But before diving into Nashville’s top ISP picks, keep in mind that, just like everywhere else, the advertised prices are not the same as what you’ll pay. The “list” price doesn’t include taxes or fees. The prices will also vary wildly depending on what deal you get. Many ISPs offer cheaper packages that also offer you cable TV, landline, or 4G/5G phone services. These bundles are normally only for one or two years and require you to sign a contract.
In addition, not all speeds are available everywhere. For example, I have friends who can 940 Megabit per second (Mbps) AT&T Fiber in some parts of town while friends in Brentwood tell me they can only get 100Mbps.
Also, before subscribing to a service, always check to see if there’s a data cap. Today, thanks to work and school from home, video-conferencing, and 4K video streaming, many of us use more broadband than we ever had before. One TeraByte (TB) of data per month is a lot, but it may not be enough to cover what you use in 2021.
Hidden fees and data caps
Take what I tell you here as a starting point. It’s a pain, but you really need to check out the available plans and take a long, hard look at hidden fees and data caps. Then, and only then, you will be able to make a smart internet decision. But, look at it this way, at least in Nashville most of you actually will have choices to make. In many places, there is no real choice at all.
The prices for the speed are hard to beat, too. Nashville’s Google Fiber’s 1Gbps plan costs $70 a month plus taxes and fees. The 2Gbps plan starts at $100 per month. You can also add home phone service for an additional $10 a month.
Another Google Fiber plus is it has no data caps.
Xfinity from Comcast, on the other hand, is available in much of the city and outlying regions. Xfinity offers cable internet with speeds of up to 1.2Gbps. Its prices vary depending on your speed, you can go as slow as 50 Megabits per second (Mbps) for $46 a month with autopay and e-billing. On the high side, 1.2Gbps, if available, will run you $106 a month with autopay and e-billing. As usual, package deals may reduce your internet costs.
AT&T prices vary wildly, like most ISPs’ prices do, depending on the contract length and what other services –AT&T TV (Formerly AT&T TV Now and DirecTV Now) – you bundle with it. Generally speaking, 100Mbps and 300Mbps cost $35, 500Mbps is $45, and 940Mbps is $60 a month. The 100Mbps service connects you to fiber via a fixed-wireless internet connection between your home and the AT&T access point. To all these prices, you can tack on additional taxes and equipment fees.
You may sometimes see sites claiming that AT&T still offers DSL internet. That’s no longer the case. Beginning on Oct.1, 2020, AT&T stopped offering DSL. Some existing DSL accounts are still being supported. But AT&T will no longer offer it as a new service.
In Nashville and close-in suburbs, Earthlink also offers fiber. This service, EarthLink Hyperlink, can deliver up to 1Gbps speeds for a mere $100. One nice thing about all Earthlink’s services is it doesn’t have data caps.
