What’s the Best Way to Get High-Speed Internet in Rural Areas?
High-speed internet in rural areas shouldn’t be the exception. Technology is moving fast, and your rural internet provider should be keeping up. Slow speeds, unreliable connections, and limited provider options have been common for years, but new options are making it possible to ditch slow internet connections for good. With fiber, rural internet options are finally fast enough to handle today’s connected homes. And Alliance Communications is leading the way in rural and remote areas.
Why High-Speed Internet Is Still a Challenge in Rural Areas
Despite strides in availability, many rural areas still battle slow connections for several reasons:
Limited Infrastructure
Many rural areas lack the physical infrastructure for true broadband internet service. There are fewer local providers, longer distances to cover, and higher costs to build the infrastructure for high-speed internet access.
Inconsistent Speeds and Reliability
Most rural internet options suffer from excessive buffering, dropped connections, and slow upload speeds. Even factors like weather can have detrimental effects on service quality. With congestion from multiple rural residents fighting over the same bandwidth, combined with outdated technology, there’s little guarantee of interruption-free internet service, especially for online gaming or using multiple devices.
Common Internet Options in Rural Areas
Satellite Internet
Satellite internet works by positioning a receiver (satellite dish) on the home and directing it toward a satellite to pick up a wireless signal. Once considered one of the best internet options available to rural America, satellite is now widely seen as an outdated option for rural internet access due to latency, data caps, and weather interference issues.
Fixed Wireless Internet
Fixed wireless internet service uses towers for cellular networks to transmit a signal to a fixed position, like a home or other building. This line-of-sight option can provide high-speed internet in rural areas, up to 1,000 Mbps, but only in optimal conditions. Weather, trees, and terrain can all affect signal quality, often causing signal drops and loss of connection when conditions change.
DSL Internet
DSL (digital subscriber line) internet uses existing phone service lines to provide internet services through an always-on signal without additional infrastructure requirements. While speeds up to 500 Mbps may be available in some areas, the typical bandwidth tops out at 100 Mbps, making it suitable for light use only.
Fiber Internet
Fiber optic internet service is just now reaching many rural areas, and it’s changing how families stay connected beyond urban areas. With speeds ranging from 300 Mbps all the way to gigabit internet and beyond, fiber is considered one of the best rural internet options available today. It eliminates the latency of satellite internet, bypasses line-of-sight requirements, and reaches ten times the speeds of typical DSL internet services.
Why Fiber Is the Best Way to Get High-Speed Internet
Fiber internet service allows rural communities to stay connected at speeds that meet modern technology demands. Instead of fighting for bandwidth within your home, everyone can enjoy reliable internet service without interruption.
Speed That Keeps Up With Your Life
From streaming to remote work and gaming to smart home connectivity, fiber makes it possible. Remote areas used to be limited to light browsing with services like DSL, but fiber makes high-speed broadband internet a reality. Rural high-speed internet used to mean 100 Mbps. Today, fiber’s gigabit speed has become one of the fastest rural internet options available.
A Connection You Can Count On
Satellite internet and fixed wireless internet options kept remote locations dependent on the weather for internet access. Not with fiber. A dedicated fiber connection provides consistently faster speeds, low to no downtime, and resistance to weather or congestion issues. A wired connection outperforms wireless and satellite internet options with high speeds and low latency, often competing with services in urban areas.
Equal Upload and Download Speeds
Most internet plans focus on download speeds instead of upload speeds, making video calls, uploads, and cloud work much less efficiently. Fiber provides symmetrical download and upload speeds for interruption-free remote work needs, as well as clearer video calls for both work and family.
What to Look for in a Rural Internet Provider
- Consistent speeds during peak hours
- No restrictive data caps
- Local customer support
- Scalable plans for homes and businesses
- Proven reliability in rural environments
Instead of watching your favorite show buffer endlessly at night, or worrying about whether you’ll hit your data limit before your work day ends, fiber provides high speeds, unlimited data plans, and service that doesn’t disappear with bad weather.
No more outages. No more data caps. No more frustrations.
Just reliable internet options for rural customers who want good coverage and high speeds.
High-Speed Internet Built for Rural Communities
Alliance Communications serves rural communities throughout southeastern South Dakota, Northwestern Iowa, and Southwestern Minnesota with high-speed internet plans that deliver internet speeds far beyond other options. We believe that the internet in rural areas shouldn’t be unreliable or slow just because it’s outside of city limits.
Fiber Internet Designed for Rural Areas
We’re focused on rural expansion, serving small communities like Alcester, Parker, Edgerton, and Larchwood. We invest in infrastructure in dozens of towns where high-speed broadband hasn’t been available in the past, so everyone can experience faster speeds and more reliable connections. We’re actively expanding into new communities every year, providing professional installation services and speeds that most cities don’t even have available.
Local Support and Community Focus
We’re a cooperative company committed to a local presence in every community we serve. Our customers know us for our responsive support and understanding of needs in underserved areas. The people who serve the communities live and work there as well. We help our neighbors with easy setup, fast customer service, and features that make it easier to work, play, and relax.
Check Availability and Take the Next Step
If you’re tired of spotty internet service, slow speeds, and internet plans that underdeliver, it’s time to think fast. Contact Alliance today to find out what fiber can do for your home and check availability in your area.
With Alliance, you'll enjoy:
Frequently Asked Questions
Fiber internet speeds are much faster than other options like fixed wireless, satellite internet, and DSL, offering up to 1,000 Mbps symmetrical download and upload speeds or more.
Yes! Alliance services 30+ communities in South Dakota, Iowa, and Minnesota, and we are expanding to more communities every year. Check availability for your community.
Moving from line-of-sight and layered infrastructure options like fixed wireless, satellite, and DSL to dedicated fiber internet could change your speeds dramatically, often tripling your current bandwidth.
Consider at least 600 Mbps for serious gaming, working from home, and multiple devices running at the same time. For the busy home, gigabit service is your best option to keep everyone running smoothly.