7 Best Internet Providers in Albany County, NY

Compare Providers Ranked by Coverage, Speed, and Customer Ratings

Above are the top 4 providers in Albany County, NY for most people based on high speed internet coverage, speeds, and customer reviews. Click below to see all providers in your county.

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Speed and technology may vary by address for all providers. Please note we may have a financial relationship with some of the providers above, which does not impact the customer ratings displayed. Customer ratings listed above are national ratings, local Albany County ratings may vary and are shown below.

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3. Albany County, NY Internet Service Providers

Who is the Best Internet Provider in Albany County, NY?

The chart and table below show average customer ratings from customers in Albany County, New York, and customers throughout the country.

Top Rated Internet Providers in Albany County

Local, State, and National Ratings for all Albany County Internet Providers

Based on 282 reviews from New York internet customers, EarthLink is the best internet service provider for Albany County residents. EarthLink was rated at an average of 3.00 out of 5 in our report for overall customer satisfaction. T-Mobile Home Internet wins for second-place in New York, with 4.00 out of 5 stars and 91.0% coverage in Albany County.

At a national level, based on 2799 national reviews for any of the providers listed above, T-Mobile Home Internet is rated higher than any other provider, with a rating of 4.02 out of 5.

Who is the Fastest Internet Provider in Albany County?

Data Reported to FCC by ISPs: Average Maximum Available in Albany County

	ISP / Tech Type	Max Advertised Speed
	EarthLink	2,048 Mbps
	Verizon	2,048 Mbps
	Mid-Hudson Cable	2,000 Mbps
	Spectrum	1,000 Mbps
	StateTel	500 Mbps
	Hudson Valley Wireless	200 Mbps
	T-Mobile Home Internet	100 Mbps
	Viasat	100 Mbps
	HughesNet	25 Mbps

Customer Ratings for Internet Provider Speeds in Albany County

Based on data reported by Albany County ISPs to the FCC, the fastest speeds in the county are available through Spectrum. The company offers speeds up to 1,000 Mbps in Albany County. Therefore, the average customer can get up to 1,000 Mbps if they're willing to purchase the fastest subscription tier available at their homes.

Additionally, actual customers in the county rated their satisfaction with internet speed highest with EarthLink. This indicates EarthLink reliably delivers speeds expected by the customer based on the plan they are paying for.

Who is the Cheapest Internet Provider in Albany County?

New York customers rate EarthLink as the cheapest internet service provider in state. Data comes from customers in the state rating their satisfaction with pricing. This feedback is valuable because it considers price changes and whether the speeds paid for are worth it.

EarthLink received a local rating of 2.00 out of 5, which is much lower than the average across all internet providers in the country. T-Mobile Home Internet is rated in second place for affordability by the company’s Albany County customers with an average price rating of 4.00 out of 5.

The chart and graph below show how customers in Albany County, New York, and the United States rated the affordability of their internet service.

Rated Affordability in Albany County

Albany County Internet Health Assessment

ISP Reports evaluates the technological infrastructure across the United States. This includes assessing a grade for ISP providers and infrastructure in the county and setting an index number for the digital connectivity of its residents. You can view the ISP Report Card and the Digital Connectivity Index for Albany County below, including the metrics used and how Albany County compares to the rest of New York and nation.

Albany County ISP Report Card: C

	Metric (hover for details)	Albany County	New York	USA
	Fiber Availability Percent The percentage of households in Albany County that have a Fiber internet connection available to their home.	54.87%	83.33%	67.25%
	Average Download SpeedThe maximum download speed most households can get on average. This is measured by availability in a block group and weighted by the population in that area.	1,000 Mbps	4,072 Mbps	3,293 Mbps
	Provider CountThe number of providers available for most people. This is a weighted average by block rather than a total for Albany County.	4.4	4.9	6.8

 

