Your guide to a better future

Internet is internet, right? Not necessarily. The internet connection type plays a big role in availability, speed potential and performance.

David Anders is a senior writer for CNET covering broadband providers, smart home devices and security products. Prior to joining CNET, David built his industry expertise writing for the broadband marketplace Allconnect. In his 5 plus years covering broadband, David's work has been referenced by a variety of sources including ArcGIS, DIRECTV and more. David is from and currently resides in the Charlotte area with his wife, son and two cats.

Sean Jackson is a creative copywriter living in Florida. He's had work published with Realtor.com, theScore, ESPN, and the San Francisco Chronicle. In his free time, Sean likes to play drums, fail miserably at improv and spend time at the beach.

Shopping for internet plans gets confusing fast -- especially if you aren't familiar with the different technologies being used to deliver the connection to your home. Between fiber, fixed wireless, cable, DSL, satellite and 5G home internet plans, there's an awful lot to keep straight and if you don't understand the differences, you risk getting stuck with a connection that isn't as fast or reliable as you had wanted, or as affordable as you need. That's no good when there are long-term contracts potentially at play.

This guide will walk you through the different types of internet connections that may be available in your area, how they work and what, if any, limitations you can expect from them.

Fiber-optic internet is arguably the best connection type, so we'll start there. Like the name suggests, fiber refers to an internet connection that comes to your home via fiber-optic cable, which uses pulses of light along thin strands -- or fibers -- of glass or plastic to transmit data. These fiber-optic strands support speeds and reliability that are superior to other connection types.

Fiber-optic can deliver download speeds as fast as 2 gigabits (2,000 megabits per second) -- fast enough to download a two-hour movie in HD in less than a minute -- but you're likely to find max download speeds around 1,000Mbps from most fiber-optic providers. Upload speeds, which are especially important when working and learning from home, are also significantly faster with fiber-optic service.

Availability is the only real disadvantage with fiber. Laying enough fiber-optic cables to connect entire cities and regions is a huge logistical challenge, and with lots of competition and red tape to cut through, it's been slow going for any of the major service providers to expand coverage to underserved areas. Consequently, fiber internet is only available to around 45% of US households and primarily those in urban areas, according to the Federal Communications Commission.

Fiber connections used to be fairly expensive as far as internet plans go, but most providers have lowered their prices in recent years. As a result, fiber internet is now likely to be as competitively priced as any other connection type -- and considering the speeds you get for the price, it's actually now one of the most cost-effective internet types. No wonder everyone wants it.

Cable internet delivers a connection to your home via copper coaxial cable -- the same as traditional cable TV.

Cable internet lacks the full speed potential and reliability of fiber-optic service, but it's much more widely accessible. Cable is one of the most common types of internet connections -- available to nearly 90% of the US population -- and you'll often find it bundled with home phone service and TV packages. That makes sense, because cable internet uses the same coaxial connections as cable TV. 

Coaxial cables do not have the same speed potential and reliability as fiber-optic ones, but cable internet is still one of the fastest internet types. Most cable providers offer a variety of speed options, including a gigabit plan with download speeds around 940Mbps. Upload speeds are a much different story, however, as few providers deliver upload speeds above 50Mbps. Speed reliability can also be a concern with cable internet, as coaxial cables are susceptible to network congestion and slowed speeds, especially during peak usage times.

Cable internet pricing varies quite a bit among providers, but cable is, for the most part, one of the more affordable internet connection types. You can get a broadband connection from providers like Cox, Mediacom and Xfinity starting at less than $30 per month. Spectrum, another big name in cable internet, has a higher starting price at around $50 per month, but comes with max download speeds of 200Mbps.

This portable Netgear Nighthawk mobile router takes an incoming 5G signal and broadcasts it out as a Wi-Fi network your nearby devices can use to get online. If you wire it to a dedicated Wi-Fi router, the connection can cover a wider area.

Mobile internet is largely designed for your phone, but as the technology improves and speeds increase -- especially with the emergence of 5G -- mobile connections are becoming more practical for home internet use. With this internet connection type, a cell phone carrier such as AT&T, T-Mobile or Verizon sends signals in all directions, most of which are picked up by cellphones, but in the case of home internet, a router receives those signals and turns them into a home connection. 

If you're living in a city or another area with strong cellular infrastructure, you might be able to connect over 5G, with providers like Verizon offering speeds up to 1Gbps . You'll also find cellular internet plans that use LTE, the previous generation of technology, or a mix of LTE and 5G.

