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What is the best internet provider in Visalia, California?

AT&T Fiber is the best internet service provider in Visalia. It has the fastest speeds by a mile — up to 5,000Mbps — and it’s the only fiber provider in the area, which means it’s the only one with symmetrical upload and download speeds. AT&T also has the highest customer satisfaction scores of any internet provider in the country. 

While we like AT&T Fiber the best, it doesn’t actually have the lowest prices. Xfinity is the cheapest internet provider in Visalia, with plans starting at just $20 a month. Prices increase significantly after a year or two, but Xfinity is still a decent option even after your bill goes up.

If you can’t get AT&T Fiber and don’t want to worry about Xfinity’s price increases, your best alternative is wireless internet. T-Mobile and Verizon both offer wireless plans in the city, and while speeds aren’t quite as fast, they’re plenty for smaller households. 

Best internet in Visalia, California

Speed range

300 – 5,000 Mbps

Price range

$55 – $250 per month

Our take – AT&T Fiber is our top choice for internet whenever it’s available in a city. It’s the only fiber provider in the area, which means you’ll get upload speeds that are just as fast as download speeds — important for people who do a lot of online gaming or videoconferencing. Unlike Xfinity, AT&T’s prices don’t automatically increase after a year or two, and equipment is included in the monthly price.

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Speed range

300 – 5,000 Mbps

Price range

$55 – $250 per month

Speed range

150 – 6,000 Mbps

Price range

$20 – $300 per month

Our take – It’s hard to find lower prices anywhere in the country than Xfinity’s $20-a-month Connect plan. But there is a catch: After a year, the monthly price increases to $57. The rest of Xfinity’s plans are locked in for the first two years, but you’ll see similar rate increases after that. Still, customers are largely happy with their Xfinity service. The provider has above-average customer satisfaction scores from both J.D. Power and the American Customer Satisfaction Index.

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Speed range

150 – 6,000 Mbps

Price range

$20 – $300 per month

Connection

Fixed wireless

Speed range

72 – 245 Mbps

Price range

$60 per month

Our take – Wireless internet is another good backup option in Visalia. T-Mobile and Verizon both have 5G wireless coverage in the city and while they don’t reach the same top speeds as AT&T Fiber and Xfinity, most households will get by just fine. We picked T-Mobile here because it’s available to twice as many homes in Visalia, but if you’re a cellphone customer with either company, we recommend going with that one — excellent discounts are available for bundling with home internet. 

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Check with T-Mobile

Connection

Fixed wireless

Speed range

72 – 245 Mbps

Price range

$60 per month

Source: CNET analysis of provider data.

Source: CNET analysis of provider data.

How to find internet deals and promotions in Visalia

The best internet deals and top promotions in Visalia depend on what discounts are available during a given time. Most deals are short-lived, but we look frequently for the latest offers. 

Visalia internet providers, such as T-Mobile Home Internet, Xfinity and Verizon 5G Home Internet, may offer lower introductory pricing or streaming add-ons for a limited time. Others, however, including AT&T Fiber, run the same standard pricing year-round.  

For a more extensive list of promos, check out our guide on the best internet deals. 

Source: CNET analysis of provider data.

What’s a good internet speed?

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.

For more information, refer to our guide on how much internet speed you really need.

• 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 person sufficient bandwidth to satisfy the demands of modern telecommuting, video streaming and online gaming. 
• 100 to 500Mbps allows one to two people to simultaneously engage in high-bandwidth activities like videoconferencing, streaming and online gaming. 
• 500 to 1,000Mbps allows three or more people to engage in high-bandwidth activities at the same time.

How CNET chose the best internet providers in Visalia

Internet service providers are numerous and regional. Unlike the latest smartphone, laptop, router or kitchen tool, it’s impractical to personally test every ISP in a given city. So what’s our approach? We start by researching the pricing, availability and speed information, drawing on our own historical ISP data, the provider sites 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:

1. Does the provider offer access to reasonably fast internet speeds?
2. Do customers get decent value for what they’re paying?
3. Are customers happy with their service?

While the answer to those questions is 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.

Internet providers in Visalia FAQs