RCN

Name: RCN
Rating: 2.5

Is This Your Business?

2.5

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30 User Reviews

3.6

Overall Score

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2.5

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30 User Reviews

3.6

Overall Score

Compare

The Good

The Bad

Bottom Line

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Company Details

Monthly Price

Starting at

$29.99

Minimum Contract Length

None

Number of Reviews 30

info Source of Information

Author: Kaitlyn Short

LAST UPDATED: October 31st, 2024

Previously known as Residential Communications Network, RCN was founded in 1993 and is based in Princeton, New Jersey. RCN is a cable internet company that provides affordable service in a handful of major cities in the United States, including Allentown, Pennsylvania; Boston, Massachusetts; Chicago, Illinois; Washington, D.C., Virginia; New York, New York; and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Services are delivered over RCN's own fiber-optic local network, as well as through competitive dialup and DSL.

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The Good

Affordable Plans
No Contracts
Low Equipment Rental Prices
Firewall Protection
Same-Day Installation

Affordable Plans

RCN offers low introductory rates on all of its cable internet packages. With five different plans to choose from (depending on your area), customers have the ability to find one that works well with their budget. RCN also offers a couple of bundle packages called Double Play, and Triple Play. These bundles include fast internet, TV, and phone.

Internet 25 — 25 Mbps (download)
Internet 50 — 50 Mbps
Internet 155 — 155 Mbps
Internet 330 — 330 Mbps
Internet 1000 — 1 Gbps

No Contracts

RCN does not require its customers to sign into any contracts, which is convenient for customers who may need to cancel service for any reason.

Low Equipment Rental Prices

RCN's equipment rental charges are separate from the initial pricing, but rental fees are low, ranging from just $2 to $6.95 per month. Customers have the option to rent a modem, wireless router, or 3-in-1 gateway, or use their own equipment for free.

Firewall Protection

RCN provides firewall protection through McAfee Internet Security Suite. This is included with any internet purchase.

Same-Day Installation

RCN provides same-day installations with two-hour service windows. The company also has a 24/7 customer support team and an online chat service to best meet its customers needs.

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The Bad

Limited Service Area
No Phone and Internet Bundles
Fees

Limited Service Area

RCN's service area is limited when compared to many other companies in the industry. The company only services a few major U.S. cities, such as Boston, Chicago, New York City, and Philadelphia.

No Phone and Internet Bundles

RCN does not offer phone/internet bundles, which can cause issues for satellite users.

Fees

RCN charges an installation fee of $49.95 and a one-time setup fee of $25. These fees are not included in the initial price quote. Service protection plans are optional but cost another $4.95 per month. Without a protection plan, service call fees will cost at least $49.95.

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The Bottom Line

RCN offers affordable plans with no contracts, low equipment rental prices, firewall protection, and same-day installations. However, the company charges several additional fees and its service area is limited. If you live within their service area we suggest researching their options to see if they fit your needs.

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User Reviews

Star Rating

2.5

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30 Reviews

Review Breakdown

5 grade

20%

4 grade

20%

3 grade

2 grade

1 grade

53%

Sentiment Criteria

Value

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Quality

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Service

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Trustworthiness

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Orestis Vravosinos

When I called and scheduled an installation, I was told that I would get a month free. After the installation, they are pretending this is not the case and are trying to charge me every month.

1 month ago

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Brandon Chicago, IL

I had RCN highspeed cable for four years on the northside of Chicago. The internet package was fairly priced for the area even after the promotional deal had expired. I think in 4 years I lost service briefly about 3 or 4 times. Only reason I'm giving them 4 stars is because they had owed me a credit for one of the outages. Unfortunately, I did not catch that they never applied the credit until a few months after the fact. When I called back I was told that there was nothing they could do because I should have called back the following month... even though they could see record the service call and the outage I was referencing. So, in the end, it was the customers responsibility to police their follow through for a staff members incompetence following a failure in their service. This left a really bad taste in my mouth but overall, with that one exception, I was really happy with them.

2 years ago Edited July 22, 2022

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Leonard Leo Potomac, MD

One of the few ISPs offering DSL. Although, the service area is DC, if you live nearby in the MD suburbs you can take advantage of their introductory offers. However, be aware that they seldom honor bonus signups. Customer service is hit or miss. Further, RCN charges tax on service, even though, it is not supposed to be taxed!

