Fiber vs. Cable Internet: What’s the Difference?

Fiber and cable internet are similar in many ways, but there are significant differences that could mean the difference between great and not-so-great internet speeds and connections. The biggest difference is that cable and DSL lines leverage electricity to transmit signals across a copper wire network. Because they are dependent on electricity, there is more potential for interference along the way, leading to degradation of the signal and, basically, poor results for the end-user.

Fiber, on the other hand, uses optical technology and fiber-optic cables, which are much more efficient and faster than any other type of signal. Think about the speed of light, and you’ll be on the right track! Fiber is faster, more reliable, low-latency, and carries greater bandwidth than copper wire can. Plus, since fiber is an end-to-end connection, you are not sharing a signal with other users on the network, so there are no slowdowns or bottlenecks during peak usage hours.