When shopping for mobile internet for home use, it's probable that you will only have one plan option, which is a flat rate for whatever speeds are available at your address. T-Mobile offers a single 5G plan ($50 per month for download speeds ranging from 25 to 110Mbps), as does Verizon ($70 per month for download speeds ranging from 300 to 980Mbps).

DSL refers to a digital subscriber line and you'll often find it available in areas where you might not have access to cable or fiber internet. With DSL, your connection to the internet runs through your phone lines. Unlike dial-up, however, where it would disrupt your connection with a call, with DSL, you can use your internet without having to worry about an incoming call disrupting your connection.

DSL internet is best for those in rural communities looking for a reliable and affordable internet connection. While it does lag in speeds compared to cable internet plans (only about 42% of those eligible for DSL service can get broadband speeds, defined by minimum downloads of 25Mbps and minimum uploads of 3Mbps), it can be a cheaper alternative to satellite internet. Since DSL uses existing phone lines to deliver service, providers can keep prices relatively low.

With satellite internet, your connection comes from radio-equipped satellites in Earth's orbit. You'll need a dish to receive the signal.

Satellite internet is the most widely available type of internet because it doesn't rely on ground-laid infrastructure like cables, cellular towers or line-of-sight antenna connections. Instead, you'll use a special dish to connect with geostationary satellites orbiting far overhead. If you have a clear view of the southern sky, there's a pretty good chance that there's a satellite provider capable of delivering an internet connection to your home. 

To set it up, your provider will come out to install a satellite dish either on the roof of your home or in the ground facing southward. It's best suited for those living in rural areas without access to other options, especially since bad weather and other obstructions could affect your service in ways that you can't control. 

On average, today's satellite internet providers offer speeds that typically vary from 12 to 100Mbps. In most cases, that makes it a suitable option for smaller households who want to stream video, browse the internet and update social media. New providers -- namely Elon Musk's Starlink network , which began expanding service in select areas this year -- are promising to bump those speeds up by using low Earth orbit satellites that are closer to the ground. That means that the signal doesn't need to travel as far, which also makes for a reduction in latency, or lag. Other big names are looking to get into the internet space race, too, including Amazon's Project Kuiper.

Increased competition in the satellite internet industry may help bring costs down for the consumer. Currently, satellite internet is the most expensive internet connection type, by far. Starting prices for satellite internet are in the $50 per month range, but that's for slow speeds -- 25Mbps max -- and low data allowances. If you want faster speeds or more data, satellite internet can quickly get up to $150 to $200 per month.

Another option for rural communities is fixed wireless internet. Like satellite internet, fixed wireless requires you to install a fixed receiver or antenna, but it's likely to be much smaller than a satellite dish. The antenna picks up a signal transmitted from a nearby wireless hub to give you an internet connection. 

Fixed wireless connections work best for communities that lack the resources needed for DSL. To receive the strongest signal, you'll want to place your antenna in an area with a clear view of the sky. Fixed wireless internet connections require a direct line of sight, so if there are hills, trees, buildings or other obstacles nearby, they can distort your connection.

Fixed wireless internet speeds range from 5 to 50Mbps, but there are many variables that can affect the quality of the incoming signal, so your speed may vary. That said, many providers offer gracious data caps compared to satellite internet. Prices are also much better than satellite with plans starting at $35 to $50 per month.

Though fixed wireless has traditionally been a rural internet option , the connection type is rapidly expanding in metro areas thanks to providers like Google Fiber  and Starry Internet . Instead of beaming services to individual residences, these providers send internet signals to entire buildings, such as an apartment complex, then run service to individual units via an Ethernet cable. These providers are capable of delivering speeds much faster than traditional fixed wireless service with gigabit speeds available in select areas.

So which kind of internet connection is right for you? It depends on several factors. The first thing to think about is your typical usage, and how much speed you really need . If you plan to surf the web and check email only, you can get away with a slower connection, but smaller households with users who stream videos, play games online, or upload files for work or school will ideally want access to download speeds of at least 25Mbps.

Costs are another key factor, obviously. Some providers bundle their various services to offer you a discount , but be aware that the promotional pricing might not last as long as the service contract. In that case, you'll pay more for the same service during the second year, for example.

In the end, the biggest factor is likely beyond your control and that's your location. Some parts of the US have lots of options for getting online, while others hardly have any options at all. 

Whatever choices are available to you, understanding the different technologies at play will help you know what to expect before you sign up.