How To Get the Best Backup Internet for Your Budget

If you’ve lived through a hurricane or wildfire, you know how hard it is to be cut off from communications while you’re trying to keep your family safe.

You also know it pays to be prepared if you’re faced with a prolonged internet outage.

Lucky for you, more providers are offering backup internet options. Here are the three main categories:

• Satellite internet from companies like Starlink (pricy but reliable)
• Personal smartphone hotspots from mobile phone providers (free or cheap, but be mindful of data caps)
• 5G failover routers from companies like T-Mobile Home Internet, Xfinity, and Frontier (affordable monthly service charges, but watch for fees)

You can also try the following options. Each comes with its own pros and cons.

• Portable 5G home internet from T-Mobile Away (easy but expensive)
• Mobile hotspots from cell phone providers (affordable if you have a standalone device)
• Provider hotspot access from Spectrum and Xfinity (free or cheap, if you’re in the service area)

Choosing the right backup internet for your home depends on your budget, the kinds of disasters you might face, and your connectivity needs in case of a prolonged outage.

I took all this into account when recommending options for specific scenarios. To decide, I relied on my personal experience with multiple internet providers, personal hotspots I’ve used over the years, and my recent experience with my fiber internet at home, my iPhone 15 Pro, and the Starlink Mini. I paired that with institutional awareness about mobile hotspots and my own knowledge gleaned from years of writing about internet.

Now, let’s take a look at the best solutions for backup internet.

Starlink Mini: The best backup internet if you have a big budget

Starlink is the crème de la crème of backup internet because you can use it anywhere you have access to a power source and a clear view of the northern sky.

Sounds simple, but take a beat. To get enough bandwidth to support video calls, you need a completely unobstructed view. In most cases, that means either a completely empty desert floor or a pricey pole mount. And when it comes to power, you need either a standard two-prong wall plug or a power bank with a single-port rating of at least 100W, 20V/5A plus an extra $31 cable.

Of course, you’ll also have to shell out $600 for the kit from Starlink.

All that said, I would still choose the Starlink Mini with a 50GB plan if I really needed backup internet and had the budget for it. Here’s why:

• It’s small enough to fit in a backpack.
• It works in motion, so you can use it for navigation and communication at any time.
• You can pause the plan after you set it up to save on $50 monthly service charges.

Other satellite options for backup internet

If you don’t want to pay for a Starlink Mini, you can still use satellites for emergency communications. Here are a few ways to do it.

Starlink Residential: Buy a standard dish for $349, but plan on mounting the dish permanently and paying $120 per month for a plan with unlimited standard data. You can cancel the plan anytime, which is nice, but there’s no guarantee you’ll be able to sign back up later if the network is too congested.

Direct-to-cell messaging: If you have an iPhone 14 or later, you already have the capability to reach out for emergency help via satellite if you don’t have a cell phone signal. If you are a T-Mobile customer, you may soon have direct-to-cell texting capability for your private contacts. T-Mobile customers in hurricane zones recently got temporary access to the service, and it is expected to be widely available in 2025. It’s not useful for navigation or real-time communication when your phone has no bars, but it’s better than nothing.

Satellite phones and BGAN terminals: These are usually reserved for ultra-rugged environments and can cost upward of $900 before service charges. I used one when I was chasing wildland firefighters around the West as a newspaper reporter, and it was a godsend. However, it’s harder to recommend now that Starlink is widely available.

5G satellite internet (coming soon): Starlink, AST SpaceMobile, and several other companies are working on projects that make 5G available to cell phones without the need for cell towers on the ground. It’s not here yet, but we wait with bated breath.

Personal mobile hotspots: The best cheap (or free) backup internet

Almost everyone these days has a smartphone and a mobile plan with hotspot data. If you’re not particularly concerned about long-term internet outages or don’t have a big budget for preparedness, this hotspot data can keep you connected when landline internet fails.

