Internet with no credit check

Depending on where you live, you could get other options for internet with no credit check:

• Verizon Fios: Verizon Fios is a prepaid internet service that lets you get high-speed fiber internet without a credit check and without an annual contract. Prices start at $49.99 per month  for download speeds of 300 Mbps, and you can save an extra $25 per month if you are a Verizon mobile phone customer. 
• Optimum (formerly Suddenlink): Optimum offers prepaid Internet service in 21 states. The price starts at $35 per month for 300 Mbps, and you can save $10 a month by signing up for Optimum mobile phone service.
• Earthlink: Earthlink offers an internet with no credit check option. The company’s network covers 96% of the U.S., and its no-contract internet service plans start at $54.95 per month.

Some ISPs offer prepaid internet plans that allow people to get home internet service without having their credit pulled. “Prepaid” means that you have to pay for your internet service in advance. This way, ISPs don’t have to worry about the risk of not getting paid; they get your money upfront every month.

However, some prepaid internet plans require you to pay for extra equipment out-of-pocket that would otherwise be included in the price of your monthly service. For example, the Metro by T-Mobile prepaid internet plan requires you to pay for your own router ($99). Hughesnet satellite internet also offers a no credit check “Purchase” option.

With Hughesnet Purchase, instead of paying a lease fee of $14.99 per month for your home internet equipment, you skip the soft credit check and pay $449.98 upfront for equipment and standard professional installation plus your monthly service fee. So you avoid the hassle of going through a credit inquiry, but you have to pay a bit more money upfront to get internet service.

Read the fine print on a prepaid internet service before you sign up. There might be a few extra fees for equipment (such as a modem or router), but the best prepaid internet plans should promise to give you the same speeds and data limits that you would get from a post-paid service contract. Just because you want internet with no credit check doesn’t mean your customer experience should be any worse.

If you are concerned about having to do a credit check for internet service, don’t worry: you have options. Not every company or plan requires a credit check. But let’s look closer at why credit checks are part of getting home internet service—and why this matters for you.

When you sign up for an annual contract with a mobile phone company, a cable TV company, or an internet service provider, the company is trusting you to pay your bills on time and to take care of expensive equipment like a Wi-Fi router or modem. Your trustworthiness as a reliable customer is best recorded in your credit history, so ISPs like to pull your credit to make sure you qualify for a longer-term service.

Of course, some customers don’t like getting a credit check for internet service, especially if the internet service provider does a “hard credit pull,” which could lower your credit score. In those cases, you might want to choose an internet service provider that doesn’t require a credit check or one that does only a soft pull.

If you don’t have a strong credit score, or if you have limited credit history, the internet service provider might ask you to pay a security deposit as part of signing up for an account.

The internet plans that do not ask for a credit check (or a deposit) tend to be “prepaid” internet plans, which do not require an annual contract. Because the company gets its money from you upfront each month, they don’t have the financial risk that you won’t pay your bill. Some prepaid internet plans might also ask you to pay for equipment (like a modem or router) upfront.

There are two types of credit check: hard and soft. A hard credit check  happens when you apply for a new credit account, such as a credit card, car loan, or home mortgage. It’s a more detailed, involved type of credit check that appears on your credit report history, and it might decrease your credit score because lenders consider too many hard credit checks happening too often to be a sign of bad credit or financial trouble.

However, many ISPs do only a soft credit check, which doesn’t appear on your credit report and doesn’t affect your credit score. A soft credit check  lets ISPs (or other creditors) look at your credit report, but without you actually applying for credit. For example, AT&T  does a soft credit check for its internet plans and other services.

We suggest asking your internet service provider before signing up or applying for a new internet service: “will you do a hard or soft credit check?” If it’s a soft credit check, you don’t need to worry about damage to your credit score.

Unless the cable company has a special prepaid internet plan or subsidiary that offers internet, like Comcast’s Xfinity prepaid internet service, most cable companies will need to check your credit if you are signing up for cable internet service.

There are a few internet service plans that do not check credit, such as Xfinity prepaid and Metro by T-Mobile. Most mobile phone internet service providers will typically require a credit check, even if it is a soft credit check. 

Verizon Fios prepaid internet and other prepaid Verizon services do not require a  credit check; but other Verizon services that require an annual contract will need to check your credit.

AT&T requires a soft credit check  for their internet service and other home phone and TV services.

Depending on your situation, some customers might be asked to pay a security deposit for AT&T internet or other services. The exact amount of your security deposit depends on your credit score and which services you want to get, but it might range from $100 to a few hundred dollars.

Xfinity Prepaid  internet service does not require credit checks. But if you want an annual contract and standard monthly billing with Xfinity, you might need to go through a credit check.

If you have a past-due balance with Comcast (the parent company of Xfinity), you can call Xfinity to work out a repayment plan. Some customers can also qualify for the Xfinity Internet Essentials  amnesty program—if your Comcast debt is at least 1 year old.

If you choose Xfinity Prepaid internet, there is no deposit. But depending on your credit situation, other types of Xfinity internet service might require a deposit; some customers have said  that they paid a $100 deposit to avoid a hard credit check.

To qualify for a long-term lease of Hughesnet satellite internet equipment for your home, you need to agree to a soft credit check that does not impact your credit score. However, if you want to avoid doing this soft credit check, you can pay upfront for your satellite internet equipment and installation.

Yes. Frontier is a high-speed internet provider that requires a soft credit check  for all services. Even if you have less-than-perfect credit, you can still get internet service with Frontier, but you might need to pay a deposit.

Verizon and other internet service providers do not provide a specific credit score  that you need to have. But don’t worry: even if you have less-than-perfect credit or don’t have any credit history, you can still get internet service. You’ll just need to pay a deposit or choose a prepaid internet option.

The exact deposit amount depends on your credit situation and on which services you want, but it’s likely to be in the range of $100–$400.

Even if you have poor credit or no credit, you can still get internet service. Talk with your preferred internet service provider (ISP) to choose an option that works for you, such as paying a security deposit, or getting a prepaid internet plan.

It depends. Usually, the best way to build credit is to make on-time payments on your debts, such as credit cards or car loans. These financial accounts are most likely to get reported to credit bureaus and can help build credit.

Traditionally, most other monthly payments like rent, cable TV, or internet bills have not been included in credit reporting. But that is starting to change. Experian Boost®  is a new option from the Experian credit bureau to get a “boost” on your credit score for paying bills—including internet service—on time.

Credit checks aren’t usually a matter of passing or failing, but if you apply for something like the internet and the provider reviewing your credit doesn’t like what they see using the soft credit check, they can decide not to offer you service.