ⓘ Independent guide · not a government agency · we never charge fees

Free Internet for Low-Income Households: What Is Left

Last verified:

The Affordable Connectivity Program ended on 1 June 2024 and nothing federal has replaced it. Most pages ranking for this search still describe the $30 discount as if it existed. What is actually left, with every price checked on the provider's own page on 2026-09-23: one federal discount, one state law, one state subsidy, about ten ISP low-income tiers, and exactly one option that costs nothing.

The one thing that is free

T-Mobile Project 10Million costs $0. A household with a K-12 student and proof of NSLP, SNAP, Community Eligibility, Medicaid or FDPIR gets a free hotspot device and 200GB of mobile data a year for five years, with $10 data passes beyond that and no annual recertification. It is mobile data, not a wired line, and 200GB a year is roughly 16GB a month, which covers homework and forms rather than streaming. T-Mobile's school-district page describes a different construct of 20GB a month through districts; both are their own pages. If you have a child in school, this is the first thing to apply for.

The federal discount: Lifeline, $9.25 a month

Lifeline is the only federal consumer subsidy for internet. It is worth up to $9.25 a month, or $34.25 on Tribal lands, and the FCC says it can go on phone service, home internet, or a bundle. Two honest caveats. Only some providers offer it on wired internet, and the FCC itself notes fixed-broadband Lifeline is a small share of the program and usually still leaves a bill. And the current minimum standard for a Lifeline fixed plan is 25/3 Mbps with 1,280GB per month, held there until December 2027. You qualify at or below 135% of the poverty guideline or through SNAP, Medicaid, SSI, Federal Public Housing, Veterans Pension or a Tribal program, and one benefit covers the household.

Verizon applies Lifeline to Fios home internet in 11 places: Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, Maryland, North Carolina, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia, District of Columbia. Doing that also qualifies you automatically for Verizon Forward below, so the two discounts stack. Elsewhere, use USAC's companies-near-me search and ask each provider whether it takes Lifeline on home service. Most of the Lifeline money in practice goes on a free government phone, and those plans carry a floor of only 4.5GB of data a month, so they are not a home-internet substitute.

ISP low-income plans, verified prices

Every figure below is from the provider's own program page on 2026-09-23. "Not published" means the provider does not say, and we did not fill it in from older sources. Most of these are new-customer programs with a 60 or 90 day gap requirement, which is the detail that catches people who already have service.

ProgramMonthlySpeedWho qualifiesExisting customers
Xfinity (Comcast) Internet Essentials$14.9575/10 Mbps (100/20 on Plus)NSLP, housing assistance, Medicaid, SNAP, SSI and others, or income at or below 200% of the poverty guidelineNo Xfinity Internet in the last 90 days and no Comcast debt under a year old
Spectrum (Charter) Spectrum Internet Assist$15up to 50 Mbps down; upload not publishedNSLP or Community Eligibility Provision, or SSI (including seniors 65+ on SSI); extra criteria for New York residentsNew and existing Internet Assist customers may qualify for the $15 tier
AT&T Access from AT&Tnot publishednot publishedIncome below 200% of the poverty guideline, or SNAP, SSI, TANF, Medicaid, LIHEAP, WIC, Pell Grant, NSLP, School Breakfast, Head Start, Federal Public Housing, veterans benefits; annual recertificationYes; call 855-220-5211 and the price is applied to existing service
Verizon Verizon Forward$20Depends on the plan chosen (Fios 300 Mbps to 5 Gig)Lifeline, SNAP, Medicaid, WIC, SSI, Section 8, Veterans or Survivors Pension, Tribal programs, Pell Grant, or income at or below 200% of the poverty guidelineNew or existing customers; the credit appears within one to two bill cycles
T-Mobile Project 10MillionFreenot publishedA K-12 student in the household plus proof dated within a year of NSLP, SNAP, Community Eligibility Provision, Medicaid or FDPIRNot tied to being a T-Mobile customer
Cox (now Spectrum) Connect2Compete$9.95up to 100 Mbps down; upload not publishedAt least one K-12 student and NSLP, SNAP, TANF, housing vouchers or public housingNew residential customers only
Optimum Optimum Advantage Internet$15100 Mbps down; upload not publishedNSLP, SSI, SNAP, Medicaid, veterans, or seniors 65 and overNo Optimum Internet in the last 60 days; accounts previously not in good standing are excluded
Astound (RCN, Grande, Wave) Internet First$9.9550 Mbps or 150 Mbps down; upload not publishedNSLP, housing assistance, Medicaid, SNAP, SSI, federal student aid, or previous ACP enrollmentNo Astound service in the 60 days before applying
Starry Starry Connect$15up to 30 Mbps symmetricalResidents of participating public and affordable housing buildings; no individual proof requiredBuilding-based
Mediacom Connect2Compete$9.95up to 25 Mbps downAt least one child qualifying for free or reduced NSLP lunchNo Mediacom internet in the past 90 days, no outstanding bill

Where the ISP publishes a state list we show it on that state's page; where it says only "not available in all areas" the address check on the program page is the answer.

