The cost to install a new computer network is $423.
Ah, the internet, the one item that has allowed billions to access information within seconds. If you’ve recently moved into a new home, you may need to build your own computer network to connect everything from your cellphone to even your new smart front door lock. Learn all about common costs associated with this project and the proper terminology before you get started.
Depending on materials and the type of internet you’re going for, you may end up paying anywhere from $186 to $687. On average, you’ll pay $423, to install a computer network at your home.
Because internet terms can sound like rocket science, here’s a brief rundown of important terms we’re going to talk about throughout the article:
Ethernet: A wired connection to the internet and other local devices throughout your home/office/space. Sometimes referred to as a Local Area Network (LAN). Uses a copper cable to connect from your internet device to a modem or Ethernet jack outlet to connect to the internet.
Wi-Fi: A wireless connection to the internet and other local devices throughout your home/office/space. Uncommonly referred to as a wireless local area network (WLAN). Uses radio waves to connect to a router or access point to connect to the internet.
Internet service provider (ISP): Refers to the company you choose to work with to provide you access to the internet.
Fiber optic: Also a wired connection, but uses fiberglass cables and light to connect to the internet.
Satellite internet: Also uses radio waves for the internet, but transmits to satellites throughout space rather than local internet towers and cables.
Coaxial: Larger copper wiring used to connect your modem or internet device to your ISP's network.
The cost of installing a computer network near you will come down to the number of internet service providers near you and the type of internet they offer.
For instance, satellite internet in rural areas may cost upwards of $500 for installation, whereas larger cities with fiber optic internet may only cost around $200 for installation.
Los Angeles: $525
Houston: $400
Denver: $400
Boston: $500
Orlando, Florida: $350
Minneapolis: $400
New York: $475
Chicago: $475
When it comes to computer networks, an increase in speed doesn’t necessarily mean an increase in costs. A lot of the costs come from how you access the internet, as well as how much work the house needs when it comes to wiring.
There are two main types of internet that all households and businesses will fall into, wired and wireless. Wired internet requires a cable to connect to the house or to a modem to operate correctly. Whereas wireless internet access only requires a router that your devices connect to through radio waves and the router connects to the modem through a wired connection.
A wireless internet connection will typically require a one-time fee if you choose to lease their router of around $10 to $25. You can opt to buy your own router that you can use for the foreseeable future for around $50 to $500, depending on how fast you’d like the router to be.
Beyond the one-time fee, you should also take into account the fact that most ISPs raise the price per month for wireless internet, since so many more devices utilize this type of internet access. Expect to see an increase of $5 to $10 per month.
Every house, apartment, or condo you live in or rent will have different options available to you. In fact, even if you live in the same apartment complex as someone with an internet provider that they like, there’s no guarantee that you’ll have access to the same one.
ISPs will charge anywhere from $10 to $500 for an initial installation fee, plus a range of $10 to $500 per month for internet access.
Once you’ve picked your ISP, you’re then typically given a choice of different internet speeds that suit your needs. Internet speeds can range from as low as 10 megabytes per second for downloads (10Mbps) to as high as 1-gigabytes per second for downloads (1Gbps).
As mentioned earlier though, internet speeds don’t always correlate. While you may pay $100 a month for 25Mbps with one ISP, you may only pay $65 a month for 1Gbps with another. Though it’s safe to assume that increasing speeds with a single internet provider can lead to an increase in your monthly bill, ranging from an extra $5 to $50 per month, depending on how large of an increase it is.
Once the internet itself is picked out, it’s time to set up your own personal computer network to run your home. There are going to be service fees, materials, and equipment needed to get you connected to the rest of the world.
Copper wiring in the form of coaxial cables or Ethernet cables will be the most used material when installing a computer network. Unless you have fiber optic cable, in which case, you’ll switch out copper for fiberglass.
Ethernet cables come in a wide variety of different categories, often referred to as CAT 3-8. With each increase in CAT comes the ability for the Ethernet cable to handle larger data transfers per second. The most commonly used Ethernet cable currently is CAT 5e.
