Austin, TX — March 16, 2026 — InternetProviders.ai, the leading independent broadband comparison platform, today published its comprehensive 2026 State-by-State Internet Speeds and Costs Report. The analysis draws on 13.1 million FCC Broadband Data Collection records and verified pricing data from provider websites to deliver the most detailed publicly available assessment of broadband performance, affordability, and infrastructure investment across all 50 states.
Fastest and Most Affordable States
The report identifies significant disparities in broadband speed and cost between states. New Jersey, Virginia, and Maryland lead the nation in median download speeds, driven by high fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) penetration and competitive provider markets. On the affordability front, states with robust provider competition — including Texas, Florida, and Illinois — consistently offer lower per-megabit pricing, with average monthly costs 18% to 25% below the national median.
At the other end of the spectrum, several rural-heavy states in the Mountain West and Great Plains regions continue to pay the highest prices per megabit while receiving the slowest median speeds. Montana, Wyoming, and Alaska rank among the least affordable states for broadband, underscoring persistent infrastructure gaps in low-density areas.
Fiber Coverage Gaps Persist
Despite accelerating FTTH deployment nationwide, the report reveals that fiber internet remains unavailable to approximately 43% of U.S. addresses. The gap is starkest in rural communities: only 29% of rural addresses have access to at least one fiber provider, compared to 71% of urban addresses. States with the widest urban-rural fiber divide include Mississippi, West Virginia, and Arkansas, where rural fiber availability falls below 15%.
“The data tells a clear story: fiber deployment is accelerating, but it is not reaching the communities that need it most,” said Pablo Mendoza, Lead Analyst at InternetProviders.ai. “Consumers in rural America are paying more for slower internet while watching fiber networks expand in already well-served metros. This report quantifies exactly where those gaps exist, state by state and county by county.”
BEAD Funding: Progress and Uncertainty
The report also examines the early impact of the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program, which has allocated $42.45 billion to expand broadband infrastructure. While BEAD-funded projects have begun breaking ground in several states, the report finds that funding distribution correlates imperfectly with actual need. Some states with the most severe coverage gaps received proportionally less funding per unserved address than states with milder deficits.
The analysis tracks BEAD allocation by state alongside FCC-measured unserved and underserved address counts, providing a data-driven assessment of whether funding is reaching the areas with the greatest broadband access challenges. The full state-by-state BEAD breakdown is included in the report.
Methodology and Open Data
The 2026 report is based on FCC Broadband Data Collection filings analyzed at H3 hexagonal cell resolution, covering 13.1 million address-level availability records across 30,500+ ZIP codes, 10,105 cities, and all 50 states. Pricing data was collected directly from provider websites and verified as of February 2026. The full methodology is published on the InternetProviders.ai website.
All data and findings in the report are available under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) license. Journalists, researchers, and policymakers are free to use, cite, and adapt the data with attribution.
The full report is available at: internetproviders.ai/reports/internet-speeds-costs-by-state-2026/
About InternetProviders.ai
InternetProviders.ai is the leading independent broadband comparison platform in the United States. Founded in 2024, the platform combines 13.1 million FCC Broadband Data Collection records with data-driven editorial analysis to help consumers find, compare, and choose internet service providers. The platform covers all 50 states, 10,105 cities, and 30,500+ ZIP codes with 697 head-to-head provider comparisons. All content is free to use and editorially independent. Visit internetproviders.ai to compare providers in your area.
Media Contact
###