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The short answer: if you rent your modem or router, return it soon after you cancel or switch plans. Deadlines are usually a few weeks, and missing one can cost you hundreds of dollars. Most internet companies let you drop it off at one of their stores or a shipping store like The UPS Store, often with no box or label needed. Keep the receipt until the return shows up on your bill.

Here’s how to check whether yours is rented, the steps that work for any company, and what the biggest providers ask for.

First, check that it’s rented

Look at your internet bill for a monthly “equipment,” “modem” or “router” charge. If you see one, the device belongs to the internet company and has to go back. A company logo on the device is another clue.

If you bought it yourself, it’s yours to keep, sell or recycle. Here’s what to do with an old router or modem you own.

How to return it, step by step

These steps work for almost every company. The company-by-company details are below.

1. Cancel or change your service first

Returning the equipment doesn’t cancel your service (Verizon spells this out). Cancel or change your plan first, and note the date you did it. The return deadline usually starts counting from then.

2. Gather everything they gave you

Bring the modem or gateway and its power cord. Some companies want remotes and other cords too. Leave anything attached to the wall, like a fiber jack, where it is. AT&T says not to remove those.

3. Drop it off at an approved store

Most companies accept returns at their own stores or at a specific shipping store, such as The UPS Store or FedEx Office. Not every UPS or FedEx location counts, so check your company’s list.

Don’t leave equipment in a shipping drop box. AT&T and Optimum both say not to. Without a scan at the counter, you have no proof it arrived.

4. Keep your receipt

Ask for a receipt or keep the tracking number. It’s your proof if the company later says the device never came back.

5. Check your next bill or two

Returns can take a while to show up. Xfinity says up to two weeks for mailed returns, and Verizon says credits can take up to two billing cycles. If a fee appears anyway, call with your receipt in hand.

Company by company

Policies change, so follow the link for your company before you go. The deadlines here are from each company’s own support pages as of October 2026.

Xfinity (Comcast)

Start at xfinity.com/returns. You can return equipment at an Xfinity Store, or pack it in any cardboard box with a prepaid UPS label and drop it at UPS or schedule a pickup.

For UPS returns, keep the top part of the label with the tracking number, which Xfinity calls your receipt. Store returns come off your account right away. Xfinity’s return page doesn’t give a deadline, so return it within a week or two of cancelling and check your final bill.

Spectrum

Take it to a Spectrum Store, or to The UPS Store and say you’re a Spectrum customer. UPS packs and ships it for free. A UPS counter inside another shop isn’t a UPS Store. If you can’t get to either, Spectrum can send you a return kit.

Spectrum’s terms say you can be charged if equipment isn’t back within 10 days of cancelling, so return it within a week to be safe, and keep your receipt.

AT&T

Return it within 21 days of changing or cancelling service. Take it unpacked, with your account number, to a company-owned FedEx Office or The UPS Store, which will pack and ship it and give you a tracking receipt.

Leave fiber jacks, wall-mounted boxes and terminals in closets, garages or outside where they are.

Verizon Fios

Return it within 30 days of disconnecting. Bring the equipment and power cord, no box needed, to The UPS Store. In some Northeastern states and DC, Verizon stores also take Fios returns.

Verizon says unreturned equipment can cost up to $375 per item.

Verizon 5G Home Internet

Return it within 30 days of disconnecting. At The UPS Store, you don’t need a label or QR code, and shipping is free.

Cancel the line before you drop it off. Fees for unreturned 5G gateways run up to $300, depending on the model, but some models don’t need to go back at all, so check Verizon’s list.

Cox

Contact Cox to cancel or change service first, then drop the equipment at a Cox Store or The UPS Store. Cox says you don’t need a box or shipping label.

Cox’s pages have listed different deadlines, so return it as soon as you can.

Optimum

Get a prepaid FedEx label from Optimum’s returns page, pack the equipment in any box, and drop it at Walgreens, FedEx Office or another authorized FedEx location. Optimum stores also take returns.

Ask for a receipt as proof. Optimum says many older modems don’t need to be returned at all, so check its list first. Its page doesn’t give a deadline, so return it within a week or two of cancelling and check your final bill.

T-Mobile Home Internet

Return the gateway within 45 days of cancelling. Check your cancellation email for return instructions.

T-Mobile says the non-return fee can reach $370.

Should you reset it before you return it?

None of these companies’ return pages ask you to. It’s up to you. A reset erases your Wi-Fi name and password from the device, which some people prefer before handing it over. If you want to, here’s how to factory reset your router. Keep it plugged in until the reset finishes.

If you’re charged anyway

Call the company with your receipt or tracking number and ask them to remove the fee. If that doesn’t work, you can file a complaint with the FCC.

Skip the rental next time

Many cable internet companies let you use a modem you buy yourself, which ends the monthly rental charge. Check your company’s list of approved models first. Xfinity, Spectrum and Cox each publish one. Fiber and 5G home plans usually come with the company’s own device, so check before you buy one.

Common questions

What if there's no store near me?

Most companies have a mail option. Xfinity offers a prepaid UPS label and home pickup, Spectrum can send a return kit, and Optimum uses a prepaid FedEx label you can drop at Walgreens.

Can I return it before my new internet is installed?

You can, but you’ll be offline in between, because the modem is what connects you. If you’re switching companies, set up the new service first and return the old equipment right after, within the deadline.

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