Best Internet Providers in Arlington, Virginia | Global News Avenue

What is the best internet provider in Arlington?

CNET’s preferred provider For most Arlington families, Xfinity is the best choice. In addition to servicing most addresses in the city, the service offers the fastest schedule in Arlington. For $120 per month, Xfinity customers can access download speeds of up to 2 GB per second with no data caps or monthly device fees. Providers like Verizon Fios and T-Mobile are also reliable options for home internet, depending on availability.

Xfinity also offers one of the cheapest plans in Arlington, tied with Astound Broadband. While Astound’s basic plan does offer faster speeds, the availability is much less. Xfinity Connect costs $25 per month and offers speeds up to 150 megabits per second.

Best Internet in Arlington, VA

Source: CNET analysis of provider data.

Source: CNET analysis of provider data.

How to Find Arlington Internet Deals and Promotions

Arlington’s best internet deals and top promotions depend on the discounts available during the period. Most offers are short-lived, but we’re often on the lookout for the latest deals.

Arlington’s internet providers, such as Xfinity, Cox and Astound Broadband, may offer lower introductory prices or streaming add-ons for a limited time. However, many companies, including Verizon and T-Mobile, use the same standard pricing year-round.

For a more extensive list of promotions, check out our guide Best Internet Deals.

Source: CNET analysis of provider data.

What is 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 video conferencing, streaming video, or gaming, you’ll get a better experience with a stronger connection. The recommended minimum download speeds for various applications are outlined below, According to the U.S. Federal Communications Commission. Please note that these are guidelines only – Internet speeds, service and performance vary based on connection type, provider and address.

For more information, see our guide How much internet speed do you really need?.

• 0 to 5Mbps allows you to handle the basics—browse the Internet, send and receive email, stream low-quality video.
• 5 to 40Mbps gives you higher quality video streaming and video conferencing.
• 40 to 100Mbps should provide one user with enough bandwidth to meet the needs of modern remote working, video streaming, and online gaming.
• 100 to 500Mbps allows one or two users to participate in high-bandwidth activities such as video conferencing, streaming and gaming simultaneously.
• 500 to 1,000Mbps allows three or more users to engage in high-bandwidth activities simultaneously.

CNET How to choose the best internet provider in Arlington

Internet service providers are numerous and regional. different from the latest cell phone, laptop, router or kitchen toolsit is impractical to personally test every ISP in a specific city. So what is our approach? We started by looking at pricing, availability, and speed information, using our own historical ISP data, provider sites, and map information from the Federal Communications Commission: fcc.gov.

But it didn’t end there. We went to the FCC’s website to check our data and make sure we accounted for every ISP offering service in a certain area. We also enter local addresses on provider websites to find specific options for residents. We evaluate customer satisfaction with ISP services by looking at sources such as the US Customer Satisfaction Index and JD Power. ISP plans and prices may change frequently; all information provided is accurate as of publication time.

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

1. Does the provider offer reasonably fast internet speeds?
2. Are customers getting value for money?
3. Are customers satisfied with their service?

While the answers to these questions are often layered and complex, we recommend the provider that comes closest to a “yes” on these three questions. When choosing the cheapest internet service, we look for plans with the lowest monthly fees, although we also consider factors like price increases, equipment fees, and contracts. Choosing the fastest internet service is relatively simple. We look at advertised upload and download speeds and consider real-world speed data from the following sources: Okla and Federal Communications Commission Report. (Ookla and CNET are owned by the same parent company, Ziff Davis.)

To explore our processes in more depth, visit our How we test ISPs Page.

Arlington Internet Provider FAQs