The different cables out there and their speeds include:
| Category | Max Data Transfer Rate | Price per linear foot |
|---|---|---|
| CAT 1 (Unofficial)* | 1Mbps | No longer sold |
| CAT 2 (Unofficial)* | 4Mbps | No longer sold |
| CAT 3 | 10Mbps | $0.15 (rarely used) |
| CAT 4 | 16Mbps | Never widely adapted |
| CAT 5 | 100Mbps | $0.20 |
| CAT 5e | 1Gbps | $0.25 |
| CAT 6 | 1Gbps (larger bandwidth)** | $0.30 |
| CAT 6a | 10Gbps | $0.35 |
| CAT 7 | 10Gbps (larger bandwidth) | $0.35 |
| CAT 8.2 | 40Gbps | $0.45 |
*CAT 1 and CAT 2 were never formally recognized as a standard
**Larger bandwidths allow for more data to be sent across cable at any given time
Coaxial cable will cost around $0.35 per linear foot on average. Fiber optic cable tops the charts at around $3 per linear foot.
In rare situations, your ISP may complete the wiring of the house for you if you’re upgrading from copper wiring to fiber, but this is rare. If you do fall into this category, there’s a good chance you’ll pay a small service fee of around $10 to $50.
In most instances though, you’re going to need to hire a local electrician. The cost to hire an electrician will range from $50 to $150 per hour.
Beyond the wires, you’re going to need a modem, router, and even possibly a network switch. Network switches expand the number of Ethernet ports available, which may apply if you’re working from home or run your own home security cameras. The cost of a network switch will vary based on the speed of the Ethernet ports and the number of ports needed.
Depending on how large your house is, you may need to create a mesh network. A mesh network creates separate access points throughout the home so your internet expands the length of the home, rather than losing the signal the further away you are from the router.
Satellite internet providers will need to send you a kit with a satellite dish to connect to their network.
Modem: Provided by ISP
Router rental: $10 fee
Purchase own router: $50 to $500
Network switch: $20 to $2,500
Mesh network: $50 to $100 per access point
Satellite internet dish: $500
Because you’re working with electrical, you should leave this job to a computer network installer in your area. You’ll still be the one in charge of plugging in and connecting your devices though.
If you’re looking to connect quite a few devices to your computer network through Ethernet, it’s worth it to buy a large spool of Ethernet cable and cut and crimp the cable yourself. These will be the cables running from your modem or switch that connect to computers, cameras, printers, and TVs, rather than the cables running through the walls.
One thousand feet of CAT5e Ethernet cable will cost around $70 on average. You’ll also need to pick up an RJ45 crimping tool for around $25 and RJ45 connectors, which cost around $10 to $15 for 100 (you’ll use 2 for each cable). This brings the grand total to $110.
Compare this to a single 25-foot Ethernet cable which costs around $10 on average, where you’d only have around 275 linear feet worth of Ethernet cable for the same price.
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While it’s possible to achieve the same speeds as a wired connection to the internet, it’s typically not as stable. More internet devices connect through Wi-Fi, which will use more bandwidth, slowing down the available speeds. Wired Ethernet connections don’t have to worry about this and are able to use the full bandwidth available.
So if you’re dealing with slow internet or internet that won’t connect at all, try switching from a wireless connection to wired. Your modem should also have a light telling you whether it’s online or not.
On average, expect to pay around $600 to $800 for a basic computer, monitor, and storage. A computer in this range should handle simple workloads such as watching movies, browsing the internet, and light gameplay.
Those looking to handle large 3D workloads, edit high-quality videos, and games as the highest settings should expect to pay around $5,000 or more. Trying to handle larger tasks like these can be a large reason why your computer is slowing down.
Contrary to popular belief, there isn’t only one internet network. There’s the world wide web which allows us to connect to others, and then there’s your local access network, which only resides in your own home/office/network.
LAN allows for faster data transfer speeds, so long as your equipment supports it. So for instance, if your computer says it can support up to 2.5Gbps worth of transfer speeds, it means over the LAN rather than internet access. This is why internet speeds will cap out at around 1Gbps, but you can still transfer data to another computer on the network with up to 40Gbps.
