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Best internet providers in St. Charles, Missouri

AT&T fiber is our top pick for the best internet provider in St. Charles, and it has relatively wide availability in the city. Spectrum internet’s cable connection plans are also widely available in St. Charles. And if you want a cellular-based option, then T-Mobile 5G Home Internet is a good choice for its combination of coverage, speed, and price.

EDITOR'S CHOICE
AT&T
AT&T logo
Staff rating
4.5
Customer rating
4.1

  • Plans starting at $55.00 - $180.00
  • Download speeds up to 5000Mbps
  • Upload speeds up to 5000Mbps

Click below for all current AT&T deals

Disclaimer: Availability and pricing are subject to location. Conditions apply. For offer details, view disclaimers

RUNNER-UP
Spectrum
Charter Spectrum brand logo
Staff rating
3.5
Customer rating
4.0

  • Plans starting at $29.99 - $169.97
  • Download speeds up to 1 Gbps
  • Upload speeds up to 35 Mbps

Click below for all current Spectrum deals

Disclaimer: Availability and pricing are subject to location. Conditions apply. For offer details, view disclaimers

RUNNER-UP
T-Mobile
T-Mobile brand
Staff rating
3.7
Customer rating
4.2

  • Plans starting at $50.00
  • Download speeds up to 182 Mbps
  • Upload speeds up to 23 Mbps

Click below for all current T-Mobile deals

Disclaimer: Availability and pricing are subject to location. Conditions apply.

How we rank internet providers
We have a robust rating system to score internet service providers overall, but the quality of service could vary city to city. When narrowing down the best providers specific to St. Charles, we considered factors like availability, value, performance, and customer experience. We source information directly from the ISP's themselves, the FCC, and first-hand insights from residents of St. Charles.
Mindy Woodall headshot
Researched by
Mindy WoodallContributing Writer
Headshot of Bri Field
Reviewed by
Bri FieldAssigning Editor
Updated 5/8/23

Our top 3 ISP choices in St. Charles, MO

Our top picks for fast and reliable home internet connections in St. Charles are AT&T fiber, Spectrum internet, and T-Mobile 5G Home Internet.

#1: AT&T fiber internet

If you live in St. Charles, great news: AT&T has better fiber coverage in St. Charles than in many other suburbs of St. Louis. That’s not to say it’s available at every address yet, but it’s getting close. Which is great because AT&T fiber has the most reliable speeds and connectivity of any internet provider in the area.

Read our full AT&T internet review.

#2: Spectrum internet

If you aren’t among the lucky St. Charles residents with access to AT&T fiber, then Spectrum internet will serve you pretty well instead. Spectrum has been around for a long time, and its cable internet plans are widely available in the St. Charles area.

Read our full Spectrum internet review.

#3: T-Mobile 5G Home Internet

T-Mobile 5G Home Internet covers most of the St. Charles area. Its fixed wireless connection is a newer internet option compared to things like cable, but it’s the same technology your cell phone uses to connect to the internet.

Double-check T-Mobile’s coverage at your address, as there are some pockets of St. Charles that T-Mobile doesn’t cover. But most people in the area should be able to get this type of internet if they want it.

Read our full T-Mobile Home Internet review.

All internet providers in St. Charles

St. Charles doesn’t have a ton of options outside of our top three recommendations for the area: AT&T fiber, Spectrum internet, and T-Mobile 5G Home Internet.

Depending on where you live, you might be able to get access to Verizon Home Internet (which uses the same technology as T-Mobile), or Brown Dog Networks.

Brown Dog Networks is an unlicensed fixed wireless provider, which is similar to T-Mobile and Verizon’s home internet options. But while T-Mobile and Verizon use licensed fixed wireless connections, Brown Dog Networks relies on public frequencies. That might make it less reliable and may lower available speeds for some people.

Fastest internet providers in St. Charles

The fastest providers in St. Charles, MO are AT&T and Spectrum. Both have plans with more speed than most people need for average internet use. If both providers are available at your address, we recommend AT&T because fiber optic internet tends to be faster and more reliable in general than cable internet, which is what Spectrum offers in St. Charles.

You may also see satellite internet plans in your area listing internet speeds upward of 100 Mbps. Even with high listed speeds, we don’t recommend satellite internet providers like HughesNet and Starlink over more traditional internet connection types. Satellite internet has high latency and should be a last resort.

How much speed do you need?

