Best ISPs in Santa Clara, CA

What is the best ISP in Santa Clara?

CNET recommends Xfinity as the best Internet service provider in Santa Clara. Not only is it the most widely available cable provider in the area — aside from satellite providers how Hughesnett, Viasat and Starlink — also offers some of the lowest prices for home internet. You can also find AT&T fiber, T-Mobile Home Internet and Ridge Wireless in most places in Santa Clara, but it really depends on what's available at your address.

Xfinity stands out among other competitors with an offer the most affordable internet in Santa Clara. For just $20 per month, customers can reach download speeds of up to 150 megabits per second. If you need even faster speeds, Xfinity's 300 Mbps plan costs just $15 more per month and includes equipment rental.

Now if you are looking the fastest connection in Santa Clara, you can't go wrong with AT&T Fiber. The service offers 5 gigabit download and upload speeds for $250 per month. Although that may sound expensive, it's just about 5 cents per Mbpswhich is pretty cheap for such high speeds. AT&T Fiber and Xfinity offer the next best plans in the area with speeds of 2,000 Mbps, costing $150 and $80 per month, respectively.

Best Internet in Santa Clara, CA

Santa Clara ISP Comparison

Provider	Internet technology	Monthly price range	Speed ​​range	Monthly equipment costs	Data cap	Agreement	CNET Review Score
AT&T Internet Air Read the full review	Fixed wireless	60 dollars	75-225 Mbps	No one	No one	No one	7.4
AT&T fiber Read the full review	Hair	$55-$250	300-5,000 Mbps	No one	No one	No one	7.4
Ridge Wireless	Fixed wireless	100-150 dollars	20-100 Mbps	It varies	No one	No one	N/A
Surf the Internet	Fixed wireless	55 dollars	200 Mbps	No one	No one	No one	N/A
T-Mobile Home Internet Read the full review	Fixed wireless	$50-$70 ($40-$50 for eligible Go5G Plus and Magenta Max mobile customers)	72-245 Mbps	No one	No one	No one	7.4
Verizon 5G Home Internet Read the full review	Fixed wireless	$50-$70 ($35-$45 with eligible Verizon 5G cellular plans)	50-300 Mbps	No one	No one	No one	7.2
Xfinity Read the full review	Cable	20-80 dollars	150-2,000 Mbps	$15-$25 for some plans (optional)	1.2 TB	1 year on some plans	7

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Source: CNET analysis of provider data.

What is the cheapest internet plan in Santa Clara?

Provider	Initial monthly price	Maximum download speed	Monthly subscription for equipment
Xfinity Connect Read the full review	20 dollars	150 Mbps	$15 (optional)
Xfinity Connect More Read the full review	35 dollars	300 Mbps	No one
Verizon 5G Home Internet Read the full review	$50 ($35 with eligible mobile plan)	100 Mbps	No one
T-Mobile Home Internet Read the full review	$50 ($40 with eligible mobile plan)	245 Mbps	No one
AT&T Fiber 300 Read the full review	55 dollars	300 Mbps	No one
Houseboats	55 dollars	200 Mbps	No one
AT&T Internet Air Read the full review	60 dollars	225 Mbps	No one

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Source: CNET analysis of provider data.

How to find online deals and promotions in Santa Clara

The best online deals and top promotions in Santa Clara depend on what discounts are available at that time. Most deals are short-lived, but we often look for the latest offers.

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Santa Clara ISPs, such as T-Mobile and Xfinity, may offer lower introductory rates or streaming add-ons for a limited time. Others, such as AT&T and Verizon, have the same standard prices year-round.

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

Fastest internet plans in Santa Clara

Provider	Initial monthly price	Maximum download speed	Maximum upload speed	Data cap	Connection type
AT&T Fiber 5000 Read the full review	250 dollars	5,000 Mbps	5,000 Mbps	No one	Hair
AT&T Fiber 2000 Read the full review	150 dollars	2,000 Mbps	2,000 Mbps	No one	Hair
Xfinity Gigabit X2 Read the full review	80 dollars	2,000 Mbps	200 Mbps	1.2 TB	Cable
AT&T Fiber 1000 Read the full review	80 dollars	1,000 Mbps	1,000 Mbps	No one	Hair
Xfinity Gigabit Read the full review	65 dollars	1,000 Mbps	20 Mbps	No one	Cable

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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 have a better experience with a stronger connection. Here's an overview of recommended minimum download speeds for different apps, according to the FCC. Note that these are guidelines only and that internet speed, service and performance will vary by connection type, provider and address.

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

• 0 to 5 Mbps lets you handle the basics: web browsing, sending and receiving email, and streaming low-quality video.
• From 5 to 40 Mbps, you can enjoy video streaming and video conferencing with higher quality.
• 40 to 100 Mbps should give a user enough bandwidth to meet the demands of modern telecommuting, video streaming and online gaming.
• 100 to 500 Mbps allows one to two users to simultaneously engage in high-bandwidth activities such as video conferencing, streaming and gaming.
• 500 to 1,000 Mbps allows three or more users to simultaneously engage in high-bandwidth activities.

How CNET picked the best ISPs in Santa Clara

Internet providers are numerous and regional. Unlike the latest ones smart phone, laptop, router or kitchen toolit is impractical to personally test every ISP in a given city. What is our approach? We start by researching pricing, availability and speed information, drawing on our historical data from ISPs, provider locations and mapping information from FCC.gov.

It doesn't stop there: we use the FCC's website to check our data and make sure we account for every ISP that provides service in a given area. We also enter local addresses on supplier websites to find specific options for residents. We look at sources, including the American Customer Satisfaction Index and JD Power, to gauge how satisfied customers are with an ISP's service. ISP plans and prices are subject to frequent change; all information provided is correct as 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. Are customers getting decent value for what they are paying for?
3. Are customers satisfied with their service?

While the answers to those questions are often layered and complex, the providers who come closest to saying yes to all three are the ones we recommend. When choosing the cheapest internet service, we look for the plans with the lowest monthly fee, although we also take into account factors such as price increases, equipment fees and contracts. Choosing the fastest internet service is relatively simple. We look at advertised upload and download speeds and also look at real-world speed data from sources like Okla and The FCC reports. (Disclosure: Ookla is owned by the same parent company as CNET, Ziff Davis.)

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

Santa Clara ISP FAQs