Consistent access to a computer and high-speed internet are essential to everyday life in New York, and in the Bronx, tens of thousands of residents remain cut off from these basic tools of modern life. Despite important investments in broadband infrastructure and digital skills programs, the gap has only grown wider between the Bronx and other boroughs in the areas of broadband affordability and adoption, device access, and digital literacy.
In today’s New York City, consistent access to a computer and high-speed internet is essential—whether for completing schoolwork, remotely working or applying for jobs, accessing healthcare, or receiving government services. Yet in the Bronx, tens of thousands of residents remain cut off from these basic tools of modern life. Despite important investments in broadband infrastructure and digital skills programs, the gap between the Bronx and other boroughs has only grown wider.
The digital divide in the Bronx spans three interconnected challenges: broadband affordability and adoption, device access, and digital literacy. In each of these areas, Bronx residents face deeper barriers than their counterparts in any other borough. The Bronx has the lowest rate of broadband adoption in the city: 22.4 percent of households lack broadband at home, compared to 18 percent in Queens and just 12.5 percent in Manhattan.1 These gaps have been worsened by the expiration of the federal Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), which provided households with a monthly internet subsidy. Fully 44 percent of Bronx households were enrolled in ACP when it ended in 2024—by far the highest share in the city.2 With ACP’s collapse, thousands of families are struggling to afford basic internet service.
The borough also has the lowest rate of device ownership, with one in three households—or over 184,000 homes—lacking access to a computer. This data masks even starker disparities at the neighborhood level. In Riverdale and Kingsbridge, 19 percent of households lack a computer; in Soundview and Parkchester, it’s more than 30 percent. In neighborhoods like Melrose, Mott Haven, and Hunts Point, that figure rises to 35 percent.3 These digital deserts are leaving many Bronx residents disconnected from essential opportunities and services.
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