When choosing an internet plan, you want to keep all of your activities running smoothly without paying extra for speeds you don't need. At the bare minimum, you need 25 Mbps to do light browsing on one or two devices. Most households with multiple people and multiple devices will want to look for speeds in the 100–500 Mbps range. Learn how much speed your household needs in our guide to internet speed.
Illustration showing how much internet speed you may need

Cheapest internet providers in St. Charles

For budget-minded St. Charles residents, fixed wireless providers like T-Mobile Home Internet, Verizon Home Internet, and Brown Dog Networks will likely have the cheapest internet plans in the area, especially if you combine internet service with a cell phone plan. These providers tend to be cheaper than more traditional connection types, and they tend to be cheaper than fiber optic internet plans in particular.

Internet options in nearby cities

Internet options in cities near St. Charles are similar and usually include AT&T fiber, Spectrum internet, T-Mobile 5G Home Internet, and Brown Dog Networks. Some nearby areas have more fiber optic coverage than others, but most nearby areas have access to Spectrum cable internet and fixed wireless connections like T-Mobile.

Some places near St. Charles may also have access to lesser-known providers like Brightspeed, i3 Broadband, Gateway Fiber, and Wisper.

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What St. Charles residents are saying on Reddit

Many of the conversations happening on social media in the last year or so have been St. Charles residents discussing various fiber options. Redditors have been on the lookout for expansions of fiber providers like Gateway Fiber and i3 Broadband.

Neither Gateway nor i3 Broadband have sizable fiber availability in St. Charles yet, though. AT&T fiber is the most widely available fiber internet provider in the city. But Gateway and i3 may have more widely available fiber options in the future after infrastructure has expanded.

Post by u/probably_not_a_horse
12/21/2021
Anyone have i3 fiber yet?

They are currently running a line in my neighborhood in St. Peters. We are looking to get rid of spectrum, I think we are paying over 200 bucks a month. At&t is not in the area, and gateway fiber isn't here yet either. I'm curious if anyone has used i3 and loves/hates them.

Most helpful response

Gateway is coming to the area, slowly but surely. It’s important to remember that we’re a small local startup. We’re well funded but we just don’t have the man power of these bigger companies and laying fiber is already a lengthy process. For the most part, people have been pretty understanding.

The upside is that we have no contracts, no stupid fees, no gimmicky pricing. We provide all the equipment for free, if you choose to use it, and our customer service is top notch. Any of our employees could be one of your neighbors, we’re all local and dedicated to bringing the absolute best internet to our neighborhoods.

I’m Sarah, Gateway’s social media manager. Feel free to shoot me a message or ask questions and I will do my best to answer. We have a Reddit account as well, so you can look us up there too.


Post by u/blazesquall
12/14/2021
Gateway Fiber

Anyone have experience with Gateway Fiber?

They're expanding out here and I can't wait to dump charter. They've been leaving flyers and carpet bombing emails about the upcoming availability. They finished marking up my neighborhood and started laying fiber.

Now all the NIMBY luddites are whining on next door about having their easements exercised. They're out harassing the contractors, gateway fiber and our HoA.

Most helpful response

Swap from Charter was painless, has been working great since we got it. Faster speed for less money, easy choice.

Internet news and infrastructure in St. Charles, MO

Fiber optic internet expansion is the main infrastructure topic around St. Charles, Missouri. Everyone’s waiting for fiber optic internet to become more widely available, especially from providers other than AT&T, like Gateway Fiber and i3 Broadband.

Gateway Fiber announced in late 2022 that it had accessed NTIA grant funds that should allow it to expand service to underserved areas in Lincoln and St. Charles counties. (1)

In St. Charles, 97% of households can get 100 Mbps, 95% can get 250 Mbps, and 49% can get 1 Gbps.

Frequently asked internet questions in St. Charles


The cheapest internet plans in St. Charles, Missouri start at around $25 per month and go all the way up to $180 for 5 Gbps. Prices will vary depending on your address and which internet provider and speed you choose. Slower plans and connection types invariably cost less than things like 1 gig fiber internet plans. Fixed wireless providers like T-Mobile Home Internet tend to be the cheapest.


Yes, St. Charles has relatively good internet compared to many nearby areas. AT&T fiber is relatively widely available in St. Charles, whereas fiber optic internet is more restricted in many nearby cities. St. Charles also has wide coverage from Spectrum internet, which offers plan speeds up to 1 gig.


For cable internet, Spectrum has the best access in St. Charles, Missouri. For fiber optic internet, AT&T fiber has the best internet access in St. Charles. It just depends on what kind of connection type you want and what’s available at your specific address.

Sources
  1. Gateway Fiber Breaks Ground in Lincoln County NTIA Grant Areas,” Gateway Fiber. Accessed 5 March, 2023.
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