UPDATE: April 5, 2024
Fido discontinued its home internet service in 2024. After hearing the news, we created a guide explaining what that means for you, including what happens to Fido home internet users and the three best ISPs to replace your Fido home internet.
Fido is a home internet provider in Canada, offering affordable cable plans for residents of Ontario. Although Fido is primarily known for mobility, their internet plans are solid options for budget-minded consumers, with plans starting at /month.
The best Fido home internet plan is the , which offers speeds and unlimited data for /month, making it one of the best cheap internet plans in Canada.
Read on to learn more about Fido home internet, its competitors, and how to find the best internet plan for you.
|
#1
|
Diallog
Cable Plus
$25/mo
|
|
#2
|
TekSavvy
Cable 100 Unlimited
$35.95/mo
|
|
#3
|
Bell
Gigabit Fibe 3.0
$110/mo
|
Fido home internet pros and cons
Fido internet is a good option for residents of Ontario looking for cheap plans for basic connectivity. Still, there are some key areas we think can be improved.
What we love
- Straightforward plans for basic users
- Cheap options for budget-minded households
- Bundling with mobility plans
What could be improved
- No high-speed options
- One-time installation fee
80/100
Fido home internet plans
Fido provides basic cable internet service to Ontario, with prices low enough to make them a contender for one of the best internet service providers in the province. We’re especially impressed with their straightforward plans and the ability to bundle them with mobility.
What we like: Straightforward plans for basic users
Fido only has two internet plans, which are tailored for folks who use their internet for typical streaming and browsing. There’s , with 50Mbps speeds and unlimited data for /month, and , which offers speeds and unlimited data for /month.
Shopping for a new internet service provider can be an overwhelming process. It only becomes more complicated when you navigate the dozens of different plans some providers offer. That’s why we appreciate Fido’s simplified approach. They may only have two plans, but both of them are solid, no-frills options for users looking for basic cable internet service. Fido has you covered after activation, too, providing 24/7 technical support to help you navigate any issues you might encounter along the way.
What we like: Cheap options for budget-minded households
Fido has a number of competitors in Ontario, with Diallog, Virgin Plus, Bell, Altima, oxio, and Netcrawler (just to name a few!) offering high-speed cable and fibre internet to the province. Many of those providers also offer initial monthly payments that align with Fido’s and plans. Upon closer inspection, though, you’ll find that many of those plans (like Altima’s and Netcrawler’s) include steep price hikes within the first six months. Fido’s plans, like nearly every internet provider in Canada, also feature price hikes, though they don’t arrive until 12 months.
What we like: Bundling with mobility plans
Fido is well known for its nationwide mobility plans, which often rank among the best cell phone plans in Canada for their great coverage and affordable monthly payments. Unlike many wireless carriers in Canada, Fido allows you to bundle your phone plan with internet service, allowing you to cut down on your monthly costs.
Fido offers three different bundles, with the most expensive offering the opportunity to pair the the provider’s parent company Rogers’ Ignite Internet 500 plan with Fido’s Talk & Text BYOP plan. (Unfortunately, there's no ability to include a home phone in any of Fido's bundles.)
What we don't like: No high-speed options
Fido plans are great for basic internet users, but households with hardcore gamers or work-from-home professionals might need a plan with faster speeds, There are plenty of options in Ontario, with eight carriers providing plans of 1000Mbps speeds or higher. While we appreciate Fido’s focus on basic internet users, we do wish they had at least one high-speed option available.
What we don't like: One-time installation fee
Installation fees aren’t uncommon in Canada, but we’re still not fans of added costs. Both of Fido’s internet plans charge a one-time $49.99 professional installation fee if a customer is not able to install the internet on their own.
Fido internet vs. competitors
Fido’s plans are great options, but they’re not the only ones available. Let’s take a look at some of Fido’s primary competitors in Ontario to see how they stack up.
| Fido | Diallog | Virgin Plus | Bell | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fibre-optic options | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Max download speed | 1000Mbps | 300Mbps | ||
| Availability | Ontario | Ontario and Quebec | Ontario and Quebec | Manitoba, Ontario, and Quebec |
| View plans | View plans | View plans | View plans |
Fido home internet vs. Diallog
Diallog offers basic and high-speed internet service to residents of Ontario and Quebec. The provider has far more options than Fido, including some bare-bones plans, like the DSL Plus, which offers 25Mbps and unlimited data for $18.75/month.
Diallog also offers faster speeds for less money than Fido. The Cable Ultimate plan has 120Mbps speeds and unlimited data for $35/month, while the Cable Extreme plan provides 500Mbps speeds and unlimited data for $37.50/month. The fine print here is important, though. Diallog’s monthly prices double after just three months. When you factor that in with nearly $100 in activation costs, Fido actually turns out to be the cheaper option.
- Straightforward plans for basic users
- Cheap options for budget-minded households
- Bundling with mobility plans
- No high-speed options
- One-time installation fee
- Cheap internet plans for basic users
- High-speed internet for power users
- 24/7 live technical support
- Plans limited to Ontario and Quebec
- Price hikes after three months
Fido home internet vs. Virgin Plus
Like Fido, Virgin Plus (formerly Virgin Mobile) offers mobile plans alongside its internet options. Its Unlimited Internet 50 plan is nearly identical to Fido’s plan, offering 50Mbps speeds and unlimited data for $45/month. Likewise, the Unlimited Internet 100 plan mirrors the , with 100Mbps speeds and unlimited data for $50/month. The key difference is that Virgin Plus’ plans are fibre while Fido’s are cable.
Virgin Plus also offers more options, including the enticing Unlimited Internet 300 plan, which offers 300Mbps speeds and unlimited data for just $50/month. That plan alone is enough to put Virgin Plus among the best internet providers in Toronto. The clear pick here is Virgin Plus.
- Straightforward plans for basic users
- Cheap options for budget-minded households
- Bundling with mobility plans
- No high-speed options
- One-time installation fee
- Fibre internet plans for every type of user
- Affordable monthly payments
- Additional fees for professional installation
- Speeds and prices vary by location
Fido home internet vs. Bell
Bell is one of the best internet providers in Canada, with lightning-fast fibre internet plans like the , which is the fastest internet plan in Canada, with blistering speeds and unlimited data for /month. If you’re interested in Fido, though, we’re guessing is faster than you need. Bell has plans closer to Fido’s, like the Fibe 50, which offers 50Mbps speeds and unlimited data for $60/month, or the Fibe 150, which offers 150Mbps speeds and unlimited data for $60/month.
If you’re looking for the fastest internet in Ontario, Bell is the answer. If you’re looking for more basic services, though, Fido is cheaper and, in our estimation, superior.
- Straightforward plans for basic users
- Cheap options for budget-minded households
- Bundling with mobility plans
- No high-speed options
- One-time installation fee
- High-speed fibre internet
- Wide ange of plans
- Expensive monthly payments
- Best plans are faster than average users need
Recap: Is Fido home internet right for you?
Fido home internet is a solid choice for basic internet users in Ontario, with plans that are straightforward and affordable. We like their simple offerings and we especially like the ability to pair them with Fido mobility plans, which are among the best in the country.
If you’re looking for fast internet, though, there are better options in Ontario. Virgin Plus, in particular, offers faster fibre plans for just a few more dollars a month. If you want to continue shopping around for your next internet plan, be sure to use our search engine to compare plans available in your area.
Methodology
We used data from proprietary research and user feedback to evaluate Fido home internet according to price, plan features, perks, coverage, and speeds. We compared Fido to the other internet providers in Canada, focusing in particular on those available in Ontario.
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