Consumer Reports Lists 12 Worst Internet Providers

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Public watch group Consumer Reports issued its picks of the 12 worst internet providers in the U.S. last week. Each year, subscribers share their experiences with the publication. It states the same providers repeatedly draw the most complaints. Many of the biggest names dominate their regions with little competition, allowing prices to rise while service quality stagnates, according to the watch group. It cites a recent study by the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society that said that in much of the U.S., broadband choice is an illusion, saying that over a third of Americans have one or no real high-speed internet options.

Consumer Reports readers cited frustrations such as dropped video calls, buffering, surprise fees and poor customer support. Data collected annually by the watch group shows that some of the biggest, most recognizable providers also generate the most complaints, particularly in regions where they face little or no competition.  

The 12 worst, according to Consumer Reports (in no particular order), were:

  • HughesNet
  • Viasat
  • Liberty Cablevision
  • GCI
  • Optimum (Altice/Suddenlink)
  • Brightspeed
  • Breezeline (Atlantic Broadband)
  • Xtream by Mediacom
  • Lumen (CenturyLink)
  • Xfinity (Comcast)
  • Kinetic by Windstream
  • Cox