Spectrum vs. T-Mobile: Which Internet Provider Is Best for You?

Compare Spectrum and T-Mobile head to head

Spectrum offers faster speeds and cheaper rates than T-Mobile, but it comes with some typical provider annoyances like price hikes and extra fees. What sets T-Mobile apart is its convenience and budget-friendly policies, as evidenced by T-Mobile’s excellent customer feedback in our latest customer satisfaction survey. And while T-Mobile isn’t as fast as Spectrum, its speeds are perfectly adequate for most households. Let’s take a closer look.

Pros and cons: Spectrum vs. T-Mobile

Jump to: Plans and pricing | Extra fees | Customer ratings | Bundles | Internet types | Data caps | Contracts | Installation | Availability

Jump to:

• Plans and pricing
• Extra fees
• Customer ratings
• Bundles
• Internet types
• Data caps
• Contracts
• Installation
• Availability

Plans and pricing: Spectrum vs. T-Mobile

Spectrum plans and pricing

While it’s increasingly common to see gig speeds these days, you probably don’t need more than 200–300Mbps.

Spectrum’s Internet Advantage plan should suffice for two-person households or for those with light to moderate internet needs. Its 100Mbps speed is enough bandwidth for two simultaneous 4K streams while keeping a healthy amount of headroom for other tasks. But like Spectrum’s Assist plan, your household must qualify for the Advantage plan.

The Internet Gig plan might be overkill for most customers. Unless you have unusually demanding internet needs, you’d be better off spending the extra money on other home networking improvements.

One downside of Spectrum internet service is the price hikes. The above rates are introductory promotional rates and are usually reserved for new customers. After the initial 12 months, your prices are likely to increase—how much more they increase depends on the plan and region.

T-Mobile plans and pricing

T-Mobile’s 5G Home Internet utilizes wireless 5G signal from cell towers, meaning there are no networking cables involved …  ever. You’ll never need a technician or have to make an appointment, even if you need to relocate the router to another room down the line.  To sweeten the deal, T-Mobile throws in a free internet gateway, a price-lock guarantee, and requires no term contract.

As for the speeds, while Spectrum offers faster plans, most customers wouldn’t even notice the difference. T-Mobile’s up to 415Mbps speeds are perfect for your average household to still have some headroom left over for peak hours and internet-heavy days.

T-Mobile has a slight edge when it comes to eliminating extra fees. It provides a free rental internet gateway for every customer, plain and simple. Spectrum doesn’t technically charge an equipment rental fee, but it does charge a WiFi Service fee, whether you use its gateway or standalone router.

Comparing install fees between these two ISPs is a mixed bag. Spectrum’s professional installation costs more if you need it, but the self-install is cheaper than T-Mobile’s activation fee. Installing Spectrum’s cable internet yourself is easy enough, but it’s not guaranteed to work, as it requires your home to already have an active connection to the Spectrum network.

Customer ratings: Spectrum vs. T-Mobile

T-Mobile’s 5G Home Internet received the highest ratings overall in our annual customer satisfaction survey. T-Mobile customers were particularly happy with their prices and customer experience. Comparing customer feedback between these two ISPs, T-Mobile comes out on top in every category.

Best TV and internet bundles

One advantage of going with Spectrum is the option to combine your internet and TV services. In general, TV and internet bundle discounts aren’t as generous as they once were, but you still get the convenience of managing two plans with a single provider. We like the Internet Premier + TV Select Signature plan best. You get a decent internet speed and lots of channels without breaking the bank.

Internet types: Spectrum vs. T-Mobile

Spectrum mostly offers cable internet, which is one of the fastest and most reliable types of internet connections available. And because it utilizes the same coaxial cables once used for cable TV, much of the country already has access to cable internet.

T-Mobile offers fixed wireless internet, which runs on the same technology that delivers data signals to your cell phone. This is how T-Mobile is able to offer internet service without installing any cables in customer’s homes.

Data caps: Spectrum vs. T-Mobile

Both T-Mobile and Spectrum provide unlimited data with all their internet plans. This means that regardless of which of these top-notch ISPs you choose, you won’t be stuck counting gigabytes.

Contracts: Spectrum vs. T-Mobile

Neither Spectrum nor T-Mobile require customers to commit to lengthy term contracts, as all plans from both providers are month to month. The biggest difference between the two is that Spectrum introduces price hikes after 12 months (typically raising your monthly bill by $20 or more), while T-Mobile goes in the opposite direction with a lifetime price lock guarantee. This is a big plus for T-Mobile and surely one of the reasons why T-Mobile customers gave such high price satisfaction ratings in our customer survey.

Installation: Spectrum vs. T-Mobile

Installing T-Mobile 5G Home Internet is absurdly easy. First, the app directs you to the ideal location in your home to place the T-Mobile internet gateway. Then, you simply connect the gateway to power and finish the short set through the app. There are no networking cables, technicians, or inconvenient appointments. The whole process takes about 15 minutes.

Spectrum’s installation is a more standard affair. The professional installation requires an appointment with a broadband technician. There’s a cheaper and more convenient self-install option, but there’s no guarantee it’ll work, as it requires your home to already have an active connection to the Spectrum network. Even with a self-install, you may have to pay a $4.99 reconnect fee and a $30.00 activation fee.

Availability: Spectrum vs. T-Mobile

T-Mobile utilizes its enormous cellular network to distribute its 5G Home Internet, so it’s available in most heavily populated areas in the United States. Spectrum also has a considerable presence in the lower 48 states, but its coverage area is more focused around dense urban pockets, like New York and Los Angeles. Use our zip search below to see if either service is available in your area.

Final call: Spectrum vs. T-Mobile 5G Home Internet

If you need the fastest speeds, Spectrum is a safer bet. Its rates tend to be a bit cheaper than T-Mobile too, just keep in mind that Spectrum usually imposes a price hike after 12 months. T-Mobile is for those who want good internet service without having to think too hard about it. T-Mobile has fewer extra fees, no price hikes, and an easier setup—some customers may prefer that extra peace of mind over a faster internet speed or a cheaper intro rate.

Methodology

Our HighSpeedInternet.com editorial team bases our analyses on customer input from our annual customer satisfaction survey, results from our speed test tool, and proprietary internet provider data on speeds and pricing. To strengthen our research, we look closely at provider contracts to get hard-to-find information on price hikes, data caps, and extra fees, and we keep tabs on the latest news reports and online reviews. When applicable, we also rely on our personal experiences testing these services.