FRL Low-cost Home Internet Programs If you are eligible for the Free and Reduced school meal program (FRL), then you may qualify for heavily discounted unlimited home Internet. These discounted services provide great value over cellular Internet access plans and the convenience of having the access in your home. Cellular access typically only provides a few gigabytes of data per month before additional charges occur, and using free public Wi-Fi requires travel. The following options for families that qualify* can be a huge benefit for the student in your household:
• Internet Essentials. This is Comcast/Xfinity’s low-cost option for families that qualify*. Internet Essentials is $10 per month for a 15Mpbs unlimited connection with in-home Wi-Fi included. To read more, or apply, you can go here: https://www.internetessentials.com/
• PCs for People (via EveryoneOn partnership). PCs for People is offering uncapped nationwide high speed 4G LTE Internet service for as low as $15 per month. Plans are prepaid with no credit check or hidden fees. You can view plans here: https://pcsrefurbished.com/sales/buyInternet.aspx Like Comcast's Internet Essentials, PCs for People is also low cost per month for the connectivity, but does require a mobile “hotspot” purchase ($80). So it would be $21.67/mo for year one, and $15/mo thereafter. Like Comcast, it is unlimited. The main downside appears to be that this solution requires prepayment of at least 3 months, where Comcast is billed monthly. Additionally, since it is a cellular hotspot, the data speeds will not be as fast as the wired Internet solution. The main benefit of the PCs for People solution is portability. You can take the hotspot anywhere.
AT&T Access: Another Low-Cost option is Access from AT&T: https://www.att.com/shop/internet/access/index.html#!/#%2F
* note: We believe all three of these companies are waiving the FRL requirement during the COVID-19 outbreak. Please check with each company to verify if interested in signing up