3 years ago

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Joe Fiesta Clifton Heights, PA

Salesman was nice, but exaggerated cost savings, was wrong about fibre optic service and didn't even mention I was getting TiVO. Install went fine, but serviceman didn't give me much information: router password, account number and left no instructions for TivO remote. TiVO remote and menus for TV are ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUSLY POOR. I subscribe to Signature level, but TV guide by default shows EVERY channel. The process to show only channels I receive TAKES OVER AN HOUR. The TV guide grid is very poorly laid out and the channels display by their cryptic acronyms or some stupid, useless ICON. The verbiage of many menu items is inaccurate and misleading. So far no Internet problems, except at my 250 Mbps service, Speedtest shows UPLOAD rates around 17 Mbps. The remote control forTIVO is ergonomically pathetic. If you are blind you can't tell if it upside down or right side up when you hold it. The letters on it require I use my glasses, sometimes a magnifying glass and the lights must be up. First week only at this point so no experience with billing issues everyone talks about. It's cheaper, and if I keep it is only because of the TivO. The phone service functions are antediluvian. The menus for the aux tvs (non-hd) are, actually very good--expecially compared to Verizon.

5 years ago

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James Rauch Cementon, PA

I rebooted my 1 gig service yesterday and today I have a speed of an erratic 7 on my iPad which will continue to degrade until I reboot. They told me not a promotional price (why I bought a gb service, they tell me now it is. After install, I got solid 800 speeds on iPhone and 150 on iPad. Now speeds of 300 and 90 will last maybe half a day. They (rcn tech support) approved my netgear modem before I bought it. All that has changed is the modem firmware (controlled by isp). They insisted on sending tech support to my house for no charge for which they then charged me $60. The advanced support plugged his computer into my modem, read 950, and told me everything is good. Off to reboot.

6 years ago

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Scott

Lot's wrong with RCN. Let's start with the most recent. I'd been having trouble sending and receiving email. They only really support their own web based email which barely has needed features. The only reason I was able to get a little bit of help was because the tech had outlook himself. If you want to use your own email program, particularly for business, stay away from them. It turns out that RCN changed from POP to IMAP about 4-5 mo ago. This coincides with when I started having my email problems after 8 yrs w/ them. Now I'm getting 10s of thousand of old emails I'd previously deleted getting downloaded to my computer tying up my email program and using up computer and internet resources. Now when I'm trying to delete those emails I'm getting error messages telling me the program isn't responding and that the IMAP server disconnected me. RCN email service is a disaster and has cost me a lot of sales and money. I'm also getting skips in their cable tv service. Their guides showing what's playing and coming up are inaccurate. Their recording of shows starts in the middle of some shows and ends in the middle of the next show sometimes. They upgraded their HD tv system. I don't have HD. My bill increased about $30 for them to pay for that. They should only charge those who subscribe to HD TV service. I'm moving in 4-6 months. I will include as a criteria for my search that FIOS be available. I can't live and work with these email problems. Avoid RCN, particularly if you need them for work or a business.

7 years ago

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Anne Ringlaben New York, NY

I pray another company would move into the area. RCN overcharges, and knows customers are limited so they treat them horribly. Management is never available to answer questions, and customer service reps are rude and unhelpful. If I could do without internet, I would never give this company another penny. However that's impossible in this day and age. I wish they'd have respectable leadership turn them around and quit it with the fake praise any time you call or chat - "thank you for being a customer since ****..." What a joke! They don't care about customers - new customers get deals and loyal customers get the shaft because they know the options are limited.

7 years ago

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Steve M Northampton, PA

Our internet connection was consistently turning on and off I upgraded our service from 25 mbps to 155 mbps service and the only difference that we paid a higher premium and the internet service was about the same. I called RCN Tech support and on there end also noticed the service turning on and off. After unplugging and rebooting the service it still continued turning on and off. We had Technical Support come out to our residence 3 different times and I was told the problem was on a particular pole and that we had neighbors also experiencing the same issue. I asked billing if they can adjust our bill for all the poor service and they lowered our bill slightly which seemed to be a slap in the face. I talked to RCN E-Care about downgrading back to 25mbps and asked about using my own equipment rather than paying $6.95 per month and I was told that we could use our own router but we would still get billed 4.95 if we use out own router so either way they are going to milk a customer for all they can. We had some billing issues and made a payment before it's specified due date and later that week. On 01/16/17 we dropped off RCN's equipment. We just received a Statement Dated 01/29/17 and noticed we are still being billed for service that we cancelled and no longer have or need. I asked the RCN E-Care person if she can prorate our past due balance and remove the other charges that don't apply and let us know what our balance would be and we got that bill and she contacted me on 02/16/17 and told her I would pay the balance of $82.10 soon. Today we got a letter dated 02/15/17 from a collection agency! This is how RCN treats loyal customers of 8 years!

7 years ago

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Jared S Philadelphia, PA

I signed up for RCN and was told to make a deposit of 50.00. As it was in between paychecks the first visa card I used was declined. I used my american express card instead. RCN took the 50 dollars from this deposit. A week later they took another 50.00 from my Visa card and are stating they never did. I sent over bank statements 3 times. This is 3 weeks later. I still do not have the money. I spoke with a Supervisor who initially stated they would refund my money. My fiance called in last week and they are now stating they never took the money or received my statements. Horrible company. Do yourselves a favor and go xfinity. Im talking to them now.

