Internet for Renters: No Drilling, No Installer, No Asking the Landlord

Renting comes with a list of things you are not allowed to do to the walls. Internet installation comes with a technician holding a drill. Somewhere between those two facts is a security deposit you would like to see again.

Renters have a specific set of internet problems that homeowners do not: leases that are shorter than contracts, buildings with one approved provider, landlords who need to sign off on wiring, and a move every year or two that restarts the whole circus. This guide covers how to get internet in a rental without touching the walls, the landlord, or your credit report.

The renter's internet problems

The contract is longer than the lease

A twelve month lease and a twenty four month internet agreement do not line up. Even with "no contract" plans, promotional rates are often built around a year or two, which means the good price ends about when you were planning to move anyway. We unpack that in what happens when your promo rate ends.

The install needs permission you do not have

If the unit is not already wired for the provider you want, someone may need to run a line, drill through an exterior wall, or mount hardware. That is the landlord's building. Many leases require written permission, and many landlords say no.

The building picked your provider for you

Some apartment buildings are only wired for one company. That is not a market. That is an assignment.

The credit check

Traditional providers commonly run credit on new accounts. If you just moved out on your own, are rebuilding credit, or are new to the country, that can mean a denial or a larger deposit. You already went through this for the apartment. Doing it again for wifi is a bit much.

The install window

Someone has to be home from noon to four on a weekday. You have a job. That is how you pay for the apartment.

The move

Every move means cancelling or transferring, returning equipment, requalifying the new address, and waiting for a new install while you live off your phone.

What renter friendly internet looks like

A portable cellular modem solves these by skipping the building entirely. It is a small box with a SIM card inside. It connects to the cellular network wherever there is signal and creates a wifi network in your apartment. It plugs into a regular outlet. That is the entire relationship between it and your unit.

With Beakom:

• No installation. Nothing drilled, mounted, or wired. It sits on a shelf.
• No landlord permission. It is a device you own the use of, like a lamp. It does not modify the property.
• No technician and no install window. It ships free to your door with the SIM already inside. Turn it on.
• No credit check. A $100 refundable deposit is the only qualification. See internet with no credit check.
• No address eligibility check. It does not matter which providers your building is wired for. More in internet with no address check.
• No contract. Month to month, so it fits a six month sublet as well as a three year stay.
• No promotional period. $74.99 per month for Residential, this year and next year.

Moving day

This is where renters feel the difference most. When the lease ends:

1. Unplug the modem.
2. Put it in a box you will actually be able to find.
3. Plug it in at the new place.

You do not call us. There is no transfer, no new address to qualify, and no gap where you have no internet while surrounded by boxes. Your devices remember the wifi network, so they reconnect on their own. We wrote a whole guide on it: moving and taking your internet with you.

Making it work in an apartment

Apartments have their own signal quirks. A few minutes of placement on day one makes a real difference.

• Put it near a window. Signal comes through glass far more easily than through brick, concrete, or steel.
• Put it up high. A bookshelf beats the floor.
• Keep it away from the fridge, the microwave, and the back of the TV.
• Try more than one window. In a building, one side may face the tower and the other may face a parking garage. Test both.
• Higher floors usually do well. Fewer obstacles between you and the tower.

The ten minute test is in our modem placement guide.

The hard cases, honestly

Some rentals are tough for any cellular device.

• Basement and garden level units are surrounded by concrete and soil. Use whatever window you have, as high as you can get.
• Interior units with no exterior windows are the hardest. Get as close to an exterior wall as possible.
• Large concrete and steel buildings block more than wood frame ones. Windows matter even more.

We cover workarounds in cellular internet in hard buildings. The quick check before you order: does your phone get usable signal inside the unit, near the windows? If yes, you are a strong candidate. If your phone only works in the stairwell, the building may be the limit.

If you order and it does not work in your unit, cancel from your account, return the modem within 30 days with the prepaid label, and your deposit comes back. Our Coverage page is upfront about this.

Roommates

One modem covers the apartment. Everyone joins the same wifi network. There are no per device fees and no user limits.

The practical advice is about the account, not the technology.

• One person holds the account. That person pays the bill, holds the deposit, and is responsible for returning the modem.
• Split it however you split everything else. $74.99 divides more gracefully than most internet bills.
• When the household breaks up, the modem goes with the account holder. It is portable, so that is easy. Decide it up front so it is also friendly.
• Set a strong wifi password and change it when a roommate moves out. Our wifi security guide covers it.

First apartment? Start here

If this is your first place, internet may be the first utility you have ever set up. Here is the whole process.

1. Check that your phone gets usable signal in the unit.
2. Order the Residential plan. You pay the first month and the $100 refundable deposit. Shipping is free.
3. When the box arrives, put the modem near a window and turn it on.
4. Join the wifi network from your devices.

No application, no score, no cosigner. Our step by step walkthrough covers every stage from checkout to online.

Short term rentals, sublets, and in between places

Three month sublet. Corporate housing. Staying with a friend while you look. A gap between leases. Traditional providers have nothing sensible to offer for stays like these, because by the time the installer comes you are halfway out.

Month to month and portable covers all of them. Keep the same modem across every stop, or cancel between places and get the deposit back. No contract internet, explained covers what month to month really means.

What about the deposit on top of my rental deposit?

We know. You have paid a lot of deposits lately. Ours is $100, flat, the same for every customer, and it exists so we can skip the credit check. It comes back to your original payment method within 10 business days of the modem arriving home after you cancel. It is a liability on our books, not revenue, which is the accounting way of saying it is still your money. The full story is in the modem deposit, explained.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need my landlord's permission?
The modem does not modify the property in any way. It plugs into an outlet and sits on a shelf. If your lease has unusual rules about devices, check it, but there is nothing to install.

My building only allows one provider. Can I still use Beakom?
Building wiring agreements are about wired service. Our modem does not use the building's wiring at all.

Is it enough for a household that streams and works from home?
The plan is unlimited and serves every device on the network. How it performs depends on signal where you put it, which is why placement matters.

What if I move somewhere it does not work?
Cancel from your account, return the modem, get your deposit back. No fee for leaving.

Can I take it on vacation?
Yes. It works anywhere in the USA with signal.

The bottom line

Renters need internet that does not touch the walls, does not need the landlord, does not check credit, and does not outlast the lease. A portable modem is all four. It arrives in a box and leaves in a box, and your security deposit never knows it was there.

See How it Works or go straight to picking a plan.