Free Internet Providers in the USA

10-10-2000

Free internet access with no monthly fee, connections charged at 6.5c per minute, available in many Eastern US states. Check the "Coverage" page for full details of where the service is available.

Access-4-Free

Access-4-Free provides free internet access (without ads) for up to 10 hours in any given month. Additional hours are billed at $1 per hour or part thereof, up to a maximum of $10 a month. The service supports modem speeds up to V.92. Note that you have to supply credit card details to sign up, and that there is a one-time $4.95 setup fee.

FreeDialup.org

Free dial-up internet access in the Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Rhode Island regions, provided by G4 Communications as a way to soak up spare capacity and advertise their company's services. You must have Caller ID turned on to access this service.

MetConnect

MetConnect provides free dialup access to the Internet to households in the NYC area code.

NoCharge

Free Internet access in Puget Sound and many communities in Western Washington. This service doesn't show ads, but charges $10 per support call.

NetZero

Free internet access with connection points all across the US. The free service offers 10 hours of access each month, and a webmail account is included in the package. You can extend the number of hours by upgrading to the premium service level.

Nyx

Nyx provides Unix shell accounts, usenet newsgroup access, email, webspace and access to Unix programming tools. Their service is open to non-commercial users, with dialup 56K access available in the Denver, Colorado area.

The Email Guide

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Safeguard your email privacy Four things to watch out for before giving your email address to a 3rd party.

Cancel and delete a Hotmail or Yahoo Mail email accountStep-by-step instructions to help you cancel your Hotmail or Yahoo Mail email account.

Understanding Email RestrictionsWhen email providers talk about "storage space", "bandwidth" and other restrictions, what does it all mean?

Initial Look at Google GmailA first look at Google's Gmail service, from a user's perspective.

Countering Gmail - Ideas for Email Providers What can email providers do to stand up to the Gmail juggernaut?

DIY Personalized Email Forwarding How to set up a custom email forwarding address using your own domain name, for less than US$10 a year.

Ranking Email Services by Size A look at the relative size of various free and for-fee email services.

Using Email on the Road Just because you're heading for fun in the sun, or travelling on business, why should you go without your regular email fix?

Email Etiquette Tips Practical tips to make sure your email messages make a good impression.

The Perfect Free Email Service What would be the perfect free email service? What would it offer in terms of features and functions?

What can I do with my free email account? Several productive ways you can maximize the use of your free email account.

The Problems with Free Email Does "free" = "too good to be true"? A hard look at the realities of free email.

Which Free Email Service is for ME? There are a bewildering variety of free email services to choose from, so why not get a little help in making the right choice?

Types of Email Service

WEB-BASED EMAIL

Web-based email services enable you to access your email via your web browser. You log into your email account via the Web to send and retrieve email. Free services usually feature banner ads, and often pop-ups as well.

MORE INFO: Learn more about web-based email

WEB-BASED EMAIL PROVIDERS: A-D E-H I-N O-S T-Z

POP3 EMAIL

POP email services store your email on a remote server. You can connect to the server at any time and download your mail into your favourite email software package. Generally, with POP3 mail, you download all new messages in one operation onto your local computer.

TIP: You can use a web interface to access your POP3 account when you're travelling.
MORE INFO: Learn more about POP3 email
POP3 EMAIL PROVIDERS: See list

IMAP EMAIL

IMAP email services offer extremely powerful control over your email. Like POP3 mail (above), IMAP works with your email client to retrieve email from a remote server. Unlike POP3, IMAP lets you have granular control over your email, since you can view message subjects before downloading them, and choose which emails to download on a case by case basis. IMAP will also allow you to synchronize your mail folders between your local computer and the IMAP server of your email provider, so that you will see the same folders and messages wherever you happen to log into your mailbox.
MORE INFO: Learn more about IMAP email
IMAP EMAIL PROVIDERS: See list

EMAIL FORWARDING

Email forwarding services automatically redirect all email sent to your new email forwarding address to an existing email address that you specify, in essence passing the messages on instantly to their destination. Because forwarding services don't store your email, you'll need to have an alternate email address to act as the receiver account.
MORE INFO: Learn more about email forwarding
EMAIL FORWARDING PROVIDERS: See list

Finding Email Addresses on the Web

There are many different ways to track down people on the Web.

• If the person you're looking for lives in the USA or Canada, Reunion's Free Email Search Service may be a great bet, since they have collected over 30 million profiles.
  
• A number of the largest web directories are international in scope, and are another good starting point in your quest to find someone's email address.
  
• If you're familiar with the background of the person you're looking for (their interests, educational history or professional affiliations, for example) then you may find them listed in one of the smaller, subject-specific specialist directories.
  
• Try working the location angle. If you know where the person you're looking for is living, try looking for them in one of the many regional directories, which are especially useful outside the USA. Each directory focuses on a specific country or region.
  
• With a bit of luck, the person you're looking for may have registered their email address with one of the many change of address services, which help match up old and new email addresses.
  
• Finally, if you'd like to make sure your friends and family can find YOUR email address if they are looking for it, be proactive and register it!