These 10 North Carolina School Districts Have the Slowest Internet Speeds

Nearly 28 million students in the United States lack adequate internet speeds to effectively and regularly engage in digital classroom learning.

Access to high-speed internet in schools has come a long way in the last decade. In 2013, 70% of U.S. schools lacked an internet connection of 100 Kbps per student, the minimum speed the Federal Communication Commission set to meet basic classroom needs. By 2018, fewer than 2% of schools failed to meet that threshold.

As more schools integrate technology into the classroom, the need for fast, reliable internet is even greater. In 2020, the FCC upped the bandwidth minimum to 1 Mbps per student—10 times faster than the previous minimum. Nearly 6 in 10 school districts met or exceeded that benchmark in 2021—a 25% increase year over year, according to an analysis from Connect K-12.

RELATED: Because of Federal Grants, 23 North Carolina Counties Are Finally Going to Get Broadband Internet

Still, nearly 28 million U.S. students lack adequate internet speeds to effectively and regularly engage in digital classroom learning.

Stacker compiled a list of school districts in North Carolina with the slowest internet speeds using data from Connect K-12. School districts are ranked by internet speed in Mbps. Ties are broken by the number of students in the school district.

#10. Martin County School District
– Bandwidth per student: 0.33 Mbps
– Total students: 3,336
– Cost per Mbps: $2.23
– Total monthly cost: $2,233.00

#9. Transylvania Co School District
– Bandwidth per student: 0.32 Mbps
– Total students: 3,437
– Cost per Mbps: $3.22
– Total monthly cost: $3,222.00

#8. Currituck County School District
– Bandwidth per student: 0.32 Mbps
– Total students: 4,274
– Cost per Mbps: $3.98
– Total monthly cost: $4,772.00

#7. Jackson County School District
– Bandwidth per student: 0.3 Mbps
– Total students: 3,750
– Cost per Mbps: $3.22
– Total monthly cost: $3,222.00

#6. Watauga County School District
– Bandwidth per student: 0.3 Mbps
– Total students: 4,844
– Cost per Mbps: $4.06
– Total monthly cost: $5,072.00

#5. Montgomery County School District
– Bandwidth per student: 0.29 Mbps
– Total students: 3,935
– Cost per Mbps: $3.74
– Total monthly cost: $3,735.00

#4. Guilford County School District
– Bandwidth per student: 0.29 Mbps
– Total students: 73,512
– Cost per Mbps: $2.11
– Total monthly cost: $21,124.00

#3. Asheville City School District
– Bandwidth per student: 0.25 Mbps
– Total students: 4,574
– Cost per Mbps: $3.22
– Total monthly cost: $3,222.00

#2. Alexander County School District
– Bandwidth per student: 0.22 Mbps
– Total students: 5,325
– Cost per Mbps: $3.22
– Total monthly cost: $3,222.00

#1. Yadkin County School District
– Bandwidth per student: 0.22 Mbps
– Total students: 5,349
– Cost per Mbps: $4.04
– Total monthly cost: $4,035.00