Most people turn to public WiFi when they want to connect to the Internet for free. Unfortunately, these hotspots are often slow and don’t let them do much. If you want to avoid such a situation, keep reading. This article will show cities, stores, and areas where you can find the best public WiFi. Moreover, you’ll read tips to make your connection secure.
Finding a public WiFi network that fits your needs is straightforward. So, the next time you’re out and need free connectivity, use this guide to find one.
Which Cities Provide the Best Free Public WiFi
Whether planning your next move or a family trip, you might want to look into your destination’s public WiFi. Some cities offer faster speeds than others, and staying in the loop is better than finding a reliable WiFi connection.
If you’re heading to the following cities, you’ll be in the safe zone to enjoy the best free public WiFi.
- New York City: If you’re visiting the Big Apple, finding places with free WiFi is extremely easy. Its government has created a large network covering many parks, tourist spots, and subway stations. Then there are the individual businesses such as restaurants and coffee shops where you can eat while browsing.
- Seattle, Washington: With an average speed of 111 Mbps and 164 free WiFi hotspots, Seattle is a great destination.
- Dallas, Texas: Dallas boasts hundreds of free hotspots. Plus, the average Internet speed there is 117.1 Mbps. However, you’ll have to search maps for authentic hotspots to get this speed.
- Austin, Texas: The speed usually reaches 104.3 Mbps in this city. Here, you can also find many public places with free hotspots.
Top 3 Businesses With the Fastest Public WiFi
Even if you’re not traveling to new cities, there’s a lot of opportunity around you. Almost all cities have chain stores and businesses offering free WiFi to attract more customers. Instead of typing on Google “Places to use internet near me,” look for these venues, and you’ll be set.
While internet quality varies based on the Internet service provider, the businesses we listed offer the fastest public WiFi. However, similar companies will likely provide solid WiFi if these are not in your area. You’ll need to discover the right ones, though.
1. Coffee Shops That Give You More Than Just a Caffeine Fix
Many coffee shop chains offer free WiFi today, so they’ve become popular spots to work, socialize, or simply relax.
Your first choice for coffee shops with the best public WiFi should be Joe & the Juice. With Internet speeds that touch 42 Mbps, it’s ideal for everything from simply browsing to streaming ultra HD videos.
Dunkin Donuts comes at a close second, offering a download speed of 40.4 Mbps to its free WiFi users. Plus, it’s perfect for uploading large files.
Now, the 26.1 Mbps of Starbucks comes nowhere near that of Dunkin. But it holds the third place for coffee shops.
Moreover, you can enjoy 21.1 Mbps speeds at Krispy Kreme. However, you might not want to access the cloud here unless you’re okay with excessive loading times.
Lastly, Peet’s Coffee has a download speed of 20.9 Mbps. That might not be much, but at least you can browse emails and perform small tasks.
2. Restaurant Chains With the Fastest Connectivity
After coffee shops, restaurant chains are the most popular places to find free guest WiFi.
Whether it’s about their delicious fries or fast WiFi, McDonald’s never fails to impress. With 24.2 Mbps download and 6.1 Mbps upload speeds, you can do much more than just reading emails.
With 23.2 Mbps, Panera Bread isn’t too far from McDonald’s and provides an unmatched working atmosphere. That makes it a favorite among remote workers. But when it comes to filling and delicious meat with free WiFi, Arby’s might be a better option. Its 13.4 Mbps might not be a lot, but it’s enough to keep in touch with friends and family.
If none of this is in your area, check other fast food and casual restaurants with WiFi. These businesses know that offering WiFi brings clients. Therefore, you are almost sure to get free WiFi somewhere near you.
3. Retail Stores With Super-Fast Internet
Public WiFi in retail stores is impressively fast, but very few people take advantage of it. Maybe you’re out shopping for someone else and need to send them pictures so they can decide. Or you need to compare the prices with the store’s competitors.
Regardless of the task you need internet for, in-store WiFi in these places will surprise you.
Starting with the Apple Store, you can enjoy 59.4 Mbps download speed and 41.8 Mbps upload speed! After all, where else can you expect to find the fastest public WiFi than in the most elite technology store?
Coming at a close second with 55.7 Mbps is the Microsoft Store, which shouldn’t come as a surprise either.
But you won’t visit these stores unless you’re ready to make a huge investment. So, some everyday options include Walmart and Target.
Head to Barnes & Noble for a relaxed environment, free WiFi, and a nice cafe.
How To Find the Best Public WiFi Near You
While the mentioned companies offer the best public WiFi, they might not be close to your location. What’s the use of free WiFi when you have to travel long distances for it?
In such cases, you can make use of WiFi finder apps. These apps usually work on crowdfunding. People regularly add new public WiFi hotspots and review them.
All you have to do is download one of these apps and search for hotspots in your area. One such app is WiFi Map, which has over 150 million hotspots worldwide. You don’t even need the Internet to view these maps, but some features are only available with a paid plan.
Then there’s Instabridge, which lists almost 10 billion public hotspots available. Apart from public WiFi, you can also see details of other users, provided they keep their details public. WiFi Space, WiFi Finder, and WeFi are some other great options.
Secure Your Connection: Best VPN for Public WiFi
While navigating the internet for free is amazing, let’s not forget that public WiFi poses risks. But its convenience wins over those threats for many people. If you also want to do that, try using a VPN.
It will create a separate, secure tunnel for you to access the public Wi-Fi network, keeping you “hidden” from trespassers.
Among the most popular names for the best VPN for public WiFi is Mullvad. Here, you don’t have to provide any incriminating information. That makes the VPN experience completely safe.
Secondly, with 256-bit encryption and an automatic kill switch, ExpressVPN keeps you safer than most. Plus, its unlimited data and fast speeds make your experience all the more enjoyable.
Along with a VPN, there are other precautions you should follow for public WiFi security as well. For example, you shouldn’t let your devices auto-connect to these networks. Plus, turning off the file-sharing option keeps the data in your folders safe. If you’re mindful of these things, you’ll have no problem connecting to public WiFi.
Stay Safe and Enjoy Public WiFi
Now that you have a list of businesses with the best public WiFi, you can reap its full benefits. Remember to follow public WiFi safety guidelines, and you will be fine.
If you run a business and want to maximize your free WiFi, try out Beambox. It’s a marketing platform that automates marketing campaigns and helps you grow your online reputation. You can also use Beambox to secure your network and provide a faster and more stable connection.