What changed in 2025 and 2026 that the top results missed

Two states with real programs

New York law gives you a $15 or $20 plan

The Affordable Broadband Act is in force. Any internet provider with more than 20,000 customers in New York has to offer eligible households $15 a month for at least 25 Mbps, or $20 a month for at least 200 Mbps, with taxes and equipment fees included. The price is permanent, adjustable at most once every five years and capped at the lower of inflation or 2% a year. Smaller providers are exempt. You qualify through SNAP, Medicaid, SCRIE, DRIE, HEAP, free or reduced school lunch, or on income, and you enroll by finding your provider on the state broadband map and calling them. Verizon Forward's discount rises to $45 a month in New York, Xfinity Internet Essentials accepts SCRIE and DRIE here, and Spectrum lists additional New York criteria.

Full New York internet page · source: dps.ny.gov, broadband.ny.gov

California LifeLine now pays toward home internet

The California LifeLine Home Broadband Pilot, launched by the CPUC in August 2025, pays $20 a month toward a standalone home internet plan or $30 toward internet bundled with voice, plus up to $39 once a year toward connection fees, for three years. The plan has to meet 100/20 Mbps with 1,280GB a month unless it is a designated low-cost plan. That is state money on top of the federal $9.25. You qualify at or below 150% of the poverty guideline or through Medi-Cal, CalFresh, CalWORKs, SSI, Section 8 or WIC, and existing LifeLine phone subscribers have to ask their provider to move the benefit. Verizon Forward's discount rises to $40 a month in California. A bill to require a $15 plan statewide has not become law as of our check.

Full California internet page · source: www.cpuc.ca.gov, broadbandforall.cdt.ca.gov

Nowhere else has a state subsidy or a mandated low-cost plan as of our check. Vermont has a bill that has not passed. Massachusetts, Washington and Illinois publish official pages that point back to federal Lifeline and provider programs.

State by state: what is verified where you live

New York and California have their own pages above. For the states below we have an official state page or a provider that publishes the state in its footprint, and that is all we claim. Everywhere else, the national table and the address checkers are the answer.

Free and low-income internet in Illinois

There is no state subsidy. The Department of Commerce maintains an inventory of low-cost broadband offers, which it says should not be assumed complete or current, so use it as a starting point and confirm on the provider's own page.

AT&T Access from AT&T and Astound (RCN, Grande, Wave) Internet First publish Illinois in their own availability lists, from $9.95 a month. Free phone lines with hotspot for Illinois are ranked on the Illinois free phone page. Source: dceo.illinois.gov.

Free and low-income internet in Texas

No state subsidy or mandated low-cost plan exists. Texas is one of the states where AT&T publishes Access availability and Astound publishes Internet First availability, and the state runs its own Lifeline verification through the Public Utility Commission, so a Lifeline application here has an extra state step.

AT&T Access from AT&T and Astound (RCN, Grande, Wave) Internet First publish Texas in their own availability lists, from $9.95 a month. Free phone lines with hotspot for Texas are ranked on the Texas free phone page. Source: www.usac.org.

Free and low-income internet in Pennsylvania

AT&T Access from AT&T and Astound (RCN, Grande, Wave) Internet First publish Pennsylvania in their own availability lists, from $9.95 a month. Verizon applies Lifeline to Fios here, which also triggers Verizon Forward. Free phone lines with hotspot for Pennsylvania are ranked on the Pennsylvania free phone page.

Free and low-income internet in Massachusetts

There is no state subsidy. The state's own Lifeline page confirms the federal discount can go on home internet or a wireless data plan, and Verizon offers Lifeline on Fios here, which also triggers Verizon Forward.

