AT&T Fiber: 2 Gig – Best multi-gig internet plan for perks
- Price: $110 per month
- Speed: 2,000Mbps
- Key Info: Unlimited data, no contract, no equipment fees
You may be thinking, “It’s not 2030 yet!” True, making that big of an upgrade is probably overkill for many of us. But internet service providers aren’t waiting to offer multi-gigabit packages to their customers. In 2022, we were introduced to new multi-gig internet plans from AT&T, Frontier, Optimum, Verizon and Ziply Fiber, to name a few. Other ISPs, including Comcast Xfinity and Google Fiber, already had multi-gig offerings of their own, too. Things aren’t slowing down in 2023, either.
For this list, we’ll focus on the best multi-gig internet offerings from major ISPs. However, I want to note that smaller, regional providers also have competitive plans. For instance, Midco offers 2Gbps and 5Gbps plans to its customers in South Dakota. Minnesota’s USI boasts a 10-gig fiber plan. The citizens of Chattanooga, Tennessee, have access to the country’s fastest residential plan, a 25Gbps tier from the city-owned fiber broadband of EPB. With that in mind, let’s look at some of the best 2-gigabit and multi-gig internet plans available from national providers.
Price $120 per month Speed 5,000Mbps Connection Fiber Key Info Unlimited data, no contract, free installation
Ziply Fiber makes an impressive statement with this 5-gigabit fiber internet offering. At $120 a month for symmetrical 5Gbps speeds, this plan comes in at a staggeringly low cost of just over 2 cents per Mbps. That’s one of the lowest we’ve seen for any plan from all the national providers we’ve covered thus far at CNET, not just the best multi-gig internet plans.
In addition to the excellent value per Mbps, customers face no data caps, annual contracts or installation fees. Ziply Fiber also includes your first month free as well. You must pay an additional $10 monthly for your equipment rental, and rates will increase after the first 12 months — but you’ll get excellent value overall with this speedy plan.
Price $110 per month Speed 2,000Mbps Connection Fiber Key Info Unlimited data, no contract, no equipment fees
While the prize for the fastest AT&T plan goes to AT&T’s 5-gig tier for $250 per month, you can get all the same perks for $100 less monthly with the provider’s 2Gbps option. Specifically, you get AT&T ActiveArmor (free internet security), a $200 gift card and access to AT&T hotspots nationwide. While your cost per Mbps may not be as low as AT&T Internet 5000, it still carries a significant value for a lower monthly charge.
Price $100 per month Speed 2,000Mbps Connection Fiber Key Info Unlimited data, no contract, no equipment fees
This is your best, most affordable option to enter the multi-gig-verse. Google Fiber’s 2 Gig plan features a 2Gbps download and 1Gbps upload speed for $100 monthly. That works out to just 5 cents per Mbps and is cheaper than any other provider’s 2Gbps offering. (Note: Ziply Fiber’s 2-gig plan starts cheaper at $80 per month but jumps to $120 monthly after the first year.)
There’s no additional cost for the provided Wi-Fi 6 equipment, and you get unlimited data with no contracts required.
The only downside is that Google Fiber is still only available in approximately 20 markets nationwide. The company aims to continue expansion in 2023, but that’s of little consequence to those outside its serviceability windows in Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Utah.
Other 2-gigabit internet and multi-gig plans to consider
While the three options we listed above rose to the top of our list, they aren’t available in all markets. Additional speedy plans, offered by other ISPs, might get your attention, but they have one or two caveats that kept them from our winner’s circle.
- AT&T Fiber 5 Gig: AT&T once had the top spot in this list with its top-tier fiber internet offering. It was introduced at $180 a month for symmetrical 5Gbps speeds. Now, it lists for $250 monthly. That’s still a staggeringly low cost of 5 cents per Mbps. But currently, that can be beaten by Frontier Fiber and Ziply Fiber.
- Frontier Fiber 2 Gig and 5 Gig: Impressively, Frontier has rolled these plans out to all fiber households within its footprint, which means 4 million customers across 15 states. While AT&T’s multi-gigabit plans are available to more people (5 million), it’s not yet available in all AT&T markets. Frontier’s offerings also feature free Wi-Fi 6E equipment rental, unlimited data, no contracts, no activation fee and free multi-device security. Even better? Frontier recently lowered the introductory rates to $100 per month for 2 Gig and $155 monthly for the 5 Gig plan.
- Optimum 2 Gig Fiber and 5 Gig Fiber: Optimum, whose footprint includes both cable and fiber connections, has been working to vastly expand its fiber offerings. In select fiber markets, two multi-gig internet plans are available in Connecticut, Long Island, New Jersey and New York. The 2Gbps plan is $120 per month, and the 5Gbps tier is $180 monthly. New customers for either multi-gigabit plan get free installation and all equipment included. New 2 Gig customers also receive a $500 Visa gift card.
- Verizon Fios 2 Gig: Verizon Fios is often near the top of the heap regarding customer satisfaction numbers. Its 2Gbps tier is competitively priced at $120 per month and includes a Whole-Home Wi-Fi system for free, a four-year price guarantee, a season subscription to NFL Sunday Ticket and six months of Disney Plus for free. However, it didn’t make the top of our list for the best multi-gig internet because it’s currently only available in New York City and surrounding areas.
- Xfinity Gigabit Pro: To its credit, Xfinity has been offering its multi-gigabit tier longer than other national providers. At $300 a month, it’s also the most expensive. While the 6Gbps plan is technically available in all cities within Xfinity’s footprint, a site survey must first confirm availability for your address. Once you add the two-year contract requirement (with early termination fees looming if you bail early), $25-a-month equipment rental charge and stiff activation and installation fees (potentially totaling $1,000), those top speeds are very cost-prohibitive.
- Ziply Fiber 2 Gig and 10 Gig: Ziply Fiber caught our attention with its 5Gbps plan, but it boasts a couple of multi-gig internet plans. The 2Gbps plan has an excellent promo rate of $80 a month. The 10Gbps plan is a pricey $300 per month, but that’s a notable value of 3 cents per Mbps. All three multi-gigabit plans include unlimited data, require no contracts and are available to all households within Ziply Fiber’s footprint in the Northwest (Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington).
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