Reference

Internet glossary, A–Z

Every broadband term you will run into — from bandwidth to WiFi 7 — explained in plain English.

1 term

5G Home Internet: Wireless home internet delivered over the cellular 5G network instead of cables. Offered by T-Mobile and Verizon — typically $50/mo flat with no contract or equipment fee.

1 term

ACP: Affordable Connectivity Program — a federal subsidy that gave qualifying low-income households $30/month off internet. Funding ended in May 2024.

3 terms

Bandwidth: The maximum amount of data your connection can transfer in a given moment, measured in Mbps or Gbps. Higher bandwidth means more devices can stream/download simultaneously without slowdowns.
Broadband: Per FCC definition: any internet connection delivering at least 100 Mbps download / 20 Mbps upload. Anything slower is technically not broadband.
Bundle: Discounted package combining internet + TV + phone from a single provider. Almost always cheaper to skip the bundle and pay for streaming separately in 2026.

3 terms

Cable Internet: Internet delivered over the same coaxial cable that carries cable TV. Widely available, fast download, but typically slow upload and shared bandwidth in your neighborhood.
CDN: Content Delivery Network — a system of geographically distributed servers (Cloudflare, Akamai) that cache content close to you, making popular sites load faster.
Contract: An agreement committing you to a specific provider for a set term (usually 12 or 24 months) in exchange for promo pricing. Breaking the contract triggers an Early Termination Fee.

4 terms

Data Cap: A monthly limit on how much data you can use before fees or throttling kick in. Most fiber plans have no cap. Cable caps are typically 1.2 TB. Satellite caps can be as low as 50 GB.
DOCSIS: The technical standard for delivering data over cable lines. DOCSIS 3.1 supports gigabit speeds; DOCSIS 4.0 (rolling out now) brings symmetrical multi-gig to cable.
Download Speed: How fast data flows from the internet to you — measured in Mbps. Affects streaming quality, page load times, and file downloads.
DSL: Digital Subscriber Line — internet over copper phone lines. Slow (3–100 Mbps), being phased out. Avoid in 2026 unless it is your only option.

2 terms

ETF: Early Termination Fee — the penalty for canceling a contract early. Typically $10–$20 per month remaining, capping at $200–$400. Often waived if you move outside the service area.
Equipment Fee: A monthly charge ($10–$15) for renting your modem and router from your ISP. Buying your own equipment ($90–$200 one-time) pays for itself within a year.

2 terms

Fiber Internet: Internet over fiber-optic cables that transmit data as pulses of light. Fastest, most reliable consumer technology — typically symmetrical upload/download with flat pricing.
Fixed Wireless: Internet beamed from a tower to a receiver dish on your home. Common in rural areas via WISPs (Wireless Internet Service Providers). Speeds vary 25–300 Mbps.

2 terms

Gbps: Gigabits per second — a measure of internet speed. 1 Gbps = 1,000 Mbps. Gigabit (1 Gbps) plans handle dozens of simultaneous users with ease.
Gigabit: A plan delivering at least 1,000 Mbps (1 Gbps) of bandwidth. Marketing-speak for the highest tier most consumer ISPs offer.

2 terms

IP Address: A unique numeric identifier (like 192.168.1.1) assigned to every device on a network. Your ISP gives your home a public IP; your router assigns private IPs to each device.
ISP: Internet Service Provider — the company you pay for internet (Spectrum, AT&T, Verizon, etc.).

1 term

Jitter: Variation in latency over time, measured in milliseconds. High jitter causes choppy video calls and gaming lag. Under 30 ms is good; over 50 ms is noticeable.

1 term

Kbps: Kilobits per second — 1,000 Kbps = 1 Mbps. You will rarely see Kbps used today except for very slow connections.

2 terms

Latency: The delay between sending a request and getting a response, measured in milliseconds. Critical for gaming, video calls, and trading. Fiber: 5–15 ms. Cable: 15–30 ms. Satellite: 50–600 ms.
LTE: Long Term Evolution — the previous-generation cellular network (4G). Some home internet plans still use LTE in areas without 5G coverage.

3 terms

Mbps: Megabits per second — the standard unit for measuring internet speed. Note: 8 Mbps ≈ 1 MB/s of file download speed.
MBps: Megabytes per second (capital B) — used for file transfer speeds. 1 MBps = 8 Mbps. ISPs always advertise in Mbps because the number sounds bigger.
Modem: The device that translates the signal from your ISP into something your home network can use. Some ISPs combine modem + router into a single 'gateway'.

1 term

Net Neutrality: The principle that ISPs must treat all internet traffic equally — they cannot favor or block specific apps, sites, or services.

1 term

ONT: Optical Network Terminal — the device installed on the side of your house that converts the fiber-optic signal into Ethernet. The fiber equivalent of a cable modem.

2 terms

Ping: A test that measures latency by sending a small packet to a server and timing the response. Lower ping = more responsive connection.
Provider: Same as ISP — the company you buy internet from.

1 term

QoS: Quality of Service — router settings that prioritize certain types of traffic (gaming, video calls) over others (downloads). Useful for households with mixed heavy usage.

1 term

Router: The device that creates your home WiFi network and routes traffic between your devices and the modem. Modern routers also include the modem in one unit.

3 terms

Satellite Internet: Internet beamed from satellites in orbit. Starlink (low-orbit) is fast and low-latency. HughesNet/Viasat (geostationary) are slow and high-latency. Best for rural areas without other options.
Speed Test: A diagnostic that measures your real download/upload speed and latency. Run it from a wired (Ethernet) connection for the most accurate result.
Symmetrical: When your upload speed equals your download speed. Standard on fiber, rare on cable. Important for video calls, cloud backups, and live streaming.

2 terms

Throttling: When an ISP intentionally slows your connection — usually after you exceed a data cap or during peak congestion.
Throughput: The actual data transfer rate you achieve, as opposed to the theoretical maximum your plan advertises. Real-world throughput is often 70–90% of the advertised speed.

1 term

Upload Speed: How fast data flows from you to the internet — measured in Mbps. Affects video call quality, cloud backups, and live streaming.

1 term

VPN: Virtual Private Network — a service that encrypts your traffic and routes it through a remote server, masking your real IP and location. Slows your connection 5–20%.

3 terms

WiFi 6: The current WiFi standard (802.11ax) — faster, more efficient with many devices, and better at penetrating walls than WiFi 5. Worth upgrading if your router is more than 4 years old.
WiFi 7: The newest WiFi standard (802.11be) — multi-gigabit wireless, lower latency, supports 6 GHz band. Only worth it if you have a multi-gigabit fiber plan.
WISP: Wireless Internet Service Provider — local/regional ISPs that beam internet to rural homes via fixed-wireless towers. Often overlooked by big comparison sites.

1 term

ZIP Coverage: The set of internet providers that physically serve a given ZIP code. Note: coverage varies by exact street address — same ZIP can have different options block to block.

Now put it to work.

See every fiber, cable, and 5G plan that actually serves your address.

Find my plans