8 years ago

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Rachel Porter Chicago, IL

RCN internet and cable were very reliable. I rarely experienced any service interruptions though if there were, the company resolved this issue quickly. If the issue couldn't be resolved quickly the company provided a prorated refund for the time service was impacted.

2 years ago

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Mallory

The company RCN is an honest and trustworthy service provider to have. The have wonderful customer service and exceptional communication. We highly recommend to anyone shopping around.

2 years ago

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Dee Farquharson Washington, DC

Service was pricey. But the speed was awesome. I had about 10 devices on my own, sometime using up to 5 at a time and i never had to worry about stutter or buffering. I would use them again in the DC area

6 years ago

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Marius Astoria, NY

Horrible experience with RCN New York City NYC. We opened an account with them and after 3 month of having issues with our internet service they diidtn offer any prorated monthly bill, whatsoever. Not only that but after disconnecting with RCN they charged us a $130. Strongly not sugested whatsoever. Also the bill for all those 3 months was different every time.

5 years ago

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Jenni lisiewski Allentown, PA

The worst cable service. It goes out at least once an hour. Wifi goes out at least once a month. Rude customer service who are no help. Without touching the tv it will go out for minutes at a time and then come back up. I am told it is "a problem with my television". The bill goes up suddenly every few months, when I call to question I'm told it's due to "taxes". I started out paying $80-some per month and 2 years later I now am payong $120 for the same awful services. Will be switching soon to direct TV or service electric. Nothing can be worse than RCN.

7 years ago

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Jay Ridley Park, PA

This is one crooked company. I owed them a certain amount of money. I called to lay through the phone. First they charge a rip off fee to process through the phone. Then they hit my account twice for the same amount which resulted in insufficient funds through my bank. Now I have THAT fee. I called RCN crooks and they said there was nothing they could do. Totally crooked compan!

7 years ago

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Christopher Anderla Gaithersburg, MD

My service with RCN lasted only a few months due to many reasons: 1) The internet connectivity had consistent issues with staying online 2) Technical support fails to understand their services and how to go about troubleshooting 3) Customer service fails to provide accurate information 4) Billing was inaccurate on every bill, including the charges that continued to roll in months AFTER I cancelled my service. I would suggest anyone that is looking into RCN for Internet think twice as this is the worst provider in the MD/VA/DC area!

8 years ago

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Adeola Darby, PA

I have being using RCN for 3 years and I asked for transfer of my account and I was charge without even informed about the charges that I was charge, call customer care and they insisted I should pay the amount of money they charge. I receive no help. and when they increase the charges is like 40 percent of my initial charges.

6 years ago

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Juan Sebastian Roa Washington, DC

Absolutely terrible service. Trusted them with autopay and got charged more than agreed to by RCN. Beforehand, I had already called twice to properly adjust my bill. Stay away from RCN. They will give you slow internet and charge you ridiculous prices. You will also pay for terrible customer service.

7 years ago

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Jen Allentown, PA

Customer service is so poor! Made the mistake of calling on a weekend knowing I'll get half-ass service regarding my bill being incorrect. Rep was rude, ignoring me and questions and was putting me on mute as if I'm stupid. Can't wait to move and get rid of this poor service for the subpar internet! Go to Service Electric or other service

7 years ago

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Mitesh Sarvaiya Queens, NY

I switched from T-Mobile to RCN 4 years back. So for I had only 2 outages in my internet, however , with T-Mobile, I had outages multiple times a year.

2 years ago

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Igor Chubaryov

Nice try RCN! Let's change the name and we're good! Not so fast! RCN/Astound has the worst management, services, and customer services. People are better off with any other company. This is my humble opinion.

1 year ago

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Chris Panko Columbus, OH

Cable and internet services are about the same as other companies. Customer service is terrible and they constantly add increases to the bill so you don't really take notice to small increases.

2 years ago

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anupam sumessur Washington, DC

Best service in DC. Their prices are unbeatable. Internet is fast.

3 years ago Edited July 20, 2022

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Akila

great internet service and customer service both in chat and by phone

5 years ago

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judea Elmhurst, NY

their customer service is horrible. they do not appreciate their loyal costumers but keep increasing their price. this is B* S*

6 years ago

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Nancy E Gallagher

Service excelleny but experiemcing issues since 5g installed

6 years ago

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John Nelson

GREAT CUSTOMER SERVICE. PROMPT RESOLUTION OF PROBLEMS

6 years ago

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Liz Tucson, AZ

I did not have much luck with rcn. The stream wasn't great. Cable was expensive and the service was slow.

2 years ago

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Tony W. Waltham, MA

They are okay, just a little costly per month

5 years ago

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Mike Perrins Spring Hill, FL

This is the best high speed internet and have great prices

2 years ago Edited January 3, 2022