Sue Marek

What a difference two years makes. When we first tracked fixed broadband performance across all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia in 2024 using Ookla Speedtest Intelligence data, only 10 states provided the Federal Communications Commission’s minimum standard for broadband speeds (100 Mbps download/20 Mbps upload) via fiber, cable, or DSL to at least 60 percent of their Speedtest users. In the first half of 2026, 46 states and D.C. hit that 60 percent threshold, and just four states fell below the mark: Wisconsin, Wyoming, Montana, and Alaska.

U.S. 5G fixed wireless access connections from Verizon, T-Mobile, and AT&T topped 17 million in Q1 2026—capturing 13.74% of the nation’s 123.75 million home broadband subscriptions, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s January 2026 American Community Survey. Ookla looked at FWA performance trends throughout the first half of 2026 and found steady progress in speeds and latency.

Ookla Speedtest® data from the second half of 2025 indicates that Starlink dramatically  improved its download speed performance across all 50 states compared to the second half of 2024. In fact, Speedtest users on Starlink are now able to get median download speeds exceeding 100 Mbps in every state but Alaska. This is more than double the 23 states that recorded median download speeds exceeding 100 Mbps in the second half of 2024. In addition, Starlink also improved its download performance in the 25th percentile, or the bottom quarter of Speedtest users on Starlink.

Using Ookla Speedtest Intelligence data, this report identifies the states that currently have access to the minimum standard for fixed broadband speeds, as established by the Federal Communications Commission, to the highest percentage of Speedtest users. It also singles out the states that need the most improvement when it comes to delivering the minimum standard for broadband to their residents. Key findings include: 

More than 700 communities across the U.S. are served by some type of municipal broadband network that provides its residents with internet services. In simple terms, a municipal broadband network is an internet service provider that is owned and operated by the local city or county government or a municipal utility rather than a private company like Comcast or AT&T.

5G fixed wireless access is a popular and growing broadband option in the U.S. with the top three U.S. FWA providers—T-Mobile, AT&T and Verizon—adding 1.04 million new subscribers in Q3 2025 bringing the total number of FWA customers to 14.7 million, which is slightly more than 12.5 percent of the 117.4 million U.S. households with broadband, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2024 American Community Survey. In Ookla’s March 2025 U.S.

There are around 2,000 U.S. wireless internet service providers, and about nine million Americans get their internet service from these companies, according to the Wireless ISP Association. Many of these WISPs are very small and provide service to just a few hundred customers. Using Ookla’s Speedtest Intelligence data, we examined the performance of eight of the larger US WISPs from Q1 2021 through Q2 2025. Highlights include:

U.S. broadband speeds are on the uptick, and more users are getting better performance than ever from their broadband connectivity. However, there are still some states (particularly those with lower population density and vast terrain) that are struggling to deliver broadband services to their residents.

U.S. Tribal Nations experience some of the biggest gaps when it comes to access to fast and reliable fixed and mobile connectivity.

Geostationary satellite providers HughesNet and Viasat are best known for providing consistent coverage across large land masses.