Before you pay another month to rent a modem or router, check your bill for an equipment fee

An internet bill can carry a line you do not remember choosing: “equipment”, “modem” or “gateway”. It may have been added on the day the service was set up and charged every month since. Some people say that owning the modem and router, rather than renting a set from the provider, ended a monthly charge and gave them more say over their connection. One person says to review your bills and keep copies, because providers add charges such as remote rental, modem rental and extra packages, and customers may overlook them.

Before you pay another month of equipment rental, look at your bill for a modem or router fee, and ask your provider whether you can use your own.

This page is only about that line. If your problem is the price of the plan itself, or a promotional rate that ended, there are pages here called Say you want to cancel, and then say nothing and Go one desk up, in writing. If your bill has no equipment line, this page is not for you. It covers the US and the UK.

Before you change anything, check two things. First, some connections need a device from the provider, such as a fiber terminal, so ask before you buy anything; on those, the fee may not be optional. Second, if your home phone, a burglar or fire alarm, or a medical alert or telecare device works through the provider’s box, returning or replacing that box can stop it working, including for emergency calls. The FCC’s consumer page on network upgrades (updated 14 October 2026) is about a different change, but it names the same devices: it says to check with manufacturers and service providers whether medical monitoring systems and security and alarm systems are compatible, and that a phone on newer technology may not work in a power outage without a backup power source. In the UK, GOV.UK’s guidance on digital landlines (updated 28 February 2024) says a phone may plug into your broadband router, that alarm systems and telecare devices may need an upgrade, an adaptor or their own battery back-up, and that if you or a relative depends on a landline you should tell your provider. If any of this applies to you, keep the provider’s box until the alarm or alert company, or your provider for a home phone, has confirmed the new set-up works.

What the official pages say

In the United States, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) requires home internet providers to have a label for each stand-alone plan they offer. In its November 2022 order (FCC 22-86), the FCC says providers “must list fees such as monthly charges associated with regulatory programs and fees for the rental or leasing of modem and other network connection equipment,” and that the label must also list one-time fees such as “a charge for purchasing a modem, gateway, or router”. The same order says that “a consumer’s election to rent or purchase equipment may increase their upfront or monthly charges.” The FCC’s broadband label page says providers must make each customer’s label accessible in their online account portal and give it to an existing customer on request. In July 2026 the FCC adopted changes to the label rules (FCC 26-48), including how pass-through fees are shown, what phone sales staff must say, and letting providers link to the label instead of showing it in full. This page did not find that they remove the equipment lines, so look at the label you are given.

In the United Kingdom, Ofcom’s advice on wifi says that one option is “to buy a router that isn’t provided by your broadband provider.” It adds that these “can provide better wifi but can be tricky to set up and your broadband provider may not be able to help you if a problem occurs.” Ofcom also says your provider might be able to send you a newer router. This page found no UK rule on router rental fees.

How to check

1. Find the line. Look for the words equipment, modem, gateway, router or lease, and write down the monthly amount.
2. Multiply it by twelve. That is what a year of the line costs you.
3. In the US, ask for your plan’s label, and look for the equipment fee on it. Under the same FCC order, a provider that combines all of its monthly discretionary fees with its base monthly price can show that total price instead, without listing those fees separately. So if you see no equipment fee, ask whether one is built into the price. You can compare that fee with the price of buying a modem, and weigh it against how long you expect to stay with the provider.
4. Before you buy anything, ask your provider which equipment works with your connection and whether the fee stops if you use your own. This page cannot check every provider’s list, and a model that fits one connection type may not fit another.
5. If you change equipment, return the rented items and ask for proof of the return in writing. One person warns that using your own modem does not guarantee the rental billing stops, and that errors can persist for months or years, so check the next few bills.

If a charge is wrong

Start with your provider, in writing, and keep a copy. If that does not work, in the US you can file an informal complaint with the FCC at fcc.gov/complaints. The FCC says you should try to resolve the issue with your provider first, that there is no filing charge, and that if it serves your complaint on the provider, the provider must respond to you and the FCC in writing within 30 days. It adds that if it does not have legal authority to resolve your complaint, it may direct you to another agency. Many people suggest filing a complaint, and say it can pressure a provider; one person found the response was a form letter. Your state’s consumer protection office is another door, and USA.gov has a finder for it.

In the UK, Ofcom says it cannot handle individual complaints. Its page, last updated 8 April 2026, says to contact your provider, then make a formal complaint to the company, and if it cannot resolve it, ask for a deadlock letter. With a deadlock letter, or once six weeks have passed since you first formally complained, you can contact an alternative dispute resolution scheme: either the Communications and Internet Services Adjudication Scheme (CISAS) or the Communications Ombudsman. Ofcom says all providers must belong to one and will tell you which. GOV.UK lists where to get consumer advice, and says the helplines can refer a complaint to local Trading Standards. In England and Wales, that is Citizens Advice on 0808 223 1133 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm); in Scotland, Advice Direct Scotland on 0808 164 6000; in Northern Ireland, Consumerline on 0300 123 6262 (Monday to Thursday, 9am to 5pm, Friday 9am to 4pm).

Who this page is not for

If the only home internet provider where you live sets the price, owning your own modem does not change the plan price, and this page does not claim it will. If your bill is hard to pay at all, there is a US program called Lifeline, and Say you want to cancel, and then say nothing explains it. In the UK, councils such as Kent County Council say some providers offer cheaper “social tariff” packages to households claiming Universal Credit or other benefits; ask your provider whether it has one. If the problem is cable TV, an antenna and streaming have their own page: Try the antenna before you cancel. And outside the US and the UK, your own country’s rules apply.

The equipment line is small next to the plan price. It is also the one part of the bill where you are asking a question, not negotiating.