Best Internet Providers in Santa Ana, California

What is the best internet provider in Santa Ana, CA?

Surprisingly, there aren’t many internet provider options in Santa Ana. After reviewing the available options, AT&T Fiber Tops our list as the best internet provider in Santa Ana for most households. Although it doesn’t have the best coverage, AT&T Fiber offers the fastest speeds in town by a mile. It’s also the region’s only fiber optic provider, meaning you’ll benefit from the same upload and download speeds, ideal for working from home or gaming online. It also has some of the simplest and most reasonable rates you’ll find from an Internet service provider. Prices start at $55 per month for the 300 Mbps plan and go up to $245 per month.

If you are looking for the lowest prices, Spectrum has the cheapest Internet plans in Santa Ana at $30 per month for 100 Mbps. What’s even better is that Spectrum is available almost everywhere in the city, and it’s a solid option to have as default if AT&T Fiber isn’t available at your address. The main downside is that Spectrum increases its prices significantly after a year or two.

If you don’t want to worry about these inherent price increases, Verizon 5G Home Internet is the best wireless internet provider in Santa Ana. There’s no guarantee this won’t increase your rates, but unlike Spectrum, they’re not on schedule and likely won’t be as egregious.

Best Internet in Santa Ana, California

Source: CNET analysis of supplier data.

Source: CNET analysis of supplier data.

How to Find Internet Deals and Promotions in Santa Ana, California

The best Internet deals and promotions in Santa Ana depend on the discounts available at any given time. Most deals are short-term, but we frequently check for the latest deals.

Internet providers in Santa Ana, such as Verizon 5G Home Internet and AT&T Fiber, may offer lower introductory prices or streaming add-ons for a limited time. Others, including Spectrum, charge the same standard rates year-round.

For a more complete list of promotions, see our guide on best internet deals.

Source: CNET analysis of supplier data.

What is 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 support video conferencing, video streaming, or gaming, you’ll have a better experience with a more robust connection. Here’s a look at the minimum recommended download speeds for various apps, according to the FCC. Note that these are guidelines only and Internet speed, service and performance vary depending on connection type, provider and address.

For more information, see our guide on how much internet speed you actually need.

• 0 to 5 Mbps gets you through the essentials: browsing the Internet, sending and receiving emails, and streaming low-quality video.
• 5 to 40 Mbps gives you higher quality video streaming and video conferencing.
• 40 to 100 Mbps should give a user enough bandwidth to satisfy the demands of modern teleworking, video streaming, and online gaming.
• 100 to 500 Mbps allows one or two users to participate in high-bandwidth activities like video conferencing, streaming, and online gaming simultaneously.
• 500 to 1000 Mbps allows three or more users to engage in high-bandwidth activities simultaneously.

How CNET Chose the Best Internet Service Providers in Santa Ana

Internet service providers are numerous and regional. Unlike the last smart phone, laptop, router Or kitchen toolit is not practical to personally test every ISP in a given city. What is our approach? We begin by researching pricing, availability, and speed information, drawing on our own historical ISP data, provider sites, and Federal Communications Commission map information at FCC.gov.

It doesn’t stop there: we go to the FCC website to check our data and make sure we’re taking into account all ISPs that provide service in an area. We also enter local addresses on provider websites to find specific options for residents. We look at sources including the American Customer Satisfaction Index and JD Power to gauge how satisfied customers are with an ISP’s service. ISP plans and prices are subject to frequent change; All information provided is accurate at the time 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. Are customers getting decent value for what they pay?
3. Are customers satisfied with their service?

The answers to these questions are often multiple and complex, but the providers who come closest to “yes” in all three areas are the ones we recommend. When selecting the cheapest internet service, we look for the plans with the lowest monthly fees, although we also consider things like price increases, equipment fees, and contracts. Choosing the fastest Internet service is relatively simple. We review advertised download and upload speeds and take into account actual speed data from sources such as Ookla And FCC Reports. (Disclaimer: Ookla is owned by the same parent company as CNET, Ziff Davis.)

To explore our process in more depth, visit our how we test ISPs page.

FAQs about Internet Service Providers in Santa Ana