Rural Internet

Rural internet in Alaska

18.4% of locations in Alaska have no fixed broadband at 25/3 Mbps. The state median rural county sits at 23.6% unserved and 16.7% fiber coverage. Pick your county below for the specific picture.

27 of Alaska's 30 counties are classed as rural by the USDA. Across the whole state the FCC records 51,902 locations with no fixed broadband, out of 281,534.

Alaska at a glance

Aleutians East Borough, AK: 22%, 253 of 1,162 locationsAleutians West Census Area, AK: 60%, 825 of 1,378 locationsAnchorage: not publishedBethel Census Area, AK: 64%, 4,051 of 6,379 locationsBristol Bay Borough, AK: 98%, 1,060 of 1,079 locationsDenali Borough, AK: 48%, 906 of 1,900 locationsDillingham Census Area, AK: 100%, 2,515 of 2,515 locationsFairbanks North Star: not publishedHaines Borough, AK: 23%, 364 of 1,568 locationsHoonah-Angoon Census Area, AK: 24%, 462 of 1,925 locationsJuneau City and Borough, AK: 2.7%, 271 of 9,884 locationsKenai Peninsula Borough, AK: 5.9%, 2,053 of 34,899 locationsKetchikan Gateway Borough, AK: 1.9%, 93 of 4,939 locationsKodiak Island Borough, AK: 26%, 1,310 of 4,980 locationsKusilvak Census Area, AK: 100%, 2,911 of 2,911 locationsLake and Peninsula Borough, AK: 78%, 1,893 of 2,418 locationsMatanuska-Susitna: not publishedNome Census Area, AK: 66%, 2,804 of 4,232 locationsNorth Slope Borough, AK: 15%, 432 of 2,792 locationsNorthwest Arctic Borough, AK: 58%, 1,566 of 2,694 locationsPetersburg Borough, AK: 11%, 185 of 1,761 locationsPrince of Wales-Hyder Census Area, AK: 45%, 1,956 of 4,315 locationsSitka City and Borough, AK: 5.2%, 167 of 3,212 locationsSkagway Municipality, AK: 4.7%, 33 of 709 locationsSoutheast Fairbanks Census Area, AK: 62%, 3,408 of 5,474 locationsWrangell City and Borough, AK: 9.0%, 117 of 1,305 locationsYakutat City and Borough, AK: 100%, 417 of 417 locationsYukon-Koyukuk Census Area, AK: 96%, 5,948 of 6,181 locations

Share of addresses with no fixed broadband at 25/3 Mbps

  • 0.0% to 5.2%
  • 5.2% to 15%
  • 15% to 24%
  • 24% to 58%
  • 58% to 64%
  • 64% to 98%
  • 98% and above
  • not published

Darker means a larger share of addresses with no fixed broadband. Select any county to open it.

The ten hardest-served rural counties in Alaska

Ranked by the share of locations with no fixed service at 25/3 Mbps or better.
CountyLocationsUnservedShare unservedFiber share
<a href="/alaska/dillingham-census-area-internet/">Dillingham Census Area</a>2,5152,515100.0%0.0%
<a href="/alaska/kusilvak-census-area-internet/">Kusilvak Census Area</a>2,9112,911100.0%0.0%
<a href="/alaska/yakutat-city-and-borough-internet/">Yakutat City and Borough</a>417417100.0%0.0%
<a href="/alaska/bristol-bay-borough-internet/">Bristol Bay Borough</a>1,0791,06098.2%0.0%
<a href="/alaska/yukon-koyukuk-census-area-internet/">Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area</a>6,1815,94896.2%0.0%
<a href="/alaska/lake-and-peninsula-borough-internet/">Lake and Peninsula Borough</a>2,4181,89378.3%21.7%
<a href="/alaska/nome-census-area-internet/">Nome Census Area</a>4,2322,80466.3%0.0%
<a href="/alaska/bethel-census-area-internet/">Bethel Census Area</a>6,3794,05163.5%4.9%
<a href="/alaska/southeast-fairbanks-census-area-internet/">Southeast Fairbanks Census Area</a>5,4743,40862.3%18.0%
<a href="/alaska/aleutians-west-census-area-internet/">Aleutians West Census Area</a>1,37882559.9%40.1%

Every rural county in Alaska

What people actually measure in Alaska

Median of real speed tests run on each network during 2024, from M-Lab. This is measured performance, not an advertised plan speed, and not a customer review. The middle-half column shows how consistent a network is: a wide spread means your experience depends heavily on where and when.
NetworkMedian downloadMiddle half of testsMedian uploadLatencyTests
GENERAL COMMUNICATION94.4 Mbps17.7 Mbps to 272 Mbps15.3 Mbps43 ms22,957
Alaska Communications Systems Group15.3 Mbps6.4 Mbps to 36.8 Mbps2.9 Mbps54 ms5,126
Matanuska Telecom Association29.1 Mbps13.1 Mbps to 63.6 Mbps7.8 Mbps44 ms4,207
SPITwSPOTS23.0 Mbps11.3 Mbps to 53.2 Mbps10.6 Mbps51 ms1,010
KPU Telecommunications71.4 Mbps13.3 Mbps to 225 Mbps75.9 Mbps30 ms505
Alaska Power & Telephone25.7 Mbps10.8 Mbps to 72.0 Mbps7.3 Mbps37 ms282
AT&T Enterprises4.7 Mbps1.3 Mbps to 45.3 Mbps4.4 Mbps64 ms242
Performive48.4 Mbps13.5 Mbps to 79.7 Mbps4.2 Mbps76 ms223

Latency is the number that decides whether video calls and gaming feel right, and it is where satellite differs most from everything else. Measured data is statewide: below county level there are usually too few tests to report an honest number.

Disclosure: some links on this page are affiliate links. If you sign up for a service or buy equipment through one, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. It never changes which options we list or the order we rank them in, and we do not accept payment for a better placement.

Options that work statewide

Satellite

Starlink

Low-earth-orbit satellite. Latency is low enough for video calls and most gaming, unlike older satellite services.

Best for
Anywhere with a clear view of the sky and no wired option
Watch out
Hardware costs money up front, and heavy tree cover or a north-facing obstruction will cost you throughput

See Starlink

5G home internet

T-Mobile Home Internet

Home internet over T-Mobile’s cellular network. A gateway box you plug in yourself; no truck roll, no dish.

Best for
Rural addresses that still get a usable T-Mobile signal, often near a highway or a town
Watch out
Availability is decided address by address, not by town. Speed varies with how busy the local tower is.

See T-Mobile Home Internet

5G home internet

Verizon Home Internet

The same idea on Verizon’s network, offered as 5G Home or LTE Home depending on what reaches your address.

Best for
Addresses with Verizon coverage where T-Mobile is weak
Watch out
LTE Home and 5G Home behave very differently. Confirm which one your address actually qualifies for.

See Verizon Home Internet

Fixed wireless

A local fixed-wireless provider

A regional operator beaming service from a tower or ridge to an antenna on your roof. In much of rural America this is the fastest thing available.

Best for
Counties where the FCC data shows large licensed fixed-wireless coverage, which this page tells you
Watch out
Needs line of sight. Quality varies enormously between operators; ask neighbours, not the sales page.

Sources

Page last updated 2026-09-01. The date moves when the underlying data moves, not when the site is rebuilt.