Google Fiber vs. Xfinity: Which Internet Provider is Best For You?

Compare Google Fiber and Xfinity head to head

With its fast and reliable fiber-optic network, Google Fiber has pushed the limits of what customers expect from their internet service providers (ISP) since the first Google Fiber city was announced in 2011. But the catch is there’s a good chance it’s not available in your area. Xfinity’s sprawling cable network, on the other hand, makes it one of the largest and most available ISPs in the country. It’s also one of the fastest options in areas where fiber isn’t available, but its cable-based network is more prone to slowing during busy internet times than fiber is.

Pros and cons: Google Fiber vs. Xfinity

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

Jump to:

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

Plans and pricing: Google Fiber vs. Xfinity

Google Fiber plans and pricing

Google Fiber offers incredibly fast speeds for a very reasonable price. Despite its limited availability, Google Fiber has had a huge impact nationwide, popularizing fiber home internet and pushing other ISPs to improve their services to keep up.¹ It has four plans with straightforward pricing and great value. The multigig plans aren’t available in all Google Fiber locations, but like the 1Gbps plan, availability is slowly expanding.

Xfinity plans and pricing

Xfinity offers a wide variety of plans. Not every plan is available in every location, but most locations offer a range of plans from basic but affordable to fairly robust. While Xfinity’s plans do reach into the higher speeds, these tend to be more expensive than similar plans offered by Google Fiber.

Xfinity’s biggest advantage is its wide availability. Xfinity is one of the largest ISPs in the US, and because its entire network is based on cable connections, it can offer higher speeds and more reliable connections than ISPs that operate DSL networks.

Xfinity has a fiber-to-the-home plan for $299.99 per month, but Xfinity has barely dipped its toes into the world of fiber. While Xfinity boasts one of the largest cable networks in the US, it’s fiber footprint is less than 1% of that of Google Fiber’s, which means it’ss incredibly small, even compared to Google Fiber’s already limited availability.

Following Google Fiber’s introduction of its 2 Gigabit internet plan, Xfinity upped its max advertised download speed with the introduction of its Gigabit Pro plan, which has a max speed of 6,000Mbps (6Gbps) but Google Fiber is still in first place when it comes to speed with plans reaching up to 8,000Mbps (8Gbps). While we’re always excited when providers push to offer better speeds to their customers for the same price, it’s not yet clear if this is a sign that Xfinity is moving to invest in its fiber network in the same way that Google Fiber is.

In any case, Xfinity’s 6 Gbps fiber plan is also three times the price of Google Fiber’s 2 Gbps fiber plan, so even if you’re one of the few people who have access to Xfinity’s fiber network, we suggest going with a less expensive option.

Extra fees: Google Fiber vs. Xfinity

While Xfinity offers many plans priced lower than Google Fiber’s, it does have equipment fees and upfront installation costs that cut into your savings. If you’re going with an Xfinity plan to save some money on your monthly bill, make sure you take fees into account so you don’t end up paying more for less. You can also purchase your own router to save on equipment rental fees.

Google Fiber doesn’t have any fees beyond your normal monthly bill, including late fees. The ISP gives you a free router and free installation when you sign up. If your outstanding balance is unpaid for more than 40 days, your account will be suspended.³ Fortunately, there are no additional fees to reinstate a suspended account, either. You just have to pay your remaining balance in full.

Customer ratings: Google Fiber vs. Xfinity

Google Fiber blew larger nationwide internet providers out of the water in our annual customer satisfaction survey. Customers rated Google Fiber well above other providers in speed, price, and overall satisfaction, proving that Google Fiber still lives up to the hype.

Although Xfinity’s scores are a bit lower than those given to Google Fiber, Xfinity was still one of the top-performing providers on our survey when compared to other nationwide brands. Xfinity performed especially well in the categories of speed and reliability, coming in at the number one spot for speed among nationwide providers for the second year in a row.

Internet types: Google Fiber vs. Xfinity

Google Fiber operates an all-fiber network, so you’re always going to get the same high speeds and reliable connection, no matter where you are. Fiber internet has the advantage of symmetrical speeds, which means your upload speeds and just as fast as your download speeds. This is nice to have for video calls, streaming broadcasts, and uploading large files.

Xfinity’s network mostly delivers cable internet, which gives you good download speeds with slower upload speeds. Xfinity also offers fiber connections for its 6,000Mbps plan, but the availability is extremely limited.

Data caps: Google Fiber vs. Xfinity

Google Fiber doesn’t have any data caps, which means you can use it as much as you need without worrying about throttled speeds or overage fees.

Xfinity cable plans have a data cap of 1.2TB (1,200GB) in most of its coverage areas except the Northeast region, where data caps have been delayed until 2022.² This might seem like a lot of data to go through in a month, but a terabyte of data can go by surprisingly fast if you stream video on a regular basis.

If 1.2TB isn’t enough monthly data for you, you can get unlimited data for an additional monthly fee of $30. Those who sign up for Xfinity’s rare Gigabit Pro fiber plan get unlimited data included, just like Google Fiber customers.

Contracts: Google Fiber vs. Xfinity

Google Fiber and Xfinity don’t require a contract, so you simply pay on a month-to-month basis. 

Installation: Google Fiber vs. Xfinity

Google Fiber offers free professional installation to new customers, and its technicians do an amazing job, keeping all the cables neat and tidy.

Xfinity offers professional installation for $100. If you don’t want to pay even that much, Xfinity offers a free self-installation option as well, which it makes easy with an app that gives you step-by-step instructions.

Availability: Google Fiber vs. Xfinity

When it comes to availability, few ISPs can match Xfinity, which has a network that runs from coast to coast and covers over a third of the US population.⁴ Its reach doesn’t extend very far into rural areas, but if you live near a big city and have cable hookups at your house, there’s a good chance you have access to Xfinity internet.

Availability is the main weakness of Google Fiber. Its network is available in only a few Google Fiber cities, bringing access to less than 1% of the US population.⁴ Although its network is expanding, Google Fiber is still a relatively small ISP and faces an uphill battle when it comes to increasing its coverage.

Final call: Google Fiber vs. Xfinity

If you have access to both Google Fiber and Xfinity in your area, we recommend going with Google Fiber to get the most speed and reliability for the cost. Those with very basic internet needs might save some money by going with a cheaper Xfinity plan, but be aware of extra fees and potential contracts so you don’t end up paying more for less.

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.

More about Google Fiber and Xfinity

• Cable vs. Fiber: Which Internet Type Is Right for You?
• Self-Install or Go Pro? Your Guide to Xfinity Installation
• What You Need to Install Fiber-Optic Internet
• How Fast Is Fiber?

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