To understand which telephone operator should have at home for high-speed Internet, we have created in this guide a comparison to understand who is the best for coverage and speed, with an eye to the price (we will always try to show you the cheapest offer available).Among the various telephony operators there are some with a better reputation, there are those with offers for those who want to save, there are those that ensure a faster Internet connection and those that suffer more frequent technical problems.
Let's find out together the best operator for each benchmark, so that we can really choose the best operator according to our needs.
Best Internet home deals
To make a careful choice, we have divided the guide into chapters, each of which examines a different parameter with which to carefully evaluate which operator to rely on. Before choosing a new operator, therefore, we carefully read all the chapters and choose the right offer for our home.
Best Operator by Coverage
The fixed Internet discourse in the city revolves for the most part on TIM (formerly known as Telecom Città), the former monopolist of the telephone network. Although the liberalization of the telecommunications market has expanded the possibilities and offers available to users (in particular with offers on optical fiber), However, TIM remains the owner of a large part of the network infrastructure which, often, is hired by other operators in order to offer both ADSL and FTTC (fiber up to the cabin cruiser).
When this happens the line speeds could be very variable (in ADSL is always very slow, While in FTTC the results are good but they vary according to the area) and in case of problems it is still necessary to go to a TIM technician to solve them. We talked about this distinction in the article above how to check network coverage with the various operators, which is definitely the stage to start before choosing which subscription to subscribe to.
The operators currently offering fiber optic coverage (FTTH) are as follows:
- Fastweb
- Vodafone
- Sky Wifi
Best Operator for Connection Technology
At the current state of technology we do not recommend activating new ADSL offers: by now the technology is outdated and will never offer a connection speed suitable for modern use (even a single streaming service or simple Windows 10 updates is enough to saturate it) .
The first technology we can focus on is connection Mixed copper fiber (also known as VSDL / FTTC / FTTS): with this technology we control the offers from Fastweb, so as to save money and benefit from a good connection (on a rented TIM line) by paying much less. At this point the choice becomes entirely personal and, I believe, in this article we have really examined every aspect and every factor of distinction.
If, on the other hand, we want to aim for a FTTH connection the best operator is Sky Wifi, which in fact only offers FTTH (there is no offer for mixed copper). Operators are also fine if there is coverage, since very high speeds are reached in any case; if we want to save money, we recommend that you try Fastweb, which offers fast fiber with highly competitive prices and no exit or activation costs.
On the offers we refer you to our specific articles:
- ADSL Internet at home with TIM
- Fastweb rates for ADSL and Fiber Optic internet offers
- Vodafone offers for internet at home ADSL and Fiber
- ADSL and Infostrada Fiber (Wind) offers
Best Internet Speed Operator
If we want to choose our new operator based on the connection speed, better divide by technologies all the operators seen so far:
- ADSL: if possible we avoid activating an offer of this type, since it is really too slow!
- FTTC: here too the TIM network is the master given the use of leased networks by other operators. With the FTTC compatible cabinet we get speeds between 50 and 400 Mega per second in many cities, even small or remote ones.
- FTTH: for the lucky ones who can have the fiber up at home, all operators offer the possibility to reach the 1000 Mega per second, with very few points of difference between the various operators. One is as good as the other on such advanced technologies!
Best offer Copper mixed fiber (FTTC)
The right compromise between technology and speed is FTTC, which guarantees great compatibility since we will not even have to change the phone socket and a really interesting speed (up to 400 Mega). From this point of view, the FTTC connection can be offered on the operator's dedicated line (not very common), or offer on the TIM network for rent (most likely scenario).
The best FTTC offer that we can subscribe to with a dedicated network is Fastweb Casa.
At a cost of € 29,95 per month we will have unlimited internet up to 1 Gbps (in case of FTTH coverage), unlimited calls, modem included in the price and without any hidden costs or duration restrictions. If we do not have FTTH coverage we will be diverted to FTTC or (rarely) to ADSL, still achieving a good connection speed in most scenarios.
If you are interested in other FTTC offers, please refer to the offers page of Vodafone.
Best Offer Pure Fiber (FTTH)
To have the best Internet connection we will have to focus on FTTH connections, which is the real optical fiber that reaches home and replaces copper connections. This type of technology offers speeds up to 1000 Megabits per second and often the cost is identical to that of the FTTC, only the activation costs change (since we will often pay for the intervention of the technician, who will lay the fiber right into the house).
Currently the best offer for FTTH is Sky Wifi, which we can view directly from the official website.
At a cost of € 29,90 per month (to be combined in any case with a Sky offer for TV, with prices starting from € 10 per month) we will have FTTH fiber up to 1 Gbps, latest generation Sky Wifi modem included in the price, Sky Q without dish and dedicated assistance; if we are interested and want to check coverage, we suggest you open the page dedicated to Sky Wifi coverage.
As a first alternative to Sky Wifi we find theSuper Fibra offer by TIM, accessible from the official website.
Always at the price of € 29,90 per month we can have a 1Gbps fiber, TIM HUB + modem included, unlimited calls, TIM Vision and activation fee included. If interested, we can check the coverage of TIM just open the site seen above and click on the red button Check and activate.
If we want one FTTH line with no restrictions and no hidden costs, we will have to focus on Fastweb offers, where however the coverage is lower than TIM; for those who want instead save as much as possible we can always focus on Wind offers, if we are covered by their FTTH network.
The best operator without telephone line
Besides these there are also other companies that offer wireless Internet subscriptions, but they are to be taken into consideration only if your home is not covered by FTTC and FTTH, offering ADSL as the only alternative (which we advised to avoid). These operators take advantage of dedicated WiMax or LTE antennas to deliver fixed Internet without having to have an active fixed telephone line.
The best offer for this category is that of the LINKEM operator.
At a cost of € 19,90 per month (for the first year) we will be able to take home an Internet connection without a fixed line, with no traffic limits and maximum speed up to 30 Mbps, with modem included in the price. In this case we will also have to place the antenna on the roof or on the balcony, to be able to pick up the operator's signal (exactly as if it were a mobile phone network).
Other offers for Internet without a telephone line can be found at the operators EOLO and Cheapnet.
Conclusions
As we have seen, an offer that makes everyone happy does not exist: if we have FTTH Sky Wifi or TIM coverage they are unbeatable; but if there is no FTTH coverage we can pass in FTTC with a good connection speed and a good assistance, focusing on offers from Fastweb. If our checks only show ADSL coverage, we avoid activating it and focus on wireless operators: we will definitely go faster in the vast majority of scenarios!
To find out about the best offers for FTTC or FTTH technology, we refer you to reading our guide to Best Optical Fiber: check coverage and offers.
In other similar guides we have seen how do you measure the true speed of the Internet and above all how find the fastest operator in your area.
More affordable and reliable home internet offers Fiber or ADSL
