Viasat vs. WOW Internet Providers Compared

Viasat delivers quality satellite internet with good range of prices and speeds

Viasat is one of three major U.S. satellite internet providers, the other two being HughesNet and Starlink [1]. The chief advantage of satellite internet is its wide availability. If you have an unobstructed view of the southern sky, you can get satellite internet access at your home. People in rural and remote areas have relied on satellite internet for decades. Satellite internet can also be a great backup plan for small businesses in the event of severe outages for cable or fiber internet. Satellite internet service does have some unique characteristics based on its technology. It will be more expensive than most other forms of internet service. Your internet connection with satellite will be slower than with cable or fiber. But with Viasat’s new satellite just launched and more new satellites on the way, you will get faster speeds than satellite has ever offered before. Viasat and HughesNet have dominated the U.S. satellite internet market for years. Starlink is a newcomer from Elon Musk’s SpaceX [2]. Though Starlink shows promise, it is still too new to have a trusted operational track record. There are long wait lists for Starlink in some areas [3]. Viasat, by contrast, will get your internet up and running in an average of 3-5 days. Viasat also offers unlimited standard data and high data allowances for high-speed data.

Viasat offers a variety of price points and speeds to fit your budget

Viasat offers higher speeds than its longtime competitor, HughesNet. While HughesNet only offers download speeds up to 100 Mbps, Viasat offers download speeds up to 150 Mbps in select areas. For the first-tier Viasat internet plan, you will pay an introductory price of about $99.99/month. These Viasat internet plan prices are slightly higher than HughesNet prices and cheaper than Starlink prices. You will get value for your money, because Viasat features unlimited allowances for monthly high-speed data. If you rely on using a lot of high-speed data, Viasat is the clear choice. Avid streamers or remote workers will benefit greatly from the simplicity of these plans. Be aware that like HughesNet, Viasat requires a two-year contract. If you cancel early, you will pay an early termination fee. You can get a no-contract plan for a non-refundable upfront payment which may work out to be more or less than a cancellation fee.

WOW’s prices are so low they’ll WOW you

If there’s any way that WOW! can claim to have truly earned its name, it’s with low pricing. The first-tier plan will give you 300 Mbps download speed for only $30 a month. That's on the very low end of cable ISP pricing. A lightning-fast, multi-gigabit speed of 5000 Mbps from WOW! will run you $185. That’s considerably cheaper than several other major cable providers’ multi-gigabit speed plans. WOW!’s lower-speed plans do have a couple of drawbacks that may increase their otherwise excellent prices. Those drawbacks are data caps and a $14/month modem rental fee. Fortunately, the equipment rental fee is optional, meaning that you can skip it if you provide your own modem/router instead. And the data caps are fairly high for the lowest-tier plans (1.5 TB/month) and very high for the 500 Mbps (2.5 TB) and 1 Gig (3 TB) plans. The high caps for the faster plans make it very unlikely that you will exceed your data caps. So, just don’t go crazy and have 40 gamers play at your house for a month. The vast majority of households will not ever approach the limits of a 2.5 TB data cap.

Viasat delivers fast, reliable internet with ever-improving technology

You’ll get a solid, reliable internet connection from Viasat. Keep in mind that the military uses satellite internet for their operations. That’s because satellite internet survives in circumstances when cable or fiber internet might be out for days or weeks. Satellite internet can’t be harmed by an earthly accident, a weather catastrophe, or an attack on wired infrastructure. So in that sense, satellite internet is more reliable than wired internet. That’s why Viasat offers special “backup internet” plans for small businesses to minimize service disruption from outages. It’s true that heavy rain or snow can sometimes cause “rain fade,” which is a weakening or interruption in the satellite internet signal. But rain fade is only temporary. The one caveat about your Viasat internet speed is that your maximum speed will vary depending on where you live. Your plan options can vary from 25 Mbps to 150 Mbps download speed. That’s a wide range, but your speed will be better than DSL in many instances. Upload speeds from Viasat will remain consistent for all plans but much lower than the maximum download speeds. This asymmetry in upload and download speeds is typical for satellite internet, but will still allow most normal activities on the internet.

WOW! cable is a fast, strong choice with gigabit download speeds but slower upload speeds

Internet performance from WOW! matches the stats of the largest cable providers in the nation such as Spectrum and Infinity. You will get fast speeds from WOW!’s high-end plans that will support streaming and gaming with multiple devices. The chief disadvantage of cable internet is that upload speeds are so slow compared to the symmetrical speeds of fiber internet. If you want to do large uploads or real-time gaming on 10 devices at once in your home, there’s no question that you’ll be better off with fiber’s lightning-fast uploads. But for most households with average internet usage, a fast cable plan like WOW! internet will be good enough.

Viasat equipment: buy upfront or take option of monthly rental fee

If you want to buy your Viasat dish and modem/router upfront, it will cost you around $300. That will save you some money if you don’t have to pay the monthly rental fee for two years (currently around $15). For customers whose credit scores qualify, installation is free. Others may pay a $100 installation fee.

Equipment rental fees are optional, self-installation is free for WOW!

All WOW! plans come with a free self-installation kit. If for any reason you’re not comfortable with self-installation, you can get pro installation for $50. Though most plans will allow you to rent a modem/router from WOW! for about $14/month, you also have the option to supply your own equipment. This choice may be better for your budget if you plan to have service for more than a year. Just make sure you check with WOW! to be sure your router has compatible specs.

Viasat’s customer satisfaction average, but 24/7 customer support is strong

On many popular online review sites, Viasat tends to score slightly above average for customer satisfaction. When customers are not satisfied, their comments are often related to the innate differences of satellite technology. It’s true that satellite speeds cannot approach the speeds of cable or fiber. But satellite is often the only technology that can reach rural or remote areas. That’s why it’s not too surprising that Viasat has some customers online who are not happy that their speeds are not fast enough. But it’s hard to get a more objective read on overall customer satisfaction, because Viasat does not appear in the J.D. Power Survey of Residential Internet Service Customer Satisfaction. Viasat does provide extensive online and phone support, with live reps available 24/7 to help with any issues. The online resource library is clear and on target with common types of information that customers might need. Viasat also has a convenient online portal called My Viasat to manage any aspect of your service. My Viasat also works through an app that you can download on your smartphone. Their optional EasyCare service may also be worth the low monthly fee you will pay to have all your service calls covered ($95), a dish relocation covered ($200), and premium customer support with the dedicated EasyCare line.

WOW! outperforms larger ISPs for customer satisfaction

WOW! offers the same customer support amenities as the largest national ISPs [4]. You will get an online portal to allow you to manage your account. Telephone help is available 24/7. Online chat is available every day between 7:00 AM and 11:45 PM EST. In the J.D. Power 2023 U.S. Residential Internet Service Provider Satisfaction Study, WOW! outperformed much larger ISPs such as Cox [5]. That strong performance indicates WOW! customers are pretty happy with their service.