Internet Complaints: Georgia Makes 2nd Most

DesignRush

Tuesday, September 10th, 2024

 

  • Georgia places second in the nation for the highest rate of internet complaints with 387 per 100,000 broadband locations

  • Internet complaints in Georgia are 38% above the national average

  • Billing issues dominate, making up 34% of all complaints in the state

A new study finds that Georgia has the second highest rate of internet complaints in the US.

Agency directory DesignRush analyzed FCC data from 2014 to 2024, focusing on internet complaints and broadband-serviced locations (BSLs) to determine which state experiences the most dissatisfaction with its internet service. 

America’s top 10 states for FCC internet complaints per 100,000 BSLs

Rank

State

Total FCC internet complaints 

Broadband serviceable locations

Total internet complaints per 100,000 BSLs

Difference to the national average

1.

West Virginia

6,007

1,023,069

587

+109%

2.

Georgia

19,649

5,074,103

387

+38%

3.

Washington

14,041

3,650,680

385

+37%

4.

Oregon

7,662

2,073,173

370

+32%

5.

Arizona

12,402

3,503,908

354

+26%

6.

Colorado

10,036

2,862,155

351

+25%

7.

Louisiana

8,275

2,410,121

343

+22%

8.

Florida

38,306

11,410,947

336

+20%

9.

California

54,214

16,192,289

335

+19%

10.

Nevada

4,685

1,436,847

326

+16%

 

U.S. Overall

458,133

163,294,571

281

 

West Virginia’s internet causes the most complaints compared to its number of broadband-connected homes and businesses. The FCC received 587 internet complaints per 100,000 BSLs in the Mountain State, more than twice the national average of 281. Since 2014, the most common type of internet complaint has been related to availability. This type makes up 39% of all West Virginian internet complaints and is the second-highest percentage of availability complaints nationwide.

Georgia has America’s second worst internet for complaints, with an average of 387 FCC internet complaints per 100,000 BSLs, 38% above the national average.  Georgia’s most common type of internet complaint was related to billing, at a rate of 34%. Billing complaints are also America’s most common type of internet complaint with the FCC, with 32% or 147,131 billing complaints out of 458,133 overall.

Washington is third in complaint rate, with 385 internet complaints for every 100,000 BSLs, 37% higher than the average. Billing was the most common type of internet complaint for Washingtonians, with 4,602 or 33% of all internet complaints.

Oregon is the fourth worst for the average number of internet complaints, with 370 complaints for every 100,000 BSLs. Billing caused the most internet complaints, comprising 37% of all internet complaints, America’s second-highest percentage of billing complaints.

Arizona is fifth among the worst states for internet complaints, with 354 per 100,000 BSLs, while Colorado is sixth, with 351.

Louisiana, Florida, California, and Nevada complete the top 10 worst for internet complaints per 100,000 BSLs. Louisiana recorded 343 internet complaints per 100,000 BSLs, Florida 336, California 335, and Nevada 326.

North Dakota complains the least about the internet, with only 60 internet complaints per 100,000 BSLs, 79% below the national average of 281. Billing was North Dakota’s most common complaint type, with 29%.

 

Gianluca Ferruggia, General Manager at DesignRush, said:

“The Internet is a necessity for many people’s lives and jobs. And some people can feel lost if they can’t spend their free time online.

“With how frustrating it can be being without internet, or even with a poor-quality connection, we wanted to see which states had had the most complaints due to the quality of their internet connections. We found West Virginia had the worst internet on average by the average number of complaints, and North Dakota had the best.

“We also found that billing complaints were the most common type of complaints for 29 states and America overall, availability second, with 20 states, and Rhode Island the only state with privacy complaints the most common.”