Best internet providers in Gastonia, North Carolina
Almost all homes in the Gastonia area can get access to high speed internet, and the top providers in the region are AT&T fiber internet, Spectrum cable internet, and T-Mobile fixed wireless home internet. All offer decent speeds that will work for the majority of families, but AT&T fiber is the clear winner when it comes to top speeds and reliability.
Budget shoppers, though, may want to consider Spectrum or T-Mobile. With Spectrum, you can get very inexpensive plans with speeds plenty fast for a single user, even with multiple devices. With T-Mobile, you can save every month by bundling with your cell phone service. The result? Moderately fast connections with some bandwidth variability based on time of day and distance from the closest cell tower.
- Plans starting at $55.00 - $180.00
- Download speeds up to 5000Mbps
- Upload speeds up to 5000Mbps
Disclaimer: Availability and pricing are subject to location. Conditions apply. For offer details, view disclaimers
- Plans starting at $29.99 - $169.97
- Download speeds up to 1 Gbps
- Upload speeds up to 35 Mbps
Disclaimer: Availability and pricing are subject to location. Conditions apply. For offer details, view disclaimers
- Plans starting at $50.00
- Download speeds up to 182 Mbps
- Upload speeds up to 23 Mbps
Disclaimer: Availability and pricing are subject to location. Conditions apply.
Our top 3 ISP choices in Gastonia, NC
Lucky for you, there’s a lot of competition for your internet business in Gastonia and surrounding areas, and a variety of internet tech types available.
#1: AT&T internet
This provider is our top-ranked internet service nationwide, and it’s a solid choice throughout Gastonia. Depending on your exact address, you may be wired for fiber, or you may be stuck with an old DSL connection. Since the company is only selling new fiber connections these days, all new customers who qualify for AT&T will get fiber. That means fast and reliable speeds, no contracts, and no equipment fees, but you may be on the hook for installation in the range of $100.
Read our full AT&T review.
#2: Spectrum internet
The cable internet provider Spectrum offers true budget plans in Gastonia and reaches more than 9 in 10 homes. (1) It’s a good way to pay for just the speed you need, and our team of expert reviewers likes the freedom from annual contracts. There’s also no data cap, which is great (but rare among cable providers nationwide).
Read our full Spectrum review.
#3: T-Mobile internet
If you can’t get a wired internet connection to your house, or even if you just want to bundle home internet with your cell phone service, T-Mobile fixed wireless is a nice option. Most of Gastonia can get 5G coverage (2), meaning speeds of at least 30 Mbps and up to 182 Mbps, with variation based on how far you are from the nearest tower and how much traffic there is on the network at any given time. Setup is super simple—you just have to plug in the device they send you, download the app on your phone, and connect your devices.
Read our full T-Mobile 5G Home Internet review.
All internet providers in Gastonia
In addition to the big three providers listed above, the Gastonia area is served by three satellite internet providers and, for about a third of homes, fixed wireless internet from Verizon. (1) Almost half of all homes can get speeds of at least 1 Gbps, which is crazy fast, but 93% of all addresses can get speeds of 100 Mbps or faster, which is still reasonable for the average home.
If you can’t get 5G from T-Mobile, you may be able to get 5G from Verizon. We recommend choosing based on your current cell phone provider and how remote your home is. The farther out you are, the more you’ll benefit from Verizon’s wireless tech. If you’re surrounded by buildings and obstacles though, T-Mobile has the better service.
We tend to recommend against satellite internet if you have anything else available, even if you qualify for low-orbit coverage from Starlink. The plans are expensive, slow, and hard to get.
Fastest internet providers in Gastonia
AT&T fiber internet is hands down the fastest internet provider in Gastonia. You can get speeds up to 5 Gbps, which is fast enough for dozens of connected devices and streaming multiple video streams in ultra high-def, all at the same time. We rarely recommend it, since we don’t know of any devices that can handle the speed. You can also choose a 1 Gbps plan from AT&T or Spectrum, and pay less than $100 per month. It’s still more speed than most homes need, but we like that super fast options are becoming more widely available.
How much speed do you need?
Cheapest internet providers in Gastonia
There’s a lot of competition for cheap internet in Gastonia. You can choose from one of the fast fixed wireless options—Verizon or T-Mobile–and pay $30 or less every month if you bundle with your cell phone service. If you need a little more reliability, Spectrum offers budget plans for as little as $20, and has a range of plan options all the way up to 1 Gbps for around $90. AT&T’s cheapest plan is fast, but you’ll be on the hook for at least $50, so it’s not our top recommendation for budget shoppers.
