7 Best Internet Providers in Upper State, Santa Barbara, CA

Compare Providers Ranked by Coverage, Speed, and Customer Ratings

Above are the top 4 providers in Upper State, Santa Barbara, CA for most people based on high speed internet coverage, speeds, and customer reviews. Click below to see all providers in your neighborhood.

All Providers

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 Upper State ratings may vary and are shown below.

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3. Upper State, Santa Barbara, CA Internet Service Providers

Who is the Best Internet Provider in Upper State, Santa Barbara, CA?

The chart and table below show average customer ratings from customers in Upper State, California, and customers throughout the country.

Top Rated Internet Providers in Upper State

Local, State, and National Ratings for all Upper State Internet Providers

Based on 231 reviews from Santa Barbara internet customers, Frontier Communications is the best internet service provider for Upper State residents. Frontier Communications was rated at an average of 3.85 out of 5 in our report for overall customer satisfaction. T-Mobile Home Internet wins for second-place in Santa Barbara, with 3.84 out of 5 stars and 90.4% coverage in Upper State.

At a national level, based on 2643 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 Upper State?

Data Reported to FCC by ISPs: Average Maximum Available in Upper State

	ISP / Tech Type	Max Advertised Speed
	Frontier Communications	7,000 Mbps
	Astound Broadband	5,000 Mbps
	Cox Communications	2,000 Mbps
	Verizon	300 Mbps
	EarthLink	100 Mbps
	AT&T	100 Mbps
	T-Mobile Home Internet	100 Mbps
	Viasat	100 Mbps
	HughesNet	25 Mbps

Customer Ratings for Internet Provider Speeds in Upper State

Based on data reported by Upper State ISPs to the FCC, the fastest speeds in the neighborhood are available through Frontier Communications. The company offers speeds up to 7,000 Mbps in Upper State. Therefore, the average customer can get up to 6,335 Mbps if they're willing to purchase the fastest subscription tier available at their homes.

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

Who is the Cheapest Internet Provider in Upper State?

Santa Barbara customers rate T-Mobile Home Internet as the cheapest internet service provider in city. Data comes from customers in the city rating their satisfaction with pricing. This feedback is valuable because it considers price changes and whether the speeds paid for are worth it.

T-Mobile Home Internet received a local rating of 4.11 out of 5, which is higher than the average across all internet providers in the country. Verizon is rated in second place for affordability by the company’s Upper State customers with an average price rating of 3.91 out of 5.

The chart and graph below show how customers in Upper State, Santa Barbara, and the United States rated the affordability of their internet service.

Rated Affordability in Upper State

Upper State 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 neighborhood 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 Upper State below, including the metrics used and how Upper State compares to the rest of Santa Barbara and nation.

Upper State ISP Report Card: B

	Metric (hover for details)	Upper State	California	USA
	Fiber Availability Percent The percentage of households in Upper State that have a Fiber internet connection available to their home.	87.24%	82.93%	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.	6,265 Mbps	5,307 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 Upper State.	5.3	4.9	6.8

 

Upper State Digital Connectivity Index: 76 / 100

	Metric (hover for details)	Upper State	California	USA
	Average Household SizeA larger household size in a neighborhood indicates that there will be a greater need for bandwidth due to simultaneous usage, multiple devices, and network congestion.	2.3	2.5	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.	24%	19%	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.	98%	97%	95%
	Households with InternetA higher percentage of households with internet indicates a higher need for usage and connectivity in people’s daily lives.	95%	94%	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.	83%	83%	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%	84%	76%

Upper State ISP Report Card & Digital Connectivity Index

The ISP Report Card in Upper State is B, which is much better than other neighborhoods. The local demand for broadband internet connectivity in Upper State is high with a score of 76 / 100 in our Digital Connectivity Index. This means that internet service providers operating in Upper State have done a good job meeting the needs of its residents.

The Upper State ISP Report Card evaluates the neighborhood on availability and speed metrics compared to other neighborhoods in the United States. ISP Infrastructure can vary greatly and on its own isn’t a perfect measure of what a neighborhood 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.

95% of Upper State households have an internet connection despite having 99.93% availability. 83% of households have fiber, cable, or DSL, 4% have satellite, 0% are still on dial-up, and 2% 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 83% 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 Upper State 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 Neighborhoods Compare to Upper State?

How Much Speed does a Upper State Household Need?

Higher speed is typically preferred, but that comes at a higher price. The average size of a household in Upper State is 2.3, which is smaller than the Santa Barbara average of 2.5 and smaller than the national average of 2.7. Upper State's average household income is $141,639 which is much higher than the Santa Barbara average of $126,168 and much 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.

Upper State also has 13% of its population enrolled in school between the 6th grade and college level, this is lower than the Santa Barbara average of 17%. Additionally, 24% of residents work from home, which is higher than the 19% of residents in Santa Barbara who work from home. This and other factors you can see above show us that the community of Upper State has a very high need for internet connectivity and speeds.

Compared to the rest of the country, Upper State households are much more technology-engaged. 98% of households have some sort of computing device, 92% have desktops or laptops in the home, and 95% have smartphones. To see what speeds you are currently getting, please visit our internet speed test tool.

Which Fiber Internet Providers are Available in Upper State?

Which Cable Internet Providers are Available in Upper State?

Which DSL Internet Providers are Available in Upper State?

Which Fixed Wireless and LTE Internet Providers are Available in Upper State?

Which ISP Should You Choose in Upper State?

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 Upper State is Frontier.
• The fastest internet provider should be Frontier Communications. Considering speed for the money and reliability in speeds, Frontier Communications may be a better choice based on real-world local customer feedback.
• The most affordable internet provider in Upper State is T-Mobile Home Internet.
• Viasat, HughesNet, and Cox Communications has the broadest coverage in Upper State, 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 Upper State compare to other cities with a similar population?

To see how Upper State 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 Upper State's B ISP Report Card and 76 / 100 Digital Connectivity Index.

Customer Reviews

Customer Reviews for Internet Service Providers in California