Best Internet Providers in Yakima, Washington

What is the best internet provider in Yakima, Washington?

Ziply Fiber is the best internet provider in Yakima. It achieves the rare distinction of offering both the fastest and cheapest plans in the city. Ziply’s $20-per-month 100Mbps plan is one of the best deals you’ll find anywhere, at least until it increases to $45 in the second year. 

Spectrum’s price increases are just as severe. The main thing going for it is availability: Spectrum has the broadest coverage in Yakima, with service available to 90% of households. 

Another solid option in the area is T-Mobile Home Internet, our pick for the best wireless internet in Yakima. Its speeds won’t blow you away, but it has a straightforward price of $50 per month, with no equipment fees, data caps or contracts required. 

Source: CNET analysis of provider data.

Source: CNET analysis of provider data.

How to find internet deals and promotions in Yakima

The best internet deals and top promotions in Yakima depend on what discounts are available during a given time. Most deals are short-lived, but we look frequently for the latest offers. 

Yakima internet providers, such as T-Mobile Home Internet and Verizon 5G Home Internet, may offer lower introductory pricing or streaming add-ons for a limited time. Others, including Ziply Fiber and Spectrum, run the same standard pricing year-round.  

For a more extensive list of promos, check out our guide on the best internet deals. 

Source: CNET analysis of provider data.

What’s a good internet speed?

Most internet connection plans can now handle basic productivity and communication tasks. If you’re looking for an internet plan that can accommodate videoconferencing, streaming video or gaming, you’ll have a better experience with a more robust connection. Here’s an overview of the recommended minimum download speeds for various applications, according to the FCC. Note that these are only guidelines and that internet speed, service and performance vary by connection type, provider and address.

For more information, refer to our guide on how much internet speed you really need.

• 0 to 5Mbps allows you to tackle the basics: browsing the internet, sending and receiving email and streaming low-quality video.
• 5 to 40Mbps gives you higher-quality video streaming and videoconferencing.
• 40 to 100Mbps should give one user sufficient bandwidth to satisfy the demands of modern telecommuting, video streaming and online gaming. 
• 100 to 500Mbps allows one to two users to simultaneously engage in high-bandwidth activities like videoconferencing, streaming and online gaming. 
• 500 to 1,000Mbps allows three or more users to engage in high-bandwidth activities at the same time.

How CNET chose the best internet providers in Yakima

Internet service providers are numerous and regional. Unlike the latest smartphone, laptop, router or kitchen tool, it’s impractical to personally test every ISP in a given city. What’s our approach? We start by researching the pricing, availability and speed information, drawing on our own historical ISP data, the provider sites and mapping information from the Federal Communications Commission at FCC.gov.

It doesn’t end there: We go to the FCC’s website to check our data and ensure we consider every ISP that provides service in an area. We also input local addresses on provider websites to find specific options for residents. We look at sources, including the American Customer Satisfaction Index and J.D. Power, to evaluate how happy customers are with an ISP’s service. ISP plans and prices are subject to frequent changes; all information provided is accurate as of publication.

Once we have this localized information, we ask three main questions:

1. Does the provider offer access to reasonably fast internet speeds?
2. Do customers get decent value for what they’re paying?
3. Are customers happy with their service?

The answer to those questions is often layered and complex, but the providers who come closest to “yes” on all three are the ones we recommend. When selecting the cheapest internet service, we look for the plans with the lowest monthly fee, although we also factor in things like price increases, equipment fees and contracts. Choosing the fastest internet service is relatively straightforward. We look at advertised upload and download speeds and consider real-world speed data from sources like Ookla and FCC reports.

To explore our process in more depth, visit our how we test ISPs page.

Internet providers in Yakima FAQs