Best Internet Providers In South Bay, FL

Data collected by the FCC suggests South Bay has six residential internet options.

All South Bay Internet Options

Provider	Download (Mbps)	Upload (Mbps)	Availability	Technology	Link
Xfinity	987	35	96%	Cable	See Plans
Viasat	35	3	100%	Satellite
HughesNet	25	3	100%	Satellite
AT&T	18	1	25%	DSL	See Plans
AT&T	6	1	84%	DSL	See Plans
Skycasters	2	1	100%	Satellite

Internet Technologies In South Bay

Three internet technologies are available in South Bay.

Technology	Number of Options
Fiber	0
Cable	1
DSL	2
Satellite	3
Fixed Wireless	0
Other	0

While there are exceptions, fiber internet tends to offer the best performance, followed by cable, then DSL. Fixed wireless internet uses cellular technology to deliver internet to buildings. Performance varies substantially between locations and providers.

Historically, satellite internet has had lackluster performance and high latency. Next-generation satellite internet from providers like Starlink and Project Kuiper will bring big changes. These providers will use constellations of thousands of satellites that are closer to earth than satellites used by old-school satellite internet providers. An early version of Starlink is being offered in parts of the US. Check Starlink's website for up-to-date information on availability in South Bay.

Availability Estimates In South Bay

Availability estimates indicate the percent of residents in South Bay eligible for each service. The estimates are rough and sometimes inaccurate.^[1]

Getting The Best Deal On Internet

Internet providers often charge a customer $10-$15 per month to rent a modem and router. However, most companies allow customers to bring their own equipment and skip the rental fees. For those who are slightly tech savvy and plan to keep service for a year or more, I recommend saving money by buying your own modem and router.

What Does "Fastest" Mean?

Coverage Critic combines download and upload speeds to determine the fastest internet option in South Bay. While this approach is simple, it's not perfect. Depending on your situation, you may prefer additional upload speed over additional download speed (or vice versa). In South Bay, Xfinity leads in both download and upload speeds.

Should I Choose The Fastest Internet?

Maybe. Speed is often overrated. Beyond a threshold of roughly 50Mbps, most people won't notice tangible benefits as speeds increase. Consumers who regularly download video games and other large files are exceptions.

Most internet providers offer multiple plans with different maximum speeds. Plans with higher speeds tend to be more expensive. If you sign up for a cable or fiber service, consider opting for a cheap internet plan with lower speeds.

Cell Coverage

On another page, I discuss cell phone providers in South Bay.

Internet In Other Parts Of

• New Port Richey
• Ponte Vedra
• Astor
• Lake Panasoffkee
• East Palatka
• Jacksonville
• Pinetta
• Moore Haven
• Zolfo Springs
• Bristol

Transparency & Integrity

I have financial relationships with many internet service providers. Details can be found on my transparency page. I try to list every internet service provider with non-trivial availability in South Bay, regardless of whether I have a financial relationship.^[2] I only link directly to internet providers I have financial relationships with, but I encourage visitors to manually navigate to the websites of other internet providers. The lack of links to some providers makes Coverage Critic less user-friendly. On the other hand, it helps me to preserve editorial integrity without destroying internet service providers' incentives to partner with me.

Sources & Accuracy

Coverage Critic's database of internet service providers is a work in progress. The underlying data was collected by the FCC through Form 477. Listed speeds are the maximum advertised speeds in South Bay. In rare cases, subscribers may receive speeds faster than the highest advertised speeds. More often, subscribers will experience speeds below the maximum advertised speeds.

Last updated: May 5, 2023

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Footnotes:

1. Estimates may be particularly unreliable in cases where availability is substantially below 100%. I expect the availability estimates to improve in quality over time. 🠕

2. I don't list internet service providers that are predicted to have less than 2% availability South Bay. Additionally, at the moment, I mainly list internet service providers, but I hope to eventually make recommendations. While I will never be impartial, I don't want financial relationships to be a prerequisite for a recommendation. 🠕