Albany County Digital Connectivity Index: 65 / 100

	Metric (hover for details)	Albany County	New York	USA
	Average Household SizeA larger household size in a county indicates that there will be a greater need for bandwidth due to simultaneous usage, multiple devices, and network congestion.	2.3	2.7	2.7
	Work From Home PercentA higher percent of the population working from home indicates bandwidth requirements being more widely needed rather than consolidated to commercial portions of the city.	14%	13%	14%
	Households with DevicesA higher percentage of households with computing devices in the home indicates a higher level of infrastructure needed to support those households.	95%	94%	95%
	Households with InternetA higher percentage of households with internet indicates a higher need for usage and connectivity in people’s daily lives.	90%	90%	90%
	Households with BroadbandA higher percentage of households with a broadband connection (defined as speeds above 25 Mbps) indicates heavier usage needs within these households.	80%	76%	75%
	Broadband Usage vs. AvailabilityThis measures what percentage of households who have a broadband connection to their home actually have an active subscription to that service.	83%	77%	76%

Albany County ISP Report Card & Digital Connectivity Index

The ISP Report Card in Albany County is C, which is much better than other counties. The local demand for broadband internet connectivity in Albany County is high with a score of 65 / 100 in our Digital Connectivity Index. This means that internet service providers operating in Albany County have done a good job meeting the needs of its residents.

The Albany County ISP Report Card evaluates the county on availability and speed metrics compared to other counties in the United States. ISP Infrastructure can vary greatly and on its own isn’t a perfect measure of what a county needs. Please see our ISP Report Card along with the Digital Connectivity Index above to evaluate how well the connectivity demand is met by the existing infrastructure.

90% of Albany County households have an internet connection despite having 96.80% availability. 80% of households have fiber, cable, or DSL, 3% have satellite, 0% are still on dial-up, and 3% of households have internet but don’t pay for a subscription because it’s subsidized by the Affordable Connectivity Program.

As you can see in the table above, while 80% of households have a broadband connection such as fiber, cable or DSL available to their home, 83% subscribe to it. A very large amount of Albany County residents are taking advantage of the available internet infrastructure.

For more details, please visit our ISP Report Card and Digital Connectivity Index pages.

How do Neighboring Counties Compare to Albany County?

How Much Speed does a Albany County Household Need?

Higher speed is typically preferred, but that comes at a higher price. The average size of a household in Albany County is 2.3, which is smaller than the New York average of 2.7 and smaller than the national average of 2.7. Albany County's average household income is $91,480 which is higher than the New York average of $98,794 and higher than the national average of $90,606. Homes with fewer people living in them and with higher incomes tend to indicate a fairly average device usage pattern.

Albany County also has 19% of its population enrolled in school between the 6th grade and college level, this is higher than the New York average of 16%. Additionally, 14% of residents work from home, which is higher than the 13% of residents in New York who work from home. This and other factors you can see above show us that the community of Albany County has a high need for internet connectivity and speeds.

Compared to the rest of the country, Albany County households are more technology-engaged. 95% of households have some sort of computing device, 87% have desktops or laptops in the home, and 91% have smartphones. To see what speeds you are currently getting, please visit our internet speed test tool.

Which Fiber Internet Providers are Available in Albany County?

Which Cable Internet Providers are Available in Albany County?

Which DSL Internet Providers are Available in Albany County?

Which Fixed Wireless and LTE Internet Providers are Available in Albany County?

Which ISP Should You Choose in Albany County?

The right ISP for you depends upon your needs, but in general we can make the following suggestions:

• The best all-around internet service provider in Albany County is EarthLink.
• The fastest internet provider should be Spectrum. Considering speed for the money and reliability in speeds, EarthLink may be a better choice based on real-world local customer feedback.
• The most affordable internet provider in Albany County is EarthLink.
• HughesNet, Spectrum, and Viasat has the broadest coverage in Albany County, and is most likely to cover your home. To find out exactly what's available at your home, please use our address search tool.

How does Albany County compare to other cities with a similar population?

To see how Albany County stacks up on the national level, it's useful to look at some other cities with similarly sized populations. Below you can see a list of these cities and how they compare to Albany County's C ISP Report Card and 65 / 100 Digital Connectivity Index.

Customer Reviews

Customer Reviews for Internet Service Providers in New York