Fiber internet providers grew their footprints at a rate of 8.4% in the last half of 2025, up from a rate of 6.9% compared to the previous reporting period. The growth meant that an additional 5.2 million addresses now have access to fiber internet services, according to a new analysis of federal data by CostQuest Associates.
It also meant at least 182 counties have fiber internet coverage to more than 99% of broadband serviceable locations (BSLs).
Nearly three million more homes and businesses got access to licensed fixed wireless in that period, but the growth in fixed wireless slowed compared to the first half of the year. That growth occurred in 47 states and territories.
Cable internet access remained relatively stable, and DSL access was essentially flat.
In keeping with growth in fiber and fixed wireless, more locations overall qualified as “served” in the dataset as well, according to the analysis. Here’s a breakdown by status:
First half of 2025 (V6):
- Locations served: 109 million
- Locations underserved: 2.99 million
- Locations unserved: 3.75 million
Second half of 2025 (V7):
- Locations served: 10.2 million
- Locations underserved: 2.76 million
- Locations unserved: 3.44 million
The number of unserved locations decreased by 8.4%, while the number of underserved locations decreased by 7.8%. However, 12.3% of counties in the study reported an increase in unserved locations.
That figure included only counties that did not have an increase in the total number of serviceable addresses, but analysts didn’t address potential causes of the apparent loss of internet access.
A location is considered served when it can receive internet service with download speeds of at least 100Mbps and upload speeds of at least 20Mbps. It is considered underserved when it has internet access with download speeds of at least 25Mbps and upload speeds of at least 3 Mbps. Unserved locations can’t meet even that speed threshold.
The report surveyed internet access at 116.4 million locations, using data provided to the Federal Communications Commission by more than 2,000 internet service providers.
The following shows locations served by tech type:
- Cable internet: 94.8 million
- DSL internet: 3.3 million
- Fiber internet: 62.6 million
- Licensed fixed wireless internet: 51.4 million
- Unlicensed fixed wireless internet: 15.5 million
- Satellite internet: 115.5 million
The analysis also considered how federal funding has shaped broadband deployments for fiber and other technologies. As funds from the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program are dispersed to all 600 awarded companies, the analysts expect the count of unserved locations to decrease.
According to a recent report from the Advanced Communications Law and Policy Institute at the New York Law School, more than 1.1 million locations will still be unserved even after BEAD is fully deployed.
CostQuest Associates manages the dataset used by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to map broadband availability and distribute funding for the BEAD program.
The recent analysis includes useful maps and statistical breakdowns on a county-by-county level, including information on fiber, fixed wireless, satellite, and other technologies.
