Percentage of each State’s Population with Access to Broadband Internet
The term “broadband internet” is used frequently in discussions about Internet access, but what does “broadband internet” actually mean? According to the FCC, to be called broadband internet download speeds must be 25 Mbps or higher.
With this clear delineation, the question then becomes, “Who has access to broadband internet in the United States?” We compiled a ranked list of the states, and their respective broadband coverage. We also took a look at the largest metros across the USA, and ranked them based on broadband coverage.
More important than where to find broadband speeds may be to know which metros to avoid, with less than satisfactory speeds. Of the ~ 370 metros analyzed, 14 metros in Texas fell into the worst 25 broadband covered metros. In fairness, Texas is the second largest state in the USA, which means coverage can be difficult to some of the more rural areas in the state.
Conversely, California only has one metro fall into the worst 25 covered metros, and is the largest state in the USA. Unfortunately, you will only find Los Angeles in the top 25 most covered metros, meaning the majority of California’s cities have relatively average broadband coverage.
1. Longview, TX – 0.503%
2. Visalia, CA – 0.483%
3. College Station, TX – 0.294%
4. Cumberland, MD – 0.288%
5. Killeen Temple, TX – 0.28%
6. Lubbock, TX – 0.258%
7. Missoula, MT – 0.25%
8. Billings, MT – 0.237%
9. Yuma, AZ – 0.228%
10. Burlington, VT – 0.219%
11. Abilene, TX – 0.2%
12. Tyler, TX – 0.196%
13. Amarillo, TX – 0.193%
14. San Angelo, TX – 0.171%
15. Grand Junction, CO – 0.149%
16. Hot Springs, AR – 0.09%
17. Great Falls, MT – 0.085%
18. El Paso, TX – 0.064%
19. Beaumont, TX – 0.041%
20. Wichita Falls, TX – 0.024%
21. McAllen, TX – 0.019%
22. Laredo, TX – 0.013%
23. Pittsfield, MA – 0.007%
24. Brownsville, TX – 0.006%
25. Pine Bluff, AZ – 0.001%
All in all, there is a substantial variance in the amount of broadband coverage across the United States. The Northeast and West seem to be leading the charge on improving access to high speed internet for their residents. Want to see which providers are available in your area, and how they stack up against the rest of nation? Use our zip search below to get started.
[zipfinder]
This site is a U.S. Consumer site. You can learn more about our site and privacy policy here.