Astound (RCN, Grande, Wave) Internet First publishes Massachusetts in its own availability list, from $9.95 a month. Verizon applies Lifeline to Fios here, which also triggers Verizon Forward. Free phone lines with hotspot for Massachusetts are ranked on the Massachusetts free phone page. Source: www.mass.gov.

Free and low-income internet in Washington

The Department of Commerce's page restates that ACP ended and points to Lifeline's $9.25. A 2025-26 bill raises the state speed definition and requires providers to report retail prices, but does not mandate a low-cost plan.

Astound (RCN, Grande, Wave) Internet First publishes Washington in its own availability list, from $9.95 a month. Free phone lines with hotspot for Washington are ranked on the Washington free phone page. Source: www.commerce.wa.gov.

Free and low-income internet in Vermont

H.121 would require $15 and $20 plans for Lifeline or fuel-assistance households. It was referred to committee in January 2025 and has not passed. The state Public Service Department lists only the federal $9.25 and $5.25 amounts.

No provider publishes Vermont in its low-income footprint; the address checkers decide. Free phone lines with hotspot for Vermont are ranked on the Vermont free phone page. Source: legislature.vermont.gov, publicservice.vermont.gov.

The claims to stop believing

What you will readWhat is true
Get the $30 ACP discountEnded 1 June 2024; no replacement enacted
Free internet with EBTSNAP qualifies you for $9.25 off and $9.95 to $30 tiers, not $0
Government internet programLifeline, $9.25 a month, is the only one
ACP is coming backFCC: only if Congress funds it; nothing enacted
Free hotspot from the library via the FCCE-Rate hotspot lending rescinded September 2025
Cox ConnectAssist $30 / 100 MbpsCox is Spectrum since August 2026; page is 404
AT&T Access $30 / 100 MbpsAT&T no longer publishes a price

What to do this week

  1. Child in school? Apply for Project 10Million first. It is the only $0 option and it ships a device.
  2. In New York or California? Use the state program. In New York, call your provider and ask for the Affordable Broadband Act plan by name.
  3. Otherwise, run your address on the two or three ISP program pages that serve it, and read the existing-customer rule before you get excited about the price.
  4. Get Lifeline approved at lifelinesupport.org regardless. It is $9.25 off something, it stacks with Verizon Forward, and it gets you a free phone line in days.

Check your eligibility in 30 seconds →

Common questions

Is there still free internet for low-income families?

Wired home internet at $0 has effectively disappeared since the Affordable Connectivity Program ended on 1 June 2024. The one genuinely free option left is T-Mobile's Project 10Million, which is mobile hotspot data for households with a K-12 student. Everything else is a low-cost tier from $9.95 to $30 a month, or the federal Lifeline discount of $9.25 a month applied to a bill.

Is there a government internet program?

The only federal consumer subsidy for internet is Lifeline, worth up to $9.25 a month, or $34.25 on Tribal lands. It can be applied to home internet where a provider offers that, though the FCC itself notes fixed-broadband Lifeline is a small share of the program and usually still leaves a bill. BEAD money builds networks and, per NTIA in 2025, will not set a low-cost price.

Is ACP coming back?

Not as of our check. The FCC's page says only that it will share information if Congress provides more funding, no funding bill has been enacted, and the FCC's 2026 Lifeline rulemaking proposes tightening eligibility rather than creating a new subsidy. Pages promising the $30 discount is returning are guessing.

Can I get free internet with EBT or SNAP?

SNAP qualifies you for Lifeline and for most ISP low-income tiers, but neither is free. Lifeline is $9.25 off. The ISP tiers run $9.95 to $30 a month. The only $0 offer that accepts SNAP is Project 10Million, and it requires a K-12 student and delivers mobile data, not a wired line.

Which state has the best low-income internet program?

New York, by law. The Affordable Broadband Act requires every provider with more than 20,000 customers to sell eligible households a $15 plan at 25 Mbps or a $20 plan at 200 Mbps, taxes and equipment included. California is second: its LifeLine Home Broadband Pilot pays $20 to $30 a month of state money toward ordinary home internet plans on top of the federal discount.

Can my library lend me a free hotspot?

Some still do with their own money, but the federal basis is gone. On 30 September 2025 the FCC rescinded E-Rate support for off-premises hotspot lending and told USAC to deny the pending requests. Wi-Fi inside the library building is still E-Rate eligible. Ask your branch what it has left rather than assuming.

Gov-Grants.org is an independent guide, not a carrier and not a government agency. We never charge fees, and every fact above links to its source with the date we checked it. Program details change; confirm on the official site before applying.