Broadband in Dhaka — An ISP-by-ISP Reality Check for Apartment Renters
The Dhaka broadband market in 2026 is more fragmented than most cities of comparable size — a mix of national operators, area-specific ISPs, and a growing number of fiber-to-the-home offerings from mobile carriers. Advertised speeds are often at variance with actual delivered performance. Uptime varies hugely by neighbourhood and even by building. This post is a working comparison of the ISPs a Dhaka apartment renter is realistically choosing between, based on observed performance across the last two years.
Framing: what to actually evaluate
Advertised speed is the least useful number in a Dhaka ISP comparison. What actually matters:
- Real download speed at prime time (8-11pm) versus off-peak. A 100 Mbps plan that delivers 90 Mbps off-peak and 25 Mbps at 9pm is a 25 Mbps plan in practice.
- Upload speed. Most Dhaka plans are heavily asymmetric. If you do video calls, upload is what determines whether you sound coherent.
- Uptime. How many hours per month is the connection actually down? Below 99% uptime (7 hours/month) starts to feel painful; below 98% (14 hours/month) is unacceptable for WFH.
- International latency. The single-biggest quality difference between ISPs. Ping to Singapore for a decent connection should be 60-90 ms; 150+ ms points to overloaded international bandwidth.
- Support response time. When it goes down, how many hours until it’s back? Best ISPs respond in 2-4 hours; worst take days.
- IP type. Static, dynamic public IP, or CGNAT? CGNAT breaks self-hosting and some VPN configurations.
ISP-by-ISP
Grameenphone Home / GP Fiber
The mobile operator’s home fiber product, expanding rapidly since 2023.
- Coverage: growing in Bashundhara, Uttara, Dhanmondi, Gulshan; patchy in Mirpur older sections.
- Plans: 15/30/50/100/200 Mbps at ~৳900/1,400/1,700/2,000/3,000/month.
- Actual performance: consistently close to advertised; prime-time throttling minimal. International latency to Singapore ~65-85 ms.
- Uptime: high in covered areas.
- Support: call-centre driven; average response time 4-8 hours.
- Best for: general household usage where predictable performance matters more than the last taka of price.
Link3
One of the older established ISPs, historically corporate-focused, now with meaningful residential coverage.
- Coverage: strong in Gulshan, Banani, Baridhara, parts of Dhanmondi.
- Plans: 10/20/40/80 Mbps at ~৳900/1,300/1,900/2,800.
- Actual performance: the advertised speed is usually delivered; sustained heavy use can trigger fair-usage throttling on some plans.
- Uptime: good. Their infrastructure is mature.
- Support: technical and responsive; genuine networking help available if you have a corporate account with them, less so for basic residential.
- Best for: tenants doing serious remote work who need consistent low-latency connections and can pay a slight premium.
Amber IT
Broad-coverage residential ISP.
- Coverage: wide across all Dhaka neighbourhoods.
- Plans: 10/20/30/50/100 Mbps at ~৳700/900/1,150/1,500/2,200.
- Actual performance: variable by area and building. Coverage is broad; consistency less so.
- Uptime: mixed. Some buildings report frequent evening cuts, others rock-solid.
- Support: average; response times 6-12 hours for straightforward issues.
- Best for: budget-priced coverage where GP Fiber has not reached yet.
Carnival Internet
Strong in Bashundhara and adjacent areas; the incumbent for many blocks.
- Coverage: dominant in Bashundhara R/A; also parts of Uttara.
- Plans: 10/20/50/100 Mbps at ~৳900/1,200/1,700/2,300.
- Actual performance: solid for covered areas; the last-mile is well-managed in their core neighbourhoods.
- Uptime: consistently high in Bashundhara.
- Support: local, area-based; responsive.
- Best for: Bashundhara residents, where Carnival is often the practical default.
ICC Communication
Long-established residential ISP with mixed reputation.
- Coverage: wide.
- Plans: 8/15/25/50 Mbps at budget prices ~৳550/800/1,100/1,600.
- Actual performance: consistently below advertised at prime time; oversubscription is common.
- Uptime: mixed.
- Support: slower than premium operators.
- Best for: absolute-lowest-cost setups where the internet is for basic browsing, not video calls.
Dot Internet
Newer entrant with a focus on fiber and consistent delivery.
- Coverage: growing; ask specifically for your building.
- Plans: 20/50/100/200 Mbps at ~৳1,000/1,400/1,700/2,500.
- Actual performance: close to advertised; low latency; strong on international routing.
- Uptime: good.
- Support: small operator advantage — quick to respond in most cases.
- Best for: tech-comfortable users who appreciate a fiber-first ISP without corporate bureaucracy.
Others: BTCL, Bracnet, TripleT, Kloud IT
- BTCL — the state operator; occasionally the only option in older areas but service quality is inconsistent.
- Bracnet — coverage in some Uttara and Mirpur sections; mid-tier reliability.
- TripleT — smaller operator; where coverage exists, service is often reliable.
- Kloud IT and similar small ISPs — building-by-building relationships. Sometimes the incumbent inside a specific building has an exclusive arrangement.
The building factor
The single biggest variable is often not the ISP but the building. In many Dhaka apartment buildings, one or two ISPs have “colonized” the building — their wiring is already in place, their splitters are on the roof, their maintenance staff has building access. A third ISP can service the building but requires a new drop from the pole and possibly new wiring.
Ask two neighbours which ISP they use, what plan, and honestly whether they are happy with it. Two data points from your actual building outweighs any generic comparison.
What to test before committing
Most ISPs will demo for a week; some will not. What to check in that week:
- Prime-time speed test — Speedtest.net at 9pm on Tue, Wed, Thu. Compare to advertised.
- International ping —
ping google.comandping 8.8.8.8should return sub-100 ms consistently. - Streaming stability — YouTube 4K on the TV, video call on the laptop, someone browsing on the phone all at once. Something should not cut out.
- Uptime week — note any dropouts. One dropout in a week is fine; three is a pattern.
Contracts and cancellation
Most Dhaka ISPs charge a modest installation fee (৳500–2,000), no long-term contract, monthly billing. Cancel anytime. Some larger operators tie certain plans to a 12-month commitment for a lower monthly rate — read the terms; usually not worth it for the small saving.
Static IP or public IP typically costs an extra ৳500–1,500/month. Most residential users do not need it. Anyone hosting a game server, running self-hosted services, or needing incoming VPN connections does need it.
The realistic recommendation matrix
| Household priority | Suggested plan | Suggested ISP tier |
|---|---|---|
| Basic browsing, occasional streaming | 15-30 Mbps | Amber IT, ICC, or the cheapest building-native option |
| Family with video calls + streaming | 50-100 Mbps | GP Fiber, Carnival, or Link3 |
| WFH with critical video calls | 100 Mbps | GP Fiber or Link3, with static IP if needed |
| Gaming with international servers | 50-100 Mbps | Dot Internet or Link3 (best latency) |
| Small home office / multiple WFH | 200 Mbps | GP Fiber or Link3 corporate |
The one habit that helps
Keep a second-provider connection as backup, at least during monsoon. A ৳900/month 20 Mbps plan from a different ISP than your primary sits as a hot standby; when the primary goes down (and it will, at some point), you switch cables in 20 seconds and keep working. A hedged setup costs ৳900/month more than a single connection but eliminates the entire category of “the internet is down and I have a meeting in ten minutes” stress from apartment life.