How to Get Free Internet and Wi-Fi

In 2022, 46% of low-income parents said their kids have faced technological issues such as completing schoolwork from a cell phone, missing assignments because they don't have access to a computer at home,  or having to use public Wi-Fi due to unreliable home internet.¹

It’s true that internet access is more critical than ever for taking care of school and work at home. But if you find yourself unable to afford internet service in your area, you might try one or more of these free internet options instead.

We compared several free and low-cost internet options, checked out ways to get cheap computers, and validated suggestions shared online to pull up a list of ways you can get cheap or free internet and Wi-Fi at home. Let’s dig in and explore your options.

Yes, you can get free internet. The only thing is, your options are somewhat limited to the following:

• Cell phone hotspots
• Public Wi-Fi
• Dial-up internet service
• Low-cost assistance programs

The other thing about free internet is that you may not get access to free high-speed internet. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) calls 25 Mbps download speeds “high-speed” internet, but some free internet options probably won’t get you 25 Mbps speeds.

Wi-Fi tends to be slower because its signal gets weaker as it travels through objects and even air to get to your device.

And dial-up usually comes with speeds of 56 Kbps. (Remember good old “56K” back in the day?) For comparison, 56 Kbps equals 0.056 Mbps. That’s not very fast by today’s standards.

Yes and no. All of the options for free internet we cover here are legal. But there are definitely illegal ways to get free internet too.

Bottom line: If you’re not sure whether you have permission to use an internet service without paying, don’t use it. Ask first, or try a different way to get free internet.

Free internet service that isn’t Wi-Fi or a mobile hotspot is likely going to be dial-up. Right now, there are two nationwide free dial-up internet services: NetZero and Juno.

One thing you should know before you connect to free dial-up internet is that you could rack up long-distance or toll charges. That’s because dial-up uses your phone line. So it’s a good idea to check the dial-up access numbers and call your telephone company to make sure you can avoid a massive bill getting dropped in your mailbox.

NetZero dial-up internet is free for 10 hours a month. It also offers thousands of different access numbers to make sure you can connect anywhere in the US. And you can create as many email addresses as you want for free.

NetZero dial-up features

• Free for 10 hours a month
• Access numbers available across the US
• Multiple free email addresses

NetZero also offers a free mobile internet service that comes with 200 MB of data each month. But you’ll need to buy a NetZero device to get its mobile broadband service.

Sign Up for NetZero | Check NetZero Access Numbers

Juno dial-up internet

Juno is another dial-up internet service that’s free for 10 hours a month. In fact, both Juno’s and NetZero’s websites look so eerily similar that we wouldn’t be surprised if they’re actually the same company.

Juno even comes with the same set of perks as NetZero: access numbers covering multiple US locations and the chance to make as many free email addresses as you want.

Juno dial-up features

• 10 hours of dial-up internet for free each month
• Thousands of US access numbers
• Multiple email addresses for free

Sign Up for Juno | Check Juno Access Numbers

For a completely free mobile internet option, check out FreedomPop. It offers a 25 MB data plan that costs nothing each month.

Another way you can trim your monthly bill down is to cancel your internet service and use a mobile hotspot instead. This might be less costly if you already have a cellphone plan, plus it’s nice to deal with just one bill a month instead of two. (Or more.)

Most every cell phone company offers a hotspot plan, or you can choose to grab a mobile data plan and just use your phone for online activities.

If you’re looking for absolutely free mobile internet, one of your few choices is FreedomPop. The free data plan comes with 25 MB of data at 4G LTE/5G speeds each month. The only caveat? Your SIM card kit costs a one-time fee of $10, and it’s for GSM phones only.

Also, that’s not a lot of data to use each month. So don’t expect to stream Netflix or play games on your phone with a free FreedomPop plan.

View FreedomPop Plans | Read the FreedomPop Review

For those considering cutting ties with traditional internet as a way to lower your bills, we recommend looking at Visible, Verizon, and AT&T hotspot plans as an alternative.

