps | Free modem; $5 router | None | None | 7.2 |
| T-Mobile Home Internet | Fixed wireless | $50 | 72-245Mbps | None | None | None | 7.4 |
| Verizon 5G Home Internet | Fixed wireless | $50-$70 | 85-1,000Mbps | None | None | None | 7.2 |
Show more (2 items)
All available Dallas residential internet providers
There are many more broadband choices in the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area beyond our top three picks. Some are outside the Dallas city limits but can be found well within the immediate suburbs. Others may only be in small pockets even further away from the city center. In most cases, each provider offers something enticing, even if there are some glaring issues as well.
- Astound Broadband: This cable internet provider, known locally as Grande Communications but now part of parent company Astound Broadband, features some of DFW's most compelling and competitive promo rates. The starting price of $25 a month for a 300Mbps plan is a very affordable 8 cents per Mbps. In contrast, Spectrum's 300Mbps plan starts at $50 per month and AT&T Fiber's 300Mbps plan clocks in at $55 monthly. The same holds with Astound's fastest plan, a 1,200Mbps tier with a promo price of $60 per month. That's a stellar 5 cents per Mbps. However... Astound also features some of the steepest price increases in the industry. The Astound/Grande rate card reveals that your 300Mbps plan could rise to $84 per month after your promo period. That's stark.
- Frontier: Frontier features some solid serviceability in the northern portion of the Dallas metro area. You won't find it downtown, but you can get its DSL and fiber-optic service in the northeast outskirts of Baytown, Beach City, Cove and Crosby. You'll also find it in League City and Sante Fe, down in the southern portion of the metro area. If Frontier Fiber is available -- it features symmetrical plans of 500Mbps, gigabit, 2Gbps or 5Gbps speeds ranging from $50 to $155 per month -- it's a very appealing choice. But if Frontier DSL is your only option, you might want to keep looking.
- Optimum: Let me be clear -- Suddenlink is the provider you're probably familiar with in the Dallas area. However, its parent company, Altice USA, recently renamed it to Optimum. In any case, Optimum cable internet service can be found in some scattered areas within the city (including the Arts District and University Park), but you'll mostly find it east of Dallas in Balch Springs, Forney, Rockwall and Terrell. Optimum also supplies broadband service to some areas north of DFW, including Cross Roads, Little Elm, McKinney and Prosper.
- Rise Broadband: This fixed wireless provider is one of the top options in the region for rural broadband. In almost all areas it services, you can access either a 25Mbps plan or 50Mbps tier for $25-$35 monthly. If you live within the city limits of Dallas or Fort Worth, you should have plenty of other, faster options, but Rise Broadband is widely available across numerous suburban and rural communities circling the DFW area. Of note, Rise Broadband does offer a fiber connection in the southern suburb of Ferris. Customers can access plans between 100-1,000Mbps for $60-$100 per month.
- Satellite internet: Typically, if you live in a big metro area like Dallas, I wouldn't even broach the topic of satellite internet. You're bound to find more reliable connections, faster speeds and cheaper prices than are awaiting you with a satellite internet connection. However, the DFW is a large area, and some on the rural periphery may not have the same options. While HughesNet and Viasat are steady choices, both require two-year contract commitments and feature data restrictions. Starlink, Elon Musk's newer satellite provider on the block, is more intriguing as it features faster speeds and no contracts. But the Starlink availability map shows the Dallas-Fort Worth area as on the waiting list until sometime in late 2023.
- Sparklight: While this cable broadband provider doesn't have a significant presence in Big D, it can be found in Fort Worth and McKinney. Plans range from 200 to 940Mbps for $45-$110 per month. While no term contracts are required for service, Sparklight prices fall short of the area's other cable providers (Astound, Optimum and Spectrum), and customers also have to deal with a data cap.
- Verizon 5G Home Internet: Verizon has been just as ambitious with its 5G home internet product as T-Mobile, though perhaps not quite as aggressive in pursuing rural communities. As such, Verizon fell short of our top list because it might not serve communities on the outskirts of the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington area as well as T-Mobile can. That said, if you are serviceable for Verizon 5G Home Internet, you'll find faster speeds than T-Mobile (average of 300Mbps to T-Mobile's 72-245Mbps) and a similar, straightforward approach for $50 per month, including no data caps, no contracts and no equipment fees. Also, customers can shave 50% off their monthly bill if they have a qualifying Verizon mobile plan.