If you are in a family with students or a senior on Medicaid, there’s a good chance you can qualify for the federal Affordable Connectivity Program, which pays $30 of your monthly internet bill directly to the provider. Learn about the program and additional ways to get free or cheap service.
Internet options in nearby cities
Nearby Charlotte and Concord are the cream of the crop when it comes to internet access, with multiple fiber internet providers to choose from. The rest of the Piedmont region is also well-served by high-speed internet, with speeds of at least 100 Mbps available to the majority of households.
Spectrum is the biggest cable internet provider in the region, and it’s the best bet when it comes to low prices and widespread availability in most of North Carolina. Read more about what’s available in the cities surrounding Gastonia:
What Gastonia residents are saying on Reddit
Around the web on social media sites and comment boards, Gastonia residents have a strong preference for fiber internet. In most of the city, that means choosing AT&T over Spectrum, which has a relatively poor reputation for customer service. Read more of what your neighbors are saying:
I'm moving the family to the Charlotte area in two months. What's the best internet/TV combination to go with? We currently have Xfinity (Comcast). Anything comparable? TIA
Honestly, I just have ATT Fiber with Sling TV.
No contracts, internet that isn't shitty or ever gone out since I switched over, and no internet data caps.
Hey I’ll be moving to Belmont soon, and need to pick an internet service. I’m a gamer, and want a consistent service. Anyone have experience with both providers in the Belmont area?
Thanks
If you can, avoid Spectrum at all costs
I currently have Fiber wifi that's not available in Charlotte so I'm looking into other options and it seems AT&T is highly recommended (after Google Fiber which isn't available at my location). What is everyone's experiences with it?
What speed do you have and if comfortable, how much a month is it costing you
AT&T and Google are neck and neck for the best. If you have the option for one you should be all set.
The real concern you should have is a place with only Spectrum. They are the worst.
Internet news and infrastructure in Gastonia, NC
Gastonia is well-served by internet providers, but it isn’t part of Google Fiber’s planned expansion in the Charlotte area. Instead, it benefits from AT&T’s ongoing effort to replace old DSL lines with shiny new fiber internet to the home. In July of 2022, AT&T announced it has reached 1 million North Carolina homes with fiber. (3)
The fixed wireless market in Gastonia is hot, too. Both T-Mobile and Verizon are improving their networks. So far, T-Mobile is winning the race by serving around 92% of homes, while Verizon reaches just 34%.
If you want to learn more about internet connectivity in Gastonia and North Carolina as a whole, the Carolina Public Press published a nice roundup of public and private efforts in April of 2022.
Frequently asked internet questions in Gastonia
Our team of expert reviewers at Switchful has ranked AT&T as the best overall internet provider in the country, and that’s also true for Gastonia, NC, and surrounding areas. If you can get fiber-to-the-home internet from AT&T, you’ll benefit from fast speeds and prices that start at about $50 per month. There are no contracts or equipment fees, but you may have to pony up $100 for activation and installation.
If you go with AT&T for home internet, you’ll benefit from fast, reliable speeds any time of day, with upload speeds just as fast as download speeds. You’ll also get some of the best customer service in the business. (4)
AT&T internet offers fiber internet with speeds up to 5 Gbps (1,000 Mbps) and serves nearly 90% of the Gastonia area. Not every home will be eligible for those speeds, but the truth is almost no home needs speeds that fast anyway. AT&T also sells speeds of 300 Mbps, and that’s a better fit for most families.
If you can’t get fiber internet from AT&T (some homes still get only DSL), Spectrum internet is second-fastest. You can get speeds up to 1 Gbps, with no contracts and no data limits. You won’t get upload speeds anywhere near that fast, but most folks don’t need them anyway.
Learn more about the differences between Spectrum and AT&T.
North Carolina is well-served by internet providers, and the state and federal government are working with private companies to expand access to 1 million Carolinians who don’t yet have access to a high-speed connection. (5)
In Gastonia, more than 90% of homes can get internet speeds of 100 Mbps or faster, and that’s fast enough for a small family working and schooling from home during the day and streaming Netflix or Hulu on multiple devices in the evening. Almost half the population can get internet of 1 Gbps or faster (ten times as fast as 100 Mbps). (1)