If the broken supply chain and the resulting empty shelves of the past year and a half have taught Americans anything, it should be this: not to take certain things perceived as basics for granted. That goes for internet access, too.
Digital security company Surfshark has just released its third Digital Quality of Life Index—and though the United States has pulled itself up from 22nd place last year, it still has work to do on the equity and availability of internet access.
Americans have to work one hour and 28 minutes per month just to afford the cheapest broadband on offer. This is 36 minutes more compared to 2020 and potentially devastating for those who now have to work from home because of the pandemic. Mobile internet prices did improve, though: Last year, it took people 6 minutes of work per month to afford 1GB, but this year, it took 3 minutes.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic began (and the number of those working at home skyrocketed), broadband speed in the US has been boosted by 44%. It’s now at 166.378Mbps. Another improvement the pandemic brought about was e-government: Nationwide absentee ballots and statewide vaccination programs have likely contributed to a boost from third to first place in that category.
More good news: The internet infrastructure in the US is excellent. It ranks fifth in the world, making it about 40% better than the global average.
To determine rankings, the study took into account:
- Internet affordability: average number of hours worked to cover cheapest broadband internet
- Internet quality: mobile and broadband speed and stability
- Electronic infrastructure: number of people using the internet
- Electronic security: cybersecurity and data-protection laws
- Electronic government: available e-government services and AI readiness
Surfshark’s report is extensive and covers 110 countries, or 90% of the global population, and has detailed data that’s well worth diving into.
