You do not need technical language to shop for internet. You need a short list of questions and a place to write the answers. This one follows the topics in the FCC's broadband label, so a provider that has posted a label can answer most of them from it, and a provider that has not can answer by phone.
Takeaways
- The rule at 47 CFR 8.1 says providers must disclose “network management practices, performance characteristics, and commercial terms.”
- Ask for typical speeds, not only the up-to figure.
- Ask the provider to point to the sentence about data, in writing.
- Write down the name of who answered and the date.
What do you pay, and when?
Start with money. Ask for the monthly price, how long it applies, and the price after that. Ask for every one-time charge: installation, activation, equipment. Ask what is due on the first day and when the first invoice arrives. Ask whether any discount depends on autopay, a bundle or paperless billing, and what happens if you stop meeting the condition. The real cost worksheet turns those answers into one number.
At High Desert, the answers in writing are the plan cards (Bronze $50, Silver $75, Gold $99 a month) and the service agreement, which describes payment on the date of installation. The install charge is not published on the site, so ask for it by phone.
What speed will you actually get?
Providers advertise a maximum. The label has fields for typical download and upload speeds, which are closer to what you will see. Ask for both, and ask whether they change at busy hours. Ask how you are expected to test, and what happens if your tests fall far short. Our up to guide and the speed test guide help you read the answer.
High Desert's plans are listed as up to 500, up to 800 and up to 1 Gig down, all with up to 200 Mbps up. Typical speeds are not published on the site, so ask for them if they matter to you.
How much data is included?
Ask for the data allowance and whether anything happens when you pass it: a surcharge, a slower speed, or nothing. Ask where it is written. High Desert's agreement says each service level has a data transfer limit, that the size is available by emailing info@hdiss.net, and that going over costs $1 per gigabyte in a billing cycle. Our data limit guide explains how to see your use.
What are the terms for leaving?
Ask whether there is a contract, an early termination fee, a notice period, and what to do with equipment. High Desert's agreement asks for two weeks' notice and recovery of the equipment before monthly billing stops, with the equipment returned undamaged within five calendar days of termination. You can see how that works in the cancel and return guide.
Who answers, and how?
Ask for the support hours, whether a person answers the phone, and what to do in an outage. High Desert lists its hours as 9 to 5 every day and the phone as 775-575-9593. Ask where a written confirmation of anything you were told will come from, and keep it.
What is a fair way to compare answers?
Put each provider in a column and each question in a row. Leave blank anything not answered. The blank cells tell you as much as the filled ones. If a company cannot say what a service will cost on day one, that is a reason to ask again, not a reason to guess.
If you would like High Desert's answers for your address, send the address through the check form. A person looks at the path from the nearest tower and calls you back, and you can run through this list on that call.
Sources
- law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/47/8.1 (47 CFR 8.1, read 10/15/26)
- docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/FCC-26-48A1.pdf (FCC 26-48, July 2026 label order, read 10/15/26)
- hdiss.net/terms-of-use/ (HDISS Service Agreement V 1.12, read 10/15/26)