Backup internet for small businesses
Short answer: backup internet is a second, independent connection (usually cellular LTE/5G, satellite, or a second wired line) plus a router that switches to it automatically when your main connection fails. Businesses that take card payments, online orders, or run cloud POS lose sales whenever the internet goes down. A backup keeps them running.
Who needs it most
- Restaurants and bars using cloud POS, online ordering, and delivery tablets (guide)
- Car washes with unattended pay stations and membership/RFID systems (guide)
- Liquor and convenience stores with card-heavy, age-verified transactions (guide)
Start here
- Estimate what an outage costs you with our calculator (runs in your browser).
- Compare your options: cellular failover, Starlink, a second wired line, or a hotspot.
- Print the POS downtime checklist for your staff.
- Read how automatic failover works and the Texas outage history.
This guide is published by Evernet, which sells backup internet. We say so on every page and include options we don't sell. See our disclosure.