Best Internet Providers in Madison, Illinois

What's the best internet provider in Madison?

Located just outside St. Louis, the city of Madison, Illinois, offers several different options for customers looking for a decent internet connection. Spectrum is CNET’s pick for the best internet provider in the city as it covers the most ground in the area, has gigabit speeds and offers competitive prices.

If you’re looking to cut the cord on cable, several fixed wireless options are available in the city, including satellite internet and 5G offerings. CNET’s pick for the best fixed wireless option in Madison is T-Mobile Home Internet. According to the FCC, T-Mobile covers about 80% of the city with 5G internet. A combination of straightforward terms of service, convenience and availability gives T-Mobile Home Internet an edge over similar offerings from AT&T Internet Air and Verizon 5G Home Internet in Madison. 

Besides one cable internet offering and three 5G internet options, Madison doesn't have many other options for home broadband. If you can't get any of those offerings at your address, you'll likely be eligible for satellite internet. Starlink is CNET's pick for Madison's best satellite internet provider because of its quick speeds, low latency and availability. Out of the three major satellite internet providers, Starlink promises the fastest speeds without any contracts.

If you’re looking for cheap internet, note that most internet plans start at $50 per month in the city. If you decide to bundle your internet plan with a qualifying mobile or TV add-on, you can lower that monthly bill, as is the case with T-Mobile, Verizon, AT&T and Spectrum. 

If you’re looking for further discounts, the Federal Communications Commission offers a monthly discount of just over $9 for eligible households with the Lifeline program. Some providers offer their own discounts for customers like Access from AT&T, Spectrum Internet Assist and Verizon Forward.

Source: CNET analysis of provider data.

How to find internet deals and promotions in Madison

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

Madison internet providers, like Verizon 5G Home Internet and Spectrum, may offer lower introductory pricing or streaming add-ons for a limited time. Others, including T-Mobile Home Internet, 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.

How fast is Madison broadband?

Unfortunately, Madison doesn't have many speedy internet options. Spectrum is the only provider that offers speeds up to 1,000Mbps. In some cases, you may be able to get up to 1,000Mbps with Verizon 5GHome Internet Plus, but that's not a guaranteed speed.

Fastest internet plans in Madison, IL

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 and streaming low-quality video.
• 5 to 40Mbps gives you higher-quality video streaming and videoconferencing.
• 40 to 100Mbps should give one user sufficient bandwidth to satisfy the demands of modern telecommuting, video streaming and online gaming. 
• 100 to 500Mbps allows one to two users to simultaneously engage in high-bandwidth activities like videoconferencing, streaming and online gaming. 
• 500 to 1,000Mbps allows three or more users to engage in high-bandwidth activities at the same time.

How CNET chose the best internet providers in Madison, Illinois

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. What's our approach? For starters, we tap into a proprietary pricing, availability and speed database that draws from our own historical ISP data, partner data and mapping information from the Federal Communications Commission at FCC.gov. 

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?

The answer to those questions is often layered and complex, but 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, although 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 the FCC and Ookla. (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.