Our mobile experts flagged the following hotspot plans as ones to seriously consider:

• Best budget hotspot plan: Visible Wireless Unlimited Plan
• Best hotspot coverage: Verizon Wireless Do More Unlimited plan
• Best for lots of high-speed hotspot data: AT&T Wireless Unlimited Elite plan

You can get more info on how these plans stack up in our guide to the best mobile hotspots. And for reference, 5G speeds average about 50 Mbps, while 4G LTE speeds average a max of 30 Mbps.

Turning your phone’s hotspot on is as simple as flipping a switch.

On my Android device, I found the Mobile Hotspot and Tethering options under the Settings → Connections menu.

As for Apple devices, choose Personal Hotspot under your Settings menu to turn your hotspot on. Pro tip: If you’re looking for your hotspot network, it’ll probably show up as “[Your Name]’s Phone.”

If it’s free Wi-Fi you’re after, your best place to start is a map of free Wi-Fi hotspots. A handful of these exist, and the most popular maps are the following:

• WiFi Map
• WiFi Free Spot
• NetSpot app
• Instabridge app

The NetSpot app that comes with a free version and can be downloaded on your Windows or macOS computer. The app comes with a Discover mode, which scans the area for Wi-Fi networks and shows you the signal strength of each one, along with other details.

And Instabridge, another app for your phone, lets users share free Wi-Fi network info with each other—including passwords.

But remember, you should get permission to connect to any Wi-Fi hotspot—and even a free Wi-Fi hotspot should be secured. You may need to ask for a password, but that minor annoyance is well worth it to avoid getting targeted by cybercriminals.

A couple of lesser-known options for free internet access are municipal wireless networks and community mesh networks.

A municipal wireless network is usually run by a city and used to cover large areas with publicly available Wi-Fi thanks to lots of wireless access points like the LinkNYC kiosk in the photo. Similarly, a community mesh network can cover a large area with Wi-Fi, but it uses personally or community-owned Wi-Fi routers to do that.

While setting up your own mesh network might require a higher learning curve, GoTenna has a map of all self-reported community mesh networks in the US.

If you’re a low-income family, you’ve got a few other options for cheap and free internet. These government programs can either offer you a special, low-cost internet plan or offer a benefit or subsidy to help you pay for your internet service.

These programs include the new Affordable Connectivity Program, which started as the Emergency Broadband Benefit in 2021, the Lifeline program, and Connect2Compete plus other programs run by internet service providers (ISPs).

Not sure what all those acronyms mean? We feel you. Here’s a quick cheat sheet:

• FPHA: Federal Public Housing Assistance
• HUD: Housing and Urban Development’s public housing programs
• LIHEAP: Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program
• NSLP: National School Lunch Program
• SNAP: Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program
• TANF: Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
• WIC: Women, Infants, and Children Program

We’ve got more info on these government programs, including how to apply and who qualifies, in our low-income internet guide.

If you can get Verizon Fios Home Internet in your area, then we recommend checking out the Verizon Lifeline program. Otherwise, the government’s Lifeline program gives you $9.25 a month to help pay for your internet bill (or $34.25 a month if you qualify for Tribal Lifeline).

Lifeline is available to any household in the US that includes someone who meets the following criteria:

• Your income is 135% or less than federal poverty guidelines
• You’re enrolled in SNAP, Medicaid, SSI, FPHA, or veteran’s pension or survivors benefit

There’s also the Tribal Lifeline program. It applies to anyone living on Tribal lands who has someone in their household enrolled in at least one of the programs listed above or one of the following:

• Bureau of Indian Affairs General Assistance
• Head Start
• Tribal TANF
• Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations

A handful of nonprofits are also ready and willing to help you find low-cost internet. And if a laptop, tablet, or computer is out of your price range, many of these can also get you reduced-price technology.

• EveryoneOn helps you find low-cost internet service in your town or city and low-cost devices.
• Human-I-T helps you search for low-cost internet and refurbishes donated technology so you can buy it at a more affordable price.
• PCs for People resells refurbished technology at more affordable prices and offers low-cost mobile internet for $15 a month.

Still have questions about low-income and free internet? We’re here to help.

Sources