Earthlink has been a leading player in the internet service provider industry in the United States and is one of the oldest players in the industry. They were established in 1994 and offer its customers dial-up, DSL broadband, cable internet, and fiber internet services. So, with so many newer companies providing higher speeds, one may ask whether Earthlink's internet is still fast today. Okay, let me zoom in.
This research question aims at finding out the different internet speeds offered by Earthlink.
Earthlink offers a range of maximum download speeds, depending on what type of internet you sign up for.
- Dial-up Internet: Data rates of up to 56Kbps can be achieved at the maximum speed. This is extremely slow by today’s standards.
- DSL internet: Up to 100Mbps for maximum connection speed. DSL offers them 3Mbps, 6Mbps, 12Mbps, and up to 100Mpbs for their DSL plans.
- Cable internet: Up to 940 Mbps of maximum speed. Currently, their cable plans are as follows; 200Mbps, 400Mbps, and 940Mbps.
- Fiber internet: Up to 1Gbps (1,000Mb/s) for the maximum connection speed. If available, their fiber plan comes with download and upload speeds of up to 1Gbps.
Even with dial-up, which is the slowest internet option that Earthlink offers, the speed is a mere 56Kbps. But their fastest offerings through cable or fibre internet can offer and maximum speeds of 1Gbps. DSL comes in between in terms of speeds.
What about DSL Internet Speeds, How fast is it in their case?
With Earthlink DSL you can get decent bandwidth but it is not as these as some of the cable, fiber, or other DSL services. Their base DSL plan offers only 3Mbps which although sufficient for simple internet use will not be sufficient for HD streaming or use of multiple devices. Moving up to 12Mbps or higher is more suitable for home usage that is slightly more than basic.
Their max DSL speed is up to 100Mbps. However, other prominent DSL service providers such as Verizon, CenturyLink, and AT&T do provide plans with up to 1Gbps speed in regions that possess fiber connections. Thus, while Earthlink’s 100Mbps has a higher maximum speed than their basic DSL offers, you might get faster DSL in fiber areas from other telecom providers.
What Speeds Are Their Cable Internet Offerings?
Earthlink cable internet connection is reasonably fast and as expected, can go up to 940Mbps. To this extent, the stated speed capability aligns with other cable internet service providers including Xfinity, Spectrum, and Cox.
A plan that provides a 200Mbps internet connection should be satisfactory for streaming 4K videos, playing games online, doing video calls, and basic browsing on multiple devices. Moving up to their 940Mbps tariff gets you almost gigabit speeds that few homes need today. Hence, this fastest cable plan is most appropriate if there are many users or smart devices that consume a lot of bandwidth.
Their ‘basic’ cable package may not be the greatest if compared to other providers, but their ‘940 Mbps’ cable is equivalent to the top widely available speed by other cable ISPs. You are not compromising on speed when you are selecting the services of Earthlink.
How Fast is Their Fiber Internet?
Where it has access to fiber, Earthlink can offer internet speeds up to 1Gbps or 1,000Mbps. This is in line with those companies that have the fastest plans that are being offered by AT&T, Verizon Fios, CenturyLink among other fiber internet providers.
Earthlink’s fiber connection of 1Gbps speeds provides the capabilities of Google Fiber. You alone can stream 4K video, game, video chat and more across dozens of home devices with no lag at all. 1Gbps is currently considered the fastest broadband speed for home users.
Fiber is currently the fastest of the mainstream wired Internet technologies, and therefore by providing fiber with maximum gigabit speeds where it is available, Earthlink once more maintains its competitive edge in terms of speed vis-à-vis alternatives.
What Speeds Can I Expect?
Even though the maximum speeds displayed are incredibly fast for Earthlink’s fiber and some cable plans, data transmission speeds are usually lower than the given figures. Speeds can lag for these reasons.
- Network congestion – The increased use of the neighborhood during the evening may reduce the speeds offered.
- WiFi restrictions – The limitations of the router and device also determine the speeds that are attained over a wireless connection. It means that older hardware can severely limit performance.
- Other hardware factors – Wheeler cable lines, old networking and others are the reasons which slow speeds.
The key rule of thumb here is that you should expect to be able to achieve 70-80% of the maximum speeds boasted regularly. For instance, if your provider offers a 200Mbps package, expect to get around 140-160Mbps of regular speeds. Neglecting the variables, if you are repeatedly experiencing less than fifty percent of the promised speeds with Earthlink, there is probably an issue that needs a technician.
About this, it would be interesting to find out how Earthlink's speed is about other ISPs.
Here is how Earthlink's internet tiers measure up to some other major U.S. providers in terms of top speeds, according to the most recent published plans.
- DSL: Slower than most fiber DSL plans from AT&T, CenturyLink, and so on, while providing up to 1Gbps in some areas. But faster than basic Verizon DSL at 25Mbps max.
- Cable: It can go up to 940 Mbps, which is comparable to the speed provided by Spectrum, XFinity, Cox, Optimum and others. Stays competitive.
- Fiber: Comes close to 1Gbps fiber connection of Verizon Fios, AT&T Fiber, Google Fiber, and most others. Speeds at the top in line with other leading industries.
Final Verdict: Is Earthlink Fast?
To sum up – although base internet tiers offered by Earthlink are not the fastest, their cable and fiber top-tier plans are as competitive as those of the top contenders. When ultra-fast fiber or upgraded cable is offered, Earthlink has good speeds relative to the rest of the industry. Thus, their best speeds remain high, but the number of such options is not very large.
While their DSL and even a dial-up are comparably slower, Earthlink is not as attractive if you require a fast connection. However, their fiber and cable networks appear to compete with that of competitors in areas where new technologies have been rolled out. Hence although not universally fast at their fastest, they are as fast as other providers – offering a fast solution for most homes.
Call (866) 240-0701 to get a new Earthlink connection now!
Read More:
How Much are Earthlink Internet Plans?
How Much is Earthlink Fiber Internet?
How Much is Earthlink Internet Service?
How Much is Earthlink Wireless Internet?
How Reliable is Earthlink Internet?
