Ahem, thanks for letting us get that out of our system. In all seriousness, Verizon 5G Home Internet is the new kid on the block and one of the few 5G residential internet services out there right now. But is it worth the price tag, and how does its download speed hold up? Saddle up, ‘cause we’re about to dish out all the secrets, weigh the pros and cons, and talk about all the perks of Verizon 5G Home Internet. If you’re currently a Verizon Wireless customer, you’re about to get some sugar cubes plunked in your coffee to sweeten the deal. Instead of the full $50-$70 a month rate, wireless customers get a discounted $25-$40 a month rate—as long as you have a qualifying mobile plan, Auto Pay, and paperless billing. The best part about that price? Your taxes and fees are already included, and there are no bill increases. Excuse us while we do our happy dance. Here’s a look at what you can get if you sign up for Verizon 5G Home Internet in March 2022:
Whether you choose self setup or professional setup when you order 5G Home Plus and you’ll get a free Verizon Stream TV and $300 off a Stream TV Soundbar. Get first month free of Verizon Home Internet Get Disney+ free for 12 months when you sign up for 5G Home Plus or free for 6 months when you sign up with 5G Home Internet.. Get up to 50% off when you combine your 5G Home Internet plan with Verizon’s 5G Do More, 5G Play More, or 5G Get More plan.* Get 2 months of Sling TV or a $35/month credit.**
Sign Up and Get the Deals To put that in perspective a little, that’s 10,000 megabits per second (Mbps). And right now, most internet service providers (ISPs) offer max download speeds of 1,000 Mbps. So yeah, 5G coverage should be pretty fast. But hold your horses for just a minute. There’s still a lot of work to do to get 5G up to those 10 Gbps speeds. Right now, Verizon says a typical download speed for its 5G Home Internet is 300 Mbps—and if you’re lucky, you can max your 5G download speeds out at up to 1000 Mbps.1 Typically you’ll get better speeds and performance from a wired connection, but new technology, including a new type of encoding and higher frequencies, keeps the 5G signal strong. (P.S. You can learn more about how all this works in our 5G guide.) Those lucky enough to live in cities where Verizon 5G Home Internet is available say the 5G force is strong. Reddit user vincetg2 got their 5G Home Internet installed in Sacramento, CA, in 2018. Their initial speed tests showed a peak download speed of 810 Mbps and peak upload speed of 212 Mbps—which is pretty exceptional.2 Another Reddit user, austinasu in Houston, TX, said their 5G Home Internet usually gets around 450 Mbps download speeds.3 One common complaint a few Reddit users had about their Verizon 5G Home Internet service was “bufferbloat.” We don’t expect bufferbloat to happen to most internet users, but if you upload lots of files, stream on Twitch, or game often, this issue could crop up. If you do get lag spikes in the middle of a boss pull or while you’re FaceTiming your Aunt Mimi, here’s a bufferbloat troubleshooting guide. (Though we don’t recommend trying this unless you’re pretty familiar with your router.)
Indoor and/or outdoor receiver Modem-and-router combo
You also have the option to add Wi-Fi extenders if you need them, but those may cost you a bit out of pocket. Verizon doesn’t specify a price, however. As for the installation of your 5G Home Internet equipment, everything seems pretty straightforward. You can schedule your professional installation when you place your order, which is taken care of by someone from Asurion. If you like, you can double-check that the technician standing outside your door is actually from Asurion and sent by Verizon with CheckMyBadge.com. You’ll need the technician’s badge number, which should be in your reminder email.
Available Monday–Saturday at 9 a.m. or 1 p.m. local time Installation typically takes 3–4 hours Someone age 18 or older must be present during installation You’ll get a reminder email the night before You also have the option to request a call or text message from your technician when they’re on their way
If you head home in the afternoon to let your dog out and see an Asurion tech hanging around your home before your installation is scheduled, don’t worry. They’re just testing the 5G signal outside of your home, and they shouldn’t need to go inside your house, apartment, or townhome at this time. Reddit user vincetg2 said their installation went smoothly.2 The technician asked whether they preferred an indoor or outdoor receiver, whether they were okay with the technician’s suggested placement of the receiver, where the modem and router would sit, and where they wanted the technician to drill into the wall and install the new jack. Vincetg2 also noted that the outdoor receiver is mounted on an arm that requires four small but deep screw holes, as did the grounding box.2 “The power-over-ethernet wire they ran from the office to the grounding box probably required many screws/nails, but they hid this very well along my house’s trim, so it’s barely noticeable,” Vincetg2 said. “The only major thing they did was (drill) through from the exterior of the house and (cut) through the drywall to install the new Ethernet jack in the office.” So if your signal starts dropping or your 5G internet speeds slow down, don’t touch that receiver! Call Verizon instead. And hey, we all know 5G technology is still fairly new, so it’s pretty awesome that Verizon also gives you free hardware upgrades for your first year of 5G Home Internet service. Now that’s the way we like our internet service. Of course, if you do cancel your 5G Home Internet service, you’ll need to return your equipment within 21 days. Otherwise, you’ll have to pay what Verizon calls a “substantial” equipment non-return fee.5 (Oh, by the way, some places on Verizon’s site say you have 30 days to return your equipment, while others say 21 days. We’d go with 21 days and play it safe if we were you.)
Equipment non-return fee: “Substantial” fee if you don’t return your equipment within 21 days after canceling your service.5
However, there are a few glimmers of hope. A couple Reddit users, like austinasu, noted that Verizon was quick to send technicians over when their signal dropped.3 And camelspiders, a user on the official Verizon community forum, noted that their customer service rep was helpful when they needed to update the firmware on their router because it wasn’t swapping to 4G when the 5G signal dropped.6 Right now, most 5G Home Internet users see fast download and upload speeds. And between the flat rate of $50 a month and multiple bonus and mobile bundle offers, 5G Home Internet seems like a great deal if you’re lucky enough to get it.
Prices and plans: If you’re already a Verizon Wireless customer with a qualifying mobile plan, this is quite a deal. And even if you’re not a Verizon customer yet, if you can land the top-end of Verizon’s 5G speeds at up to 1000 Mbps, you’re still looking at a pretty good price. Speed: Verizon says 5G Home Internet speeds typically sit around 300 Mbps, which is great for most streamers and gamers. Some locations may even see closer to the top speed of up to 1000 Mbps, which is great if you run a home office or livestream. Oh and, your 5G Home Internet access comes with unlimited data and no data cap. Contracts, equipment, and fees: No annual contract, no installation fee, no equipment fees. We’re in heaven. The only thing you might pay for is a Wi-Fi extender or two. Customer service: Verizon’s not known for great customer service (nor are most wireless providers), but we’ve seen a few forum posts from customers who were well taken care of. Our hope is trending upward.
