AOL Pulls the Plug on Dial-Up Internet, Ending a Noisy Era

Gen Z may love their wired headphones, thrifted cameras, and all things retro, but if they ever wanted to experience ‘90s-style Internet, that door just got a little harder to open.

AOL has officially announced it will shut down its dial-up Internet service on September 30, 2025. Yes, somehow, this was still an option in 2025.

For millions of Americans in the 1990s, “America Online” was the on-ramp to the World Wide Web. Before broadband and Wi-Fi, you got online through your telephone line — complete with that ear-piercing chorus of digital screeches, beeps, and static that meant you were connecting. And if someone in the house picked up the phone, well, you were instantly disconnected.

Back in the day, AOL flooded mailboxes with shiny CDs promising free trial memberships — often boasting “100 free hours” — before charging a monthly fee. The service peaked when logging on meant chat rooms, AIM messages, and the thrill of hearing “You’ve got mail.”

AOL shortened its name in 2006, but by then broadband and wireless Internet had already taken over. According to U.S. Census data, only about 160,000 Americans were still using dial-up in 2023, making up roughly 0.1% of all Internet connections in the country. It remains most common in rural or remote areas where high-speed options are limited, and satellite is the only alternative.

Dial-up’s one big selling point has always been price — sometimes under $10 a month — but that comes with a glacial speed limit of 56 kilobits per second. At that pace, a single song takes around 12 minutes to download, and a high-definition movie? About 170 hours. That’s over a week of your computer working harder than you do on Monday mornings.

AOL says the shutdown is part of its regular evaluation of products and services, and while this is the end for their dial-up, other companies like Microsoft and NetZero still offer similar connections for the few who want or need them.

So, farewell, America Online. Thanks for the nostalgia, the CDs we used as coasters, and for making us believe the Internet was a place where “getting mail” was exciting.

If you never got to hear that iconic dial-up handshake sound, just know: you really missed out… and also, you’re probably better off.