Sonic Internet Logo
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4.9

Overall Score

Author: Kalicia Bateman

LAST UPDATED: March 21st, 2022

Based in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, Sonic Internet offers download speeds up to 20 Mbps, no data caps, and a one-year contract.

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As an internet provider, Sonic Internet's mission is simple: to provide the best internet speed and great customer service for the most affordable price. The company strives to accomplish its mission by continually innovating and working to change the face of the broadband service industry.

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The Good

  • Brand New Fiber-Optic Lines
  • No Data Limits

Brand New Fiber-Optic Lines

Sonic Internet's service lines are brand new in every area where the company operates. This means that the lines are using the most current fiber optic technology, which keeps the network constantly running at full speed. Some players in the internet service provider industry will vary in speed depending on the time of day, so users may not be getting the actual speed that they are paying for each month. However, Sonic Internet customers do not have to worry about this issue. Fiber internet service is considered the most reliable connection.

No Data Limits

Some ISP companies set limits on how much data their customers can use each month. Sonic Internet does not impose any data caps on its customers' usage. Each Sonic customer can use as much data as desired each month while still enjoying quick speeds.

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The Bad

  • 12-Month Contract
  • Limited Service Area
  • Slow Speeds

12-Month Contract

While several other internet providers do not require any contracts, Sonic Internet requires its customers to sign into a minimum 12-month agreement in order to utilize the company's services. If the customer needs to cancel the internet connection for any reason before the end of the contract, they will be required to pay an early termination fee.

Limited Service Area

Sonic Internet's service area is incredibly limited; the company only operates in a few cities in California. Not only does this restrict the number of consumers who have access to Sonic Internet's services, but it also makes it difficult for existing Sonic customers who move outside of the company's service area because they have to deal with the hassle of switching providers and cancelling their contract.

Slow Speeds

Sonic Internet's top download speed is 20 Mbps, which is incredibly slow in the industry. Many other companies offer more than 20 Mbps as their bottom speed and go as fast as 1 Gbps.

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The Bottom Line

Sonic offers its customers fiber internet and no data limits. However, the company's service area is limited to a few cities in California, the speeds are very slow, and its customers are required to sign into a 12-month contract. We do not recommend working with Sonic Internet at this time.

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Star Rating

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3.3

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21 Reviews

Review Breakdown

5 grade

48%

4 grade

0%

3 grade

10%

2 grade

19%

1 grade

24%

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Mike Tamir Oakland, CA

Sonic internet is just terrible. I went with them thinking that as a younger company they would be better than ATT for providing internet. Not only was this wrong, it seems like they have red tape every time I called. For price things were also terrible. They advertise as costing $39/month for "phone and internet service" for their gigabit plan, but when you get the bill you end up paying $100/month. How does this happen? They force you to rent a modem and a VOIP phone conversion device per month even if you don't use the phone or want to pay only once for the modem device, and then after you sign up they jack up the rate after you have signed no so that it tops off at nearly 100$. I am so frustrated I will be using one of the internet giants (ATT verizon etc) because (remarkably) it might mean better customer support.

5 years ago

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Even Sax Alameda, CA

Sonic is basically just AT&T provided through their customer service for more money. You would think that they provide some value add that makes it worth using them instead of AT&T like... customer service, but you would be wrong. Astonishingly, Sonic is able to provide even a lower level of customer service than AT&T, their customer support is poorly trained and intolerably rigid. They force you to pay for and maintain antiquated voip phone equipment and charge you if you do not. They also charge you to rent the equipment. I am truly surprised they are still in business with such a terrible model.

5 years ago Edited September 14, 2021

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Christine Pinole, CA

For me, Sonic was absolutely horrible and I advise everyone to stay away from this company. Sales and advertising: Not blatant lies, but definitely half-truths. They advertise in big, bold letters $40/month. They cheapest price they could offer me was $70/month. After one year, that went up to $80/month. Product/Service: Absolute fail. I even feel like they're a complete scam. They promised download speeds of up to 75 Mbps. I got less than 1 Mbps. That's completely appalling. Guarantee/Warranty: My modem failed within a couple of months. They replaced it for free, but it was a hassle. And then, my phone service keep going out. I kept having to unplug everything and then plug it all back in again. Customer Service: You'll get a English-speaking human but they're rude and they'll talk over you. Cancellation of Service: Again, scammy practices. They claim that it takes 30 days to process cancellations. So, most people call when they're ready to terminate, right? Well, you'll have to pay for service for an extra 30 days from the date that you call to terminate. So you'll be stuck paying for an extra month of service which you neither need nor want. Shady, shady, shady. There are positive reviews all over the internet for this company. Please, please keep in mind that it's so easy for a company to post fake reviews.

7 years ago

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A Perer Los Angeles, CA

Customer for 3 years as it wasn't quite worth switching but they do everything to take your money. They won't let you return any equipment you don't use like the internet phone device in hopes you'll lose so they can charge you, and they don't prorate bills. They're trying charging me for 30 days of service despite me canceling and using only one day of service because of an overlap of one day. No proration at all. Not good people. Looking to rip you off however they can get away with it.

5 years ago

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Marc Yoon San Francisco, CA

Literally the worst wifi I've ever had the misfortune of wasting my money on. I did not think it was physically possible for wifi to be this slow and inconsistent, but Sonic surprisede every day. I would not wish this wifi on my worst enemies.

4 years ago Edited November 18, 2021