dslreports logo
 story category
The Best and Worst ISPs According to Consumer Reports

Most consumers still don't really like their broadband and television provider, and don't believe they receive a decent value for the high price they pay for service, according to the latest ISP rankings over at Consumer Reports. The report, is available at the Consumer Reports website and in the August 2017 issue of Consumer Reports magazine, names Chattanooga municipal broadband provider EPB as the most-liked ISP in the nation. EPB was followed by Google Fiber, Armstrong Cable, Consolidated Cable and RCN as the top-ranked ISPs in the nation.

Click for full size
Google Fiber "was the clear winner for internet service," notes the report, "with the only high score for value." Google Fiber also received high marks for customer support and service.

But large, incumbent ISPs continue to be aggressively disliked due to high prices and poor customer service, according to the report.

Despite endless annual promises that customer service is the company's priority, Comcast ranked number 27 out of the 32 providers measured. The company's survey results were weighed down by low consumer marks for value, channel selection, technical support, customer service and free video on demand offerings.

The least-liked ISPs in the nation, according to the report, are: Charter (Spectrum), Cable ONE, Atlantic broadband, Frontier Communications, and Mediacom. Not coincidentally, the two largest ISPs in that list just got done with massive mergers or acquisitions that resulted in higher prices and worse service than consumers saw previously.

Consumer Reports is quick to highlight how this disdain for large providers is contributing to the record rate of cord cutting, as users try to lower their bills by keeping broadband -- but eliminating traditional cable television.

"Though consumer dissatisfaction with their cable companies has been simmering for quite some time, it’s now starting to boil over in terms of actual cord-cutting from traditional pay TV providers," said Jim Willcox, Senior Electronics Editor at Consumer Reports. "The good news is that there are now more alternatives, so it’s possible for consumers to get the shows and movies they want, often at a lower price than a traditional pay TV plan."

Most recommended from 33 comments


derek4484
join:2016-08-16
Lexington, SC

5 recommendations

derek4484

Member

Being the "Best" ISP...

Is that like being the tallest midget? No ISP is really worth a crap. They all have terrible customer service, they all price gouge, they all want to institute bandwidth caps.