Verizon Fios internet review

Our friends on the East Coast are familiar with Verizon’s 100% fiber-optic internet service, currently available in eight northeastern states and Washington, DC. Verizon Fios offers near-symmetrical download and upload speeds, transparent service details with no hidden fees, and hard-to-pass-up perks. Perhaps even better is a three-to-five-year price lock guarantee, depending on your chosen Verizon Fios plan. That’s especially pertinent as a recent CNET survey found that 63% of US adults said their broadband bill increased last year. So, Verizon Fios has many advantages over competing internet service providers, but there are still some key details to consider before signing up.

First of all, availability is limited to those in the northeast. That said, availability could broaden within the next 12 to 18 months. Just this month, Verizon received FCC approval to acquire Frontier, a move set to expand its fiber footprint to 25 states by 2026 by merging with Frontier Fiber’s existing network. At the moment, Verizon Fios is one of the largest fiber internet service providers nationwide, despite only having 9% coverage. Once the two networks merge, we expect that number to get significantly higher.

In addition to its growing fiber network, Verizon also offers Verizon 5G Home Internet. According to the Federal Communications Commission’s broadband map, its 5G internet service is available to 22% of the US population — making it one of the most available ISPs in the US.

All of this complicates what coverage can look like for you, meaning there’s a lot to consider before signing up for Verizon Fios. Let’s take a closer look at terms of service and pricing to see how Verizon Fios compares to the competition.

Verizon Fios plans and prices

Note that prices listed on this page reflect available discounts for setting up paperless billing. Your price will be higher if you choose not to use automatic monthly payments.

Source: CNET analysis of provider data

In the world of broadband, where details get really confusing, Verizon Fios’ service is one of the easiest to understand. There are four tiers: 300Mbps, 500Mbps, 1,000Mbps and, in select areas, up to 2,000Mbps. Many providers offer promotional rates that expire after 12 months, causing your bill to increase. Verizon doesn’t do that. Instead, Verizon offers a price lock, which varies depending on your chosen speed. Right now, the lowest tier has a three-year price guarantee, the 500Mbps plan has a four-year guarantee and the two fastest plans have a five-year price lock.

Also, since Fios is a fiber-optic network, it delivers near-symmetrical download and upload speeds, meaning your download and upload speeds will be nearly identical. If you’re used to asymmetrical cable internet, where the upload speeds on a 300Mbps plan might only go as high as 10Mbps, you know how dramatic a difference it can make, particularly with videoconferencing and transferring large files.

If you’re unsure what speed to choose, make note of how much speed your household uses. Typically, households average around 564Mbps download, according to the latest data from OpenVault. Fios 500 or Fios 1 Gig may make the most sense for the average family, but that same report shows that the average small household (consisting of one or two members) typically uses speeds below 500Mbps. Unless your household has a lot of streamers, gamers, remote workers or students, you’ll most likely be just fine with Fios 300.

Where is Verizon Fios available?

At the moment, Verizon Fios is only available in eight Eastern states: Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Virginia, as well as Washington, DC. You can use the Verizon availability checker to see if Fios is available at your address.

As we mentioned in the introduction, Verizon will more than double its current fiber footprint to 25 states by 2026 with the acquisition of Frontier Fiber. Once that’s complete, Verizon Fios will be more widely available across the country.

Additional details on Verizon Fios

No Verizon plans require contracts. And there are no data caps, either. Just like your mom taught you to always look under the hood, it’s never a bad idea to dig a bit for a better idea of what you’re buying before committing to an internet service.

Additional monthly fees

Verizon Fios customers don’t have to pay for their equipment rental, as everything comes included in the monthly price.

One-time installation fee

Your setup charge will depend on the Verizon plan you select. If you choose Fios, it’ll be $99, which is waived for those who go with Fios 1 Gig.

No data caps

Unlike Cox, Xfinity and other ISPs, Verizon doesn’t place a data cap on customers. Therefore, you won’t need to worry about overage fees or data slowing once you hit a certain threshold. 

Verizon Fios deals and promotions

Verizon Fios can easily lean into the fact that you’re not required to sign a term agreement, which means no early termination fees or getting stuck with a service you’ve outgrown or need to downsize. Many other offers also help sweeten the deal for potential customers.

First, Verizon has a discount of $15 per month on all its Fios home internet offerings for new customers who also enroll in the company’s premium 5G mobile plans. 

Next, as previously mentioned, all new Verizon Fios subscribers will get a price-lock guarantee for allplans. Depending on the speed tier, this will range from a three-year price lock to a five-year price guarantee.

Verizon also offers $400 off selected Samsung products for new internet subscribers and 6 months of YouTube Premium. New customers who sign up for the 1 or 2 Gig plans will also receive a pair of free Ray-Ban Meta glasses worth up to $299.

Finally, Verizon has a slew of streaming add-ons for all customers, including discounted subscriptions for Netflix, HBO Max, Hulu, Disney Plus, Youtube Premium and more for just $10 a month. Verizon customers can cut streaming costs with some of these plans, and you can cancel anytime.

Verizon Fios earns high customer satisfaction marks

Verizon Fios has consistently been at the top of customer service metrics for most of the last decade. Looking at the latest American Customer Satisfaction Index numbers for ISPs, Fios was near the top, tied with Google Fiber and second only to AT&T Fiber. It scored 76 out of 100 points, one point below its 2024 score, but still higher than the industry average.

In addition, Verizon has consistently captured the top Eastern spot in J.D. Power’s annual customer satisfaction ranking for the last 12 years. It’s worth pointing out that Verizon was only scored in one of four regions. In that region, the East, Verizon finished first, scoring 575 points on a 1,000-point scale. That put the company well above the area’s average of 528 points.

The speed-testing website Ookla tracks ISPs based on a scoring system that considers both download and upload speeds. (Ookla is owned by the same parent company as CNET, Ziff Davis.) Based on the most recent Ookla tests from the second half of 2024, Verizon was the second-fastest fixed ISP, behind AT&T Fiber again, but ahead of Xfinity, Cox and Spectrum.

Verizon took first place for the lowest latency among top providers during that same period too, and was noted as the best internet provider for streaming high-quality video.

What’s the bottom line on Verizon Fios? It’s pretty good

Verizon can boast that its Fios service is 100% fiber. As internet connection types go, it’s tough to beat that. Plus, Verizon can point to its high customer satisfaction ratings and its consistency in topping those charts.

The availability of Verizon’s fiber plans is limited to the Northeast, at least for now. The company’s DSL plans are nothing exceptional. Verizon Fios is a top-notch option for getting online if you live in the Northeast. We recommend the company’s Fios 300 tier for $50 monthly as our top plan choice.

Verizon Fios FAQs