The internet provides a way for people to connect to and access important services and information. Access to the internet can help improve quality of life by supporting educational and career development opportunities, providing economic connectivity and expanding more equitable access to healthcare and social services.
For this measure, internet access is defined as the share of households who report having an internet subscription.
Historical data is not available for this indicator. The Census Bureau did not begin asking about internet access until 2013, making it unavailable until the 2013-2017 American Community Survey 5-Year Public Use Microdata Sample.
Go to: Internet Access Map | Internet Access Now | Internet Access Trend
Internet Access Map
Percent of households with access to internet
Source(s): U.S. Census Bureau, 2018-2022 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, Table S2801; U.S. Census Bureau, Geography Division 2020 TIGER/Line Shapefiles
Insights & Analysis
- King, Kitsap, and Snohomish counties have the highest share of households with internet access (94%), followed by Pierce (93%).
- Kitsap County has the highest share of census tracts where all households have internet access (7%), compared to 4% of the census tracts in King, and 3% in Pierce and Snohomish.
- The three census tracts with the lowest share of households with internet access are around Seattle’s University of Washington campus and U-District.
- There are 37 census tracts where all households have internet access.
Internet Access Now
Source(s): U.S. Census Bureau, 2018-2022 American Community Survey 5-Year Public Use Microdata Sample
Insights & Analysis
- Households with lower income have less internet access than other households; their share with internet access is lowest in King, Pierce, and Snohomish counties (88%), followed by Kitsap (91%). The largest difference between households with lower income and other households is in King (10%), followed by Snohomish (9%), Pierce (8%), and Kitsap (7%).
- Internet access for people with a disability is lower than those without across the region, with differences ranging between 3-7%: King County (7%), Snohomish County (6%), Pierce County (5%), and Kitsap County (3%).
- Limited English proficient households in the region have lower access to internet compared to English proficient households, a difference of six percentage points.
- Regionally, internet access for households with youth is 99%, compared to 94% for households without. The largest difference is in Pierce County (6%), followed by Snohomish County (5%), and King and Kitsap counties (4%).
- Households with older adults consistently have lower access to internet compared to other households across the region, with differences ranging between 5-8%.
Internet Access Trend
Source(s): U.S. Census Bureau, 2013-2017, 2018-2022 American Community Survey 5-Year Public Use Microdata Sample
Insights & Analysis
- In 2022, people in households with lower income have lower internet access (88%) than people in other households (97%) - a smaller difference than in 2017 when the difference was 16 percentage points.
- A greater proportion of English proficient households have internet access than households with limited English proficiency. The difference between these two groups has decreased across all the counties over the past five years: decreasing in King County (-71%), Snohomish County (-58%), Pierce County (-52%), and Kitsap County (-37%).
- Internet access has increased for all six communities between 2017 and 2022.