It’s what I use (when I’m not testing high-end backup internet for work), and here’s why:

• No extra cost, assuming you have a smartphone and a standard mobile plan. If you don’t have one yet, start shopping for the best unlimited hotspot plans in our resource library.
• 5G/4G LTE networks are often restored faster than landline networks in natural disasters. Each of the big three providers is prepared with battery backup for their towers, and they regularly send out mobile response units after disasters. You may not have internet fast enough to stream in 4K right after a hurricane or earthquake hits, but you’re likely to have bars on your phone or 5G gateway faster than on your fiber or cable router.
• In most disasters, getting online won’t be your biggest priority: I’ve never lived through a hurricane or tornado, but I have seen a few mudslides, earthquakes, and wildfires. Most of the time, staying clean and dry and getting enough food and water is much more important than streaming Spotify. You want to be able to tell your people you’re OK after a storm, but then you need clean water and air conditioning more than you need Netflix.

T-Mobile Home Internet Backup: The best option for working remotely

Secondary internet connections were once reserved for businesses and DIY home networking pros. All that changed when T-Mobile introduced Home Internet Backup nationwide in June of 2024.

The setup is simple: Plug in the failover gateway, set up a network, and sign into it with all your devices. Then, switch them all back to your primary network but leave the 5G device plugged in. If there’s an outage, your devices should switch to the new network automatically.

Costs are reasonable. The device is included, the monthly cost is just $20, and the setup fee is $35. You get a sufficient 130GB per month, which is about seven days worth of data for a normal household, plus three additional 130GB data passes per year. Best of all, you can use the backup service with any other provider.

The device doesn’t include backup power, but you can connect it via USB-C to a wide variety of portable battery packs.

5G failover alternatives

In August 2024, Xfinity started offering Storm Ready Wi-Fi, which includes four hours of battery backup and 4G LTE/5G connectivity in case of a cable internet outage. You get unlimited data for $7 per month for 36 months (or a lump sum of $252), but you have to be an Xfinity subscriber and use one of its gateways.

In October 2024, Frontier quietly started offering Frontier Unbreakable Internet to its fiber customers. The service costs $25 per month and requires customers to use one of Frontier’s Eero routers. You get 130MB per month, like with T-Mobile, but you’re limited to 4G speeds, and there’s no onboard battery backup.

If you don’t want to go with a plug-and-play solution, it is possible to set up a 5G failover on your own with any of the big 5G internet providers. However, you need your own compatible router and some serious home networking chops to set it up, and you’ll have to pay for the second network separately.

The best portable internet options

We’ve written extensively about the best portable internet options, and every option we recommend works as backup internet. We also recommend checking out T-Mobile AWAY, which works just like T-Mobile Home Internet but without the requirement of a fixed address (and with prices that are about $100 more per month, unfortunately).

We’ve also covered the best mobile hotspots in-depth, and we stand by our recommendations! They work best when paired with plans from your mobile phone provider, so start there.

Honorable mention: Cable internet hotspots

Xfinity has more than 22 million public hotspots around the country, and Spectrum has more than 15 million. If you need backup internet and you live in the service area of either company, there’s a good chance you can use one of these hotspots if your own connection is down.

During natural disasters in 2024, both Spectrum and Xfinity made their Wi-Fi hotspots available to the general public without charge. Xfinity’s hotspots are always free for its internet and mobile customers, and the same goes for Spectrum and its mobile users.

If you’re not a subscriber, you have options. The best is the NOW Wifi Pass from Xfinity . For just $10, you get a 30-day pass and unlimited data on any Xfinity hotspot for up to two devices at a time. Better yet, the service is click to cancel, so you don’t have to call in when you’re ready to move on.

Spectrum’s By the Gig plan gives you 1GB of data for $20 per month, and then it charges $5 per additional gigabyte, on up to ten lines at a time.

How each internet provider helps in disasters

Internet providers know their services are vital, and each one has a history of stepping up to the plate when disaster strikes. These efforts often take place out of the public eye, but they deserve a little attention and appreciation.

