Rural Internet

Rural internet in New Hampshire

1.4% of locations in New Hampshire have no fixed broadband at 25/3 Mbps. The state median rural county sits at 1.6% unserved and 71.8% fiber coverage. Pick your county below for the specific picture.

7 of New Hampshire's 10 counties are classed as rural by the USDA. Across the whole state the FCC records 7,481 locations with no fixed broadband, out of 519,713.

New Hampshire at a glance

Belknap County, NH: 0.6%, 187 of 33,828 locationsCarroll County, NH: 2.4%, 914 of 38,323 locationsCheshire County, NH: 3.8%, 1,167 of 30,980 locationsCoos County, NH: 7.2%, 1,372 of 19,183 locationsGrafton County, NH: 3.6%, 1,508 of 42,427 locationsHillsborough: not publishedMerrimack County, NH: 0.8%, 452 of 55,213 locationsRockingham: not publishedStrafford: not publishedSullivan County, NH: 4.2%, 868 of 20,607 locations

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

  • 0.0% to 0.8%
  • 0.8% to 2.4%
  • 2.4% to 3.6%
  • 3.6% to 3.8%
  • 3.8% to 4.2%
  • 4.2% to 7.2%
  • 7.2% 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 New Hampshire

Ranked by the share of locations with no fixed service at 25/3 Mbps or better.
CountyLocationsUnservedShare unservedFiber share
<a href="/new-hampshire/coos-county-internet/">Coos County</a>19,1831,3727.2%80.1%
<a href="/new-hampshire/sullivan-county-internet/">Sullivan County</a>20,6078684.2%57.4%
<a href="/new-hampshire/cheshire-county-internet/">Cheshire County</a>30,9801,1673.8%86.0%
<a href="/new-hampshire/grafton-county-internet/">Grafton County</a>42,4271,5083.6%63.8%
<a href="/new-hampshire/carroll-county-internet/">Carroll County</a>38,3239142.4%67.1%
<a href="/new-hampshire/merrimack-county-internet/">Merrimack County</a>55,2134520.8%75.3%
<a href="/new-hampshire/belknap-county-internet/">Belknap County</a>33,8281870.6%51.7%

Every rural county in New Hampshire

What people actually measure in New Hampshire

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
Comcast Cable Communications147 Mbps56.3 Mbps to 307 Mbps22.4 Mbps15 ms62,026
Fidium98.1 Mbps22.2 Mbps to 309 Mbps92.7 Mbps20 ms16,252
Breezeline142 Mbps70.3 Mbps to 253 Mbps21.2 Mbps17 ms9,302
Charter Communications115 Mbps46.8 Mbps to 247 Mbps11.0 Mbps38 ms9,022
TDS TELECOM140 Mbps60.8 Mbps to 306 Mbps90.4 Mbps18 ms2,897
Fibercast69.7 Mbps32.2 Mbps to 159 Mbps43.7 Mbps13 ms717
Verizon Business23.5 Mbps6.7 Mbps to 51.7 Mbps3.4 Mbps37 ms701
Granite State Communications89.6 Mbps26.4 Mbps to 153 Mbps42.1 Mbps18 ms697
FirstLight Fiber76.1 Mbps33.5 Mbps to 107 Mbps49.4 Mbps14 ms679
Conexon Connect91.9 Mbps48.0 Mbps to 201 Mbps72.6 Mbps57 ms477
Performive43.0 Mbps13.8 Mbps to 102 Mbps6.9 Mbps33 ms208

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.