Best Internet Providers in Bakersfield, California

Internet in Bakersfield is a bit of a mixed bag. On the one hand, 97% of residents have access to a plan with at least 100 Mbps download and 20 Mbps upload speeds — the Federal Communications Commission’s suggested minimum for broadband — and it’s one of the top 50 cities in the country based on average speed.

But most Bakersfield residents still don’t have many choices when it comes to high-speed internet. While AT&T Fiber is now available to about one in five homes, Spectrum is the only option in many neighborhoods. Wireless providers like T-Mobile and Verizon now offer home internet plans, but their speeds fluctuate more than wired connections.

On the positive side, the The Bakersfield City Council recently approved a deal with SiFi Networks to build and maintain a fiber-optic network along every street in the city at no cost to ratepayers. SiFi would then sell network access to private internet providers. According to a presentation to the Board of Supervisors, residents would pay about $60 per month for 10,000 Mbps. By comparison, AT&T currently charges $180 for 5,000 Mbps. The project is currently in the design phase, with no clear schedule for construction.

Best Internet Options in Bakersfield

CNET examines customer service, speed, pricing and overall value before recommending the best broadband in your area. For a long time, Spectrum was essentially the only option for high-speed internet in Bakersfield. In 2015, AT&T agreed to expand its fiber network to 20 new metro areas within four years as part of its deal to acquire DirecTV. In 2017, AT&T Fiber officially launched in Bakersfield, and immediately became the city’s top internet option. The only catch? It’s currently only available to 21% of Bakersfield households.

Remark: The prices, speeds, and features described in the article text may differ from those in the product detail cards, which represent national carrier offerings. Your specific Internet service options, including prices and speeds, depend on your address and may differ from those described here.

Source: CNET analysis of carrier data.

What other internet options are there in Bakersfield?

We think the three providers mentioned above are the best options for internet in Bakersfield, but there are a few other ISPs you can consider:

• Applied Technology Group: For residents of rural areas around Bakersfield, Applied Technology Group offers fixed wireless internet plans with speeds up to 35 Mbps. If the choice is between Applied and satellite internet, we would probably choose Applied. But in any other situation, there is probably a better option.
• onWired Broadband: This is another fixed wireless provider in the area, with plans starting at $54 per month. It’s geared toward people who live in rural areas; when we asked them for a quote for an urban address, they recommended we look at Spectrum or AT&T instead. If you can’t get anything else, unWired might be worth considering.
• Satellite internet: Companies like Hughesnet and Viasat offer internet service to virtually any address in the country, but it’s only your best option if it’s your only option. Satellite internet has slow speeds, low data limits, and high prices. One exception is Starlink, which offers significantly faster speeds but costs $120 per month with an upfront equipment fee of $599.
• Verizon 5G Home Internet: Like T-Mobile, Verizon’s home internet service offers wireless internet throughout Bakersfield. It has two plans: $50 per month for download speeds up to 300 Mbps or $70 for speeds up to 1,000 Mbps. Both plans are significantly discounted when bundled with qualifying Verizon 5G mobile plans.

Bakersfield Home Internet Service Pricing Information

Bakersfield residents can expect to pay between $50 and $90 per month for internet service, which is about average for cities across the country. That said, there is a dearth of truly cheap internet plans in the city, with prices starting around $50 per month.

Cheapest Internet Plans in Bakersfield

Source: CNET analysis of carrier data.

Fastest Internet Plans in Bakersfield

There are only two providers that offer gig speeds — download speeds of up to 1,000 Mbps — but they’re both solid options. AT&T’s fiber plans go all the way up to 5,000 Mbps, which is far more than most people need, but it’s a nice option for ultra-connected smart homes. While Spectrum’s download speeds top out at 940 Mbps, households that do a lot of remote work or gaming may struggle with its 35 Mbps upload speeds.

Source: CNET analysis of carrier data.

How CNET Chose the Best Internet Providers in Bakersfield

Internet service providers are numerous and regional. Unlike the latest smartphone, laptop, router, or kitchen utensil, it’s impractical to personally test every Internet service provider in a given city. So how do we do it? To start, we use a proprietary database of pricing, availability, and speed information based on our own historical ISP data, partner data, and mapping information from the Federal Communications Commission at FCC.gov.

And it doesn’t stop there: We go to the FCC website to check our data and make sure we account for every ISP that offers service in an area. We also enter local addresses into carrier websites to find specific options for residents. We look at sources including the American Customer Satisfaction Index and J.D. Power to evaluate how satisfied customers are with an ISP’s service. ISP plans and pricing are subject to frequent change; all information provided is accurate at the time of publication.

Once we have this localized information, we ask ourselves three main questions:

• Does the provider offer access to reasonably fast internet speeds?
• Do customers get value for their money?
• Are customers satisfied with their service?

While the answers to these questions are often multi-layered and complex, the providers that come closest to “yes” to all three questions are the ones we recommend. When selecting the cheapest internet service, we look for the plans with the lowest monthly fees, though we also consider things like price increases, equipment costs, and contracts. Choosing the fastest internet service is relatively simple. We look at advertised upload and download speeds, and consider real-world speed data from sources like Ookla And FCC Reports.

If you would like to take a more detailed look at our process, please visit our How We Test ISPs page.

What’s the final word on internet providers in Bakersfield?

Bakersfield residents aren’t exactly awash in great internet options, but 97% of residents have access to at least one provider that offers 100/20Mbps speeds — the new minimum broadband speed proposed by the FCC. While AT&T Fiber is by far the best choice in town, only about one in five residents currently has access to it. Spectrum and T-Mobile are both good backup options, however.

Frequently Asked Questions About Internet in Bakersfield