Xfinity vs. T-Mobile 5G Home Internet: Which Internet Provider Is Worth Your Money? (2024)

Aug 02, 2024

9 min read

Honest reviews written by real people

Our fact-based research process centers on interviews with internet customers across the country, helping us understand how internet services hold up against diverse needs and challenges.

To put together this review, we looked at results from our speed test, pulled data from customer satisfaction surveys, and pored over the fine print to compare prices and speeds between the two providers. To flesh out our analysis, we also interviewed Xfinity and T-Mobile customers to get their firsthand insights. We let their experiences guide our research and shape our conclusions. We also speak with ISP spokespeople and industry experts to get insights into connection types, speed capabilities, and other technical issues related to internet service.

Speed and reliability

Xfinity is the better pick when it comes to speed and reliability over T-Mobile 5G Home Internet. Xfinity is a cable provider, which provides a more stable service than 5G, which is wireless. Xfinity comes in third place in Reviews.org’s Fastest Internet Providers report, according to our speed test results. Users who took our speed test got average download speeds of 182.50Mbps, which can handle a few people using the internet at the same time. If this isn’t enough for you, you can choose a faster plan that offers up to 1,200Mbps.

T-Mobile 5G Home Internet is a fixed wireless provider, connecting your home to local 5G cell towers. This is slower, less stable, and more prone to changes in speed during congestion (times of peak traffic). T-Mobile offers two home internet plans, but the only difference between them beyond the price is that the “Plus” plan comes with whole-home Wi-Fi equipment. This improves the connection throughout a large home, but it isn’t any faster.

Xfinity is faster than T-Mobile, so if speed is your main priority, choose Xfinity. However, even with T-Mobile’s slower speeds, customers who took HighSpeedInternet.com’s Customer Satisfaction Survey rank T-Mobile just second to Xfinity in terms of their satisfaction with the provider’s speed. This is above all other major internet providers, so it’s a good sign that T-Mobile is still capable of providing decent speeds to its customers.

Dollar value

Xfinity and T-Mobile both have reasonable plan prices, but you get more speed for the money with Xfinity. Xfinity’s introductory rates last 12–24 months, giving you top speeds for less. After this intro period is over, prices can go up by $20 or more. There aren’t a ton of extra fees, but there is a 1.2TB data cap. Depending on the area where you live, the 150Mbps and 300Mbps plans may impose an early cancellation fee if you cancel before the year is up.

T-Mobile also provides good value for the money, and for an added bonus, the 5G provider is available nearly everywhere in the country. Even though cable internet beats 5G for quality, 5G offers a handy alternative to expensive satellite providers if you live in rural areas where cable and fiber aren’t available. All plans come with unlimited data and a one-time $35 device connection charge. While T-Mobile doesn’t promise top speeds, there are truly no price hikes, and you can cancel anytime without repercussions.

Xfinity and T-Mobile are similar in the value they each bring. Xfinity’s price hikes don’t look good in our book, but you are paying for top speeds. T-Mobile’s speeds are nothing to rave about, but a fixed price is a diamond in the rough these days, so we appreciate T-Mobile’s transparency.

Customer experience

T-Mobile does better on customer experience than Xfinity. The 5G provider ranks first place overall in HighSpeedInternet.com’s Customer Satisfaction Survey, with Xfinity coming closely behind in third place. T-Mobile also gets the highest rating among non-fiber internet providers in the 2022–2023 ACSI Telecommunications Study.

T-Mobile has a remarkably simple set-up process–there is no need to go through the gymnastics of scheduling an expensive professional installation and being there during a work day to supervise it. The 5G Gateway device comes with your plan for free, and all you need to do is plug it in, download the T-Mobile app, and follow a few instructions from the app. Customer service is also helpful and responsive to fixing technical issues. “It’s always been easy to get to a real person on the phone when I call T-Mobile,” says Steve Abbott, a T-Mobile 5G Home Internet customer in Mission Viejo, California.

Xfinity customers have mixed experiences. The parent company, Comcast, has a historically negative reputation that permeates customer views on the provider. Bridget Gutierrez, who lives in suburban Albuquerque with her husband and two kids, tells Reviews.org that the internet is slow, even though she has upgraded her speed. “It seems like every time I've gone up to the next speed, it didn't make a difference,” she says. Gutierrez has tried to renegotiate her plan prices too, but to no avail. “I wish that they would treat their new customers the same as their existing customers," Gutierrez says, referring to Xfinity’s low introductory rates.

Overall quality: Which internet provider should you pick?

Xfinity and T-Mobile might score equally in our reviews, but in the end, Xfinity is the better pick for most people. Xfinity provides faster speeds, low introductory rates, and a more reliable internet service overall. The plans do increase by $20 or more after a year or two, but users get plenty of data to work with throughout the month and can count on a cable connection most of the time.

T-Mobile 5G Home Internet is still a great provider, and you get fixed rates at $50–$70 per month for the foreseeable future with no hidden fees. Even though T-Mobile offers decent speeds and helpful customer service, you’re more likely to have times where service is slow and unstable on a 5G wireless connection versus cable.

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