What’s the Deal With Bundling Your Home Internet Service?

Your internet service provider likely offers other home services besides internet. It may do so in conveniently packaged bundles with internet and TV or internet and mobile service being the most popular. These bundles are a convenient way to sign up and pay for multiple services -- they may even come with discounts or other incentives for bundling.

While bundling has its advantages, it shouldn’t be your default choice -- sometimes it’s more practical or cost-effective to choose individual services from separate providers.

And when it comes to bundling your home internet, it's important to understand any potential drawbacks. Read on to find out if it is the right choice for you.

When should you bundle your home internet?

Depending on the provider, bundling may present several benefits. Convenience and savings are the biggest ones, in my opinion, but any added bonus that comes with combining services is a win.

There are savings

Bundling doesn’t present quite the same savings as it used to when internet and cable TV bundles were more popular. In the past, Cox ran internet and TV bundle specials with up to 60% savings for the first year, for example. Now, few providers offer a discount for bundling with TV. Instead, you’ll find the most savings in internet and cellphone bundles.

Top ISPs that offer bundle savings include:

• Astound Broadband: Starting at $20 a month, customers can get speeds of 300Mbps plus an unlimited mobile line at no extra cost for a year. However, watch out for price increases in year two.
• AT&T Fiber and AT&T Internet Air: 20% off the monthly internet rate when you bundle with an AT&T mobile plan.
• Frontier Fiber: $10 off the monthly subscription cost of YouTube TV for one year.
• Spectrum: $20 off the monthly internet rate when you bundle with two mobile plans.
• T-Mobile Home Internet: You can save $15 on the monthly internet rate when you bundle with a qualifying T-Mobile voice plan.
• Verizon Fios and Verizon 5G Home Internet: When you bundle with a Verizon mobile plan, you can save $25 on the monthly rate of Fios internet service or $25 to $35 on Verizon 5G Home Internet.
• Xfinity: $25 monthly discount in the first year when bundling Xfinity Internet 400 and Mobile Unlimited. It's worth noting this service is only available in select areas.

Bundling unlocks more special offers

Choosing a bundle may qualify you for additional special offers and the built-in savings we just discussed. Astound, for example, throws in a free mobile line for one year when you bundle it with internet service. Over at Spectrum, you can receive a $20 monthly discount when bundling the 500Mbps plan with TV or two mobile lines -- and it comes with free equipment rental.

Promotional offers change frequently, typically more so than standard bundle discounts. Check out our Best Internet Deals for March 2025 page for a rundown of the latest internet offers.

Combining services is convenient

Even if there aren’t any savings or special offers, bundling is convenient. Shopping for services, signing up and then paying for them all via the same provider saves time and effort.

That means one online transaction or call to customer service to sign up and (hopefully) one installation appointment to set up your internet, TV, home phone, etc. -- which can save you on installation costs. My personal favorite plus is that you get one combined bill each month.

Everything works better together

I once had cable TV and a landline phone from Spectrum. Caller ID would pop up on the TV screen when the phone rang. I thought it was the coolest thing.

Few of us have a landline phone anymore, but providers make their multiple services work together in other ways. Perhaps the best example is Optimum, whose Altice One device is your modem, router and TV box, all in one. It’s a nifty space- and cost-saving piece of equipment, available only when you bundle internet and TV.

Other providers, including Cox, Spectrum and Xfinity, may offer exclusive streaming devices designed to work with their respective internet services. To get the streaming device, you’ll have to also sign up for internet.

There are no other options

Internet providers operate in specific areas. Many addresses have two or more broadband options, but every available ISP may not offer all the services you want. 

For example, if you want internet and TV and your address has access to cable internet from Sparklight, 5G home internet from T-Mobile and DSL internet from CenturyLink, Sparklight will be the best choice for internet and is the only ISP to also offer TV service. Or, if you’re interested in a cheap internet and mobile bundle, T-Mobile Home Internet will be your only available option, as Sparklight and CenturyLink don't currently offer them.

Additionally, some ISPs require you to bundle to be eligible for certain services. It’s possible -- Mediacom and Optimum are good examples -- that TV service isn’t even an option until you select an internet plan. So, if you want TV service from Mediacom, Optimum or another provider with similar requirements, you’re going to have to bundle with internet.

When should you pass on bundling?

There are certainly situations where not bundling is more practical or cost-effective. Here are a few things to consider before you bundle.

The bundle has more, or less, than you need

Cable TV has a lot of “filler” channels. Perhaps that internet and TV bundle you’re looking at, which runs well over $200 a month, has more channels than you need, not to mention the added equipment, broadcast and regional sports fees. In that case, it may be better to get internet from your cable provider and TV service elsewhere.

There are no savings

Is that bundle, even with a discount, really saving you money each month? What about down the road, when the introductory rate expires and full pricing goes into effect? Are you saving money long term or will you fall into a price trap? It’s possible that signing up for internet with one provider and TV or mobile service with another will be cheaper or a better fit for your needs at around the same price as a similar bundle.

Suppose you really want the new iPhone 16 Pro, but it’s unavailable with your internet provider’s mobile bundle. You could purchase the phone separately, for around $1,000, then use it for your internet and mobile bundle. It’s likely that you can get it much cheaper by choosing a different mobile provider offering the phone at a discounted price when you sign up for service.

When comparing bundled versus standalone internet services, be sure to evaluate all your options to find the best solution for your needs at the lowest price. Sometimes that’s a bundle; sometimes it’s not.

You’re doubling up on low customer satisfaction

How does that internet provider you’re considering stack up when it comes to customer satisfaction? If it’s low, chances are customer satisfaction on other services, especially TV, are low as well.

The most recent internet and TV customer satisfaction scores from the American Customer Satisfaction Index place Optimum towards the bottom of both categories, with an internet score of 63 out of 100 (66 for fiber service) and a score of 62 for TV service. Other providers, such as Mediacom, Spectrum and Xfinity also fall at or below the ACSI’s industry average for both internet and TV services.

Quality of service, customer service and billing issues are common pain points when it comes to low customer satisfaction. Trusting multiple home services to a provider with low customer satisfaction may be increasing your risk of being unsatisfied as a customer.

To bundle or not to bundle?

There are a few reasons why you might want to bundle your internet with other services. It’s possible bundling will result in monthly savings and special signup bonus offers. If nothing else, bundling is certainly convenient.

There are occasions when it makes more sense to sign up for services separately. If the bundle comes with way more, or less, than what you’re looking for, or if it’s more expensive than purchasing services separately, I’d recommend skipping the bundle.

When signing up for internet and other services, it’s important to fully understand and compare all your available options. You may find that the best combination of services is indeed a bundle, but don’t expect that to always be the case. 

For more advice on finding the best internet providers and plans for your home, be sure to check out the CNET internet hub page.

Bundling Your Home Internet FAQs