How AT&T helps

AT&T has invested more than $1 billion on Network Disaster Recovery efforts in the last 30 years. This means it can send crews out ahead of time to make sure backup power is in place for both its fiber and cell networks. The preparedness fleet has more than 180 assets, including power distribution centers, satellite cell towers on wings and light trucks, and technology recovery trailers.

AT&T also operates FirstNet, which covers more than 250,000 square miles and connects more than 6.1 million first responders. FirstNet has government oversight and accountability from the FirstNet Authority.

How Verizon helps

If AT&T is the leader of the pack, Verizon is a close second. It has the best 4G network in the country, and its disaster response fleet includes more than 5.1 million public safety connections in more than 30,000 agencies.

The Verizon Frontline Crisis Response Team has drones, mobile cell towers on trucks and planes, military-grade equipment, and more to deploy when disaster strikes. In recent wildfires in California, for example, the company sent nearly 300 satellite-based assets and nearly 2,000 Verizon Frontline solutions to fire camps in 14 states to keep crews connected and help residents evacuate safely.

How T-Mobile helps

T-Mobile is another first responder when disaster strikes. Its Emergency Response fleet includes mobile cell towers, operation centers, heavy-duty Wi-Fi, and charging vehicles. The company works hard to ensure its cell towers have plenty of juice even when the power is out, and it deploys reconnaissance teams when restoration is needed.

T-Mobile recently launched T-Priority service, a program for first responders.

How Starlink helps

When hurricanes ravaged the South in the summer of 2024, everyone from government agencies to volunteers rushed in to save the day with donated Starlink satellite internet kits. The efforts were widely covered in the media (including on HighSpeedInternet.com). Starlink itself also stepped up, offering free service (but not free equipment) to people in affected communities through the end of 2024.

After storm waters receded, PC Mag reported that Starlink also connected more than 27,000 phones in just one day and more than 250,000 texts under the FCC’s emergency authorization.

That likely pales in comparison to the connectivity offered by the big three mobile providers, but it is notable because it hasn’t happened before and because satellite internet worked even when all other internet communication was unavailable.

How the government ensures connectivity

State, federal, and local governments work together to help first responders, businesses, and households stay connected during storms and other emergencies. It starts with funding and organizing internet infrastructure in the first place, and ends on the ground with local officials coordinating disaster response in real time.

In North Carolina, for example, the Division of Broadband and Digital Equity surveyed internet providers about outages and other impacts from Hurricane Helene, Deputy Secretary Nate Denny told HighSpeedInternet.com in an email. The division is now focused on allocating $1.53 million in federal funding from the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment program.

“We will be able to adapt federal funding streams quickly to help replace or repair existing infrastructure or help internet providers and communities access the technology they need,” Denny said.

The FCC itself is also on the case. It deploys the Disaster Information Reporting System (DIRS) to collect outage data, conducts spectrum surveys to see who has coverage, and keeps an eagle eye on radio and television signal reliability.

My verdict: Is backup internet worth it?

I hadn’t thought much about backup internet until I started covering national disasters through the lens of consumer advocacy this summer. Long-term outages seem impossible until they happen to you, right?

But we have to face the truth: Long-term outages could come our way anytime. If it’s not due to hurricanes, it could be caused by earthquakes and wildfires. Even without headline-grabbing climate disasters, increasingly hot summers can take out power grids, and unexpected snow and ice can keep repair crews grounded for days.

Should you get backup internet? I think so—if you can afford it. For most households, make sure you have adequate hotspot data on your personal cell phone plan and invest in an external battery. But if you work remotely, a backup internet connection from T-Mobile, Xfinity, or Frontier is worth it.

So, who really needs Starlink? If other people rely on you, if you live in a rural area without 4G LTE access, or if you have special health needs, you might. If it’s the only way to reach the outside world after disaster strikes, it may just save a life.