What is the best internet provider in Minneapolis?
Although broadband options are limited, Xfinity is the best internet service provider for most Minneapolis households due to its wide coverage and multiple plan options. Along with Xfinity, many Minneapolis residents can access Quantum Fiber and USI, the latter of which is beloved by its customers and is ranked by Ookla as the fastest provider in the area.
We’ve also found the cheapest plans and the fastest speeds in Minneapolis. Xfinity offers the most affordable internet service: 75 megabits per second for only $20 monthly for the first year. For those with a need for speed, check out USI. This provider offers 10 gigabits for $295 a month. A few other ISPs also offer gigabit and multi-gigabit speeds, so you have options if 10Gbps is too fast.
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Best internet providers in Minneapolis
Speed range
75 – 2,000Mbps
Price range
$20 – $120 per month
Our take – Xfinity may not provide the best value in Minneapolis, as USI’s $75 1-gig plan is the one to beat, but it’s the most prevalent service in the city with the most plan choices.
Our take – Just about half of Minneapolis residents can access Quantum Fiber, a sibling company to CenturyLink. It’s a good option if it’s available to you.
Hughesnet: This satellite internet service is available only at speeds of 50-100Mbps, and it’s fairly pricey, with the cheapest option available for $50 a month with a two-year contract and equipment fees.
Mediacom: The cable company’s Xtream internet offering is available to only a fifth of Minneapolis residents. Prices start at $35 and go up to $179, varying by location, with speeds ranging from 100Mbps to 2Gbps.
T-Mobile Home Internet: Some Minneapolis residents may have access to T-Mobile’s home broadband option. It’s available for $60 ($40 for eligible Go5g Plus and Magenta Max mobile customers) and offers speeds up to 245Mbps.
Viasat: The satellite internet company’s monthly prices start at $65 and go up to $350 for the first three months, with speeds ranging from 25 to 100Mbps based on the plan.
Cheap internet options in Minneapolis
If you’re looking for the cheapest internet service in Minneapolis, look no further than Xfinity’s $20 Connect (75Mbps) plan. Note, however, that this cheaper plan requires a one-year contract. For just $10 more (for the first two years), Xfinity offers a 200Mbps plan. Mediacom also offers a plan within the $30 range for 100Mbps but charges $14 monthly to lease Wi-Fi equipment (unless you bring your own).
Most providers we’ve mentioned also participate in the FCC’s Affordable Connectivity Program, which gives eligible low-income households a $30 monthly discount (or up to $75 for households on tribal lands) for high-speed internet. You can use the ACP toward any internet plan — not just the cheapest ones — from participating providers.
How to find internet deals and promotions in Minneapolis
The best internet deals and top promotions in Minneapolis depend on the discounts available during that period. Most deals are short-lived, but we look frequently for the latest offers.
Minneapolis internet providers, such as T-Mobile and Xfinity, may offer lower introductory pricing or streaming add-ons for a limited time. Many, however, including Quantum Fiber, run the same standard pricing year-round.
For a more extensive list of promos, check out our guide on the best internet deals.
Photo by Bradley Olson/EyeEm/Getty Images
How fast is Minneapolis broadband?
Apologies to Prince, but perhaps the slower median internet speeds in his home city are why doves cry. Ookla estimates Minneapolis’ median download speed to be 213Mbps, with median upload speeds of just over 91Mbps.
With that said, speeds approaching 1Gbps are available for those willing to pay more per month, and those willing to shell out hundreds have access to a super zippy high-speed plan from USI. If you’re looking for blazingly fast internet in Minneapolis, USI offers a 10-gig plan for $295. For most City of Lakes residents looking for speed, Mediacom and Xfinity offer plans that top out at 1,000Mbps and 2,000Mbps, respectively.
Most internet connection plans can now handle basic productivity and communication tasks. If you’re looking for an internet plan that can accommodate videoconferencing, streaming video or gaming, you’ll have a better experience with a more robust connection. Here’s an overview of the recommended minimum download speeds for various applications, according to the FCC. Note that these are only guidelines — and that internet speed, service and performance vary by connection type, provider and address.
0 to 5Mbps allows you to tackle the basics — browsing the internet, sending and receiving email, streaming low-quality video.
5 to 40Mbps gives you higher-quality video streaming and videoconferencing.
40 to 100Mbps should give one user sufficient bandwidth to satisfy the demands of modern telecommuting, video streaming and online gaming.
100 to 500Mbps allows one to two users to simultaneously engage in high-bandwidth activities like videoconferencing, streaming and online gaming.
500 to 1,000Mbps allows three or more users to engage in high-bandwidth activities at the same time.
How CNET chose the best internet providers in Minneapolis
Internet service providers are numerous and regional. Unlike the latest smartphone, laptop, router or kitchen tool, it’s impractical to personally test every internet service provider in a given city. So what’s our approach? For starters, we tap into a proprietary pricing, availability and speed database that draws from our own historical ISP data, partner data and mapping information from the Federal Communications Commission at FCC.gov.
But it doesn’t end there. We go to the FCC’s website to check our data and ensure we consider every ISP that provides service in an area. We also input local addresses on provider websites to find specific options for residents. We look at sources, including the American Customer Satisfaction Index and J.D. Power, to evaluate how happy customers are with an ISP’s service. ISP plans and prices are subject to frequent changes; all information provided is accurate as of publication.
Once we have this localized information, we ask three main questions:
Does the provider offer access to reasonably fast internet speeds?
Do customers get decent value for what they’re paying?
Are customers happy with their service?
While the answers to those questions are often layered and complex, the providers who come closest to “yes” on all three are the ones we recommend. When selecting the cheapest internet service, we look for the plans with the lowest monthly fee, though we also factor in things like price increases, equipment fees and contracts. Choosing the fastest internet service is relatively straightforward. We look at advertised upload and download speeds and consider real-world speed data from sources like Ookla and FCC reports.
To explore our process in more depth, visit our how we test ISPs page.
What’s the final word on internet providers in Minneapolis?
Minneapolis doesn’t rank high regarding the median internet speeds on Ookla’s most populous cities list, but options exist based on where you live in the City of Lakes. If you live within USI’s coverage area, it comes highly recommended by its customers. For everyone else, it’ll mostly boil down to a choice between Xfinity and CenturyLink.
Internet providers in Minneapolis FAQs
CNET’s CenturyLink vs. Xfinity guide comparing the two most common internet providers in Minneapolis.
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