Free (free.fr)
Shares rank 9 of 12 internet service providers by recommenders
Recommended for low prices that pushed rival French ISPs to compete and reliable service for many users. Main caveat: IPv6 setup quirks.
Recommended for low prices that pushed rival French ISPs to compete and reliable service for many users. Main caveat: IPv6 setup quirks.
9 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 5
- criticize it
- 4
- approval share
- 56%
Recommended in 3 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 5 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- 1.2 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, not met.
- Recommended in 3 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Low prices that pressure rivals
“they have crazy low prices which forced the 3 other ISPs to stay competitive”
Comment from 26 Aug 2026 in “France reaches 94.9% fiber coverage in 2026” “Free was absolutely demolishing the local big carrier”
Comment from 26 Aug 2026 in “France reaches 94.9% fiber coverage in 2026” Works well for many users
“I don't have such issues with Free.”
Comment from 26 Aug 2026 in “France reaches 94.9% fiber coverage in 2026” “it's working perfectly fine”
Comment from 21 Jun 2026 in “Google Hits 50% IPv6”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
IPv6 setup quirks and IPv4 fallback
“IPv6 firewall disabled by default. There is only one config for the firewall: on / off.”
Comment from 21 Jan 2026 in “IPv6 is not insecure because it lacks a NAT” “happy eyeballs sometimes landing on v4 because their v6 is shitty 6rd or something”
Comment from 21 Jun 2026 in “Google Hits 50% IPv6”
Other internet service providers people recommend
The four most recommended other internet service providers, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starlink | 547 | 353 | 61% | 13 | 2 yrs12 owners | — |
| Comcast internet | 19 | 72 | 21% | 11 | 15 yrs4 owners | — |
| Google Fiber | 18 | 12 | 60% | 6 | — | — |
| Andrews & Arnold | 10 | 3 | 77% | 6 | — | Approved |
| Free (free.fr)This page | 5 | 4 | 56% | 3 | — | — |
What people said
All 9 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“I don't have such issues with Free.”
“Free was absolutely demolishing the local big carrier”
“they have crazy low prices which forced the 3 other ISPs to stay competitive”
“some are more aggressive than others”
“it's working perfectly fine”
“happy eyeballs sometimes landing on v4 because their v6 is shitty 6rd or something”
“Mono Culture - Free - Northern Exposure Expeditions”
“same kinda deal with free.fr. If I check availability by address, it fails”
“IPv6 firewall disabled by default. There is only one config for the firewall: on / off.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.