Effective: August 18, 2026 · Version 2.0
The short version
Lifeline Access may earn commissions from the providers we refer visitors to. Some links are affiliate links, and if you ask us to connect you with a telephone company, we may be paid a referral fee for that introduction. You pay nothing extra either way.
This disclosure is made under the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR Part 255, Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.
How we get paid
Three ways:
- Affiliate links. Click a tracked link, sign up, and the provider pays us a commission.
- Referral fees. If you ask to be matched with a provider and we pass your details on, we may be paid for that introduction. You are told which companies will receive your details before you agree, and you can decline.
- Enrollment assistance. Where we help someone complete an application directly, we may be compensated by the provider.
What that changes, and what it does not
We want to be direct, because this is the part that matters:
- We have a financial interest in some of the providers we write about. Read our provider coverage the way you would read any recommendation from someone who is paid when you act on it.
- Placement and ordering can be influenced by commercial relationships. Where a company appears is not a neutral signal of quality. Compare on coverage, cost, and terms for your household.
- Not every link is monetised. Links to the FCC, USAC, the National Verifier, and other government or reference sources never are.
- Our provider directory is not a ranking. The list of companies serving your ZIP comes from USAC’s public data. Every eligible provider is listed whether or not we have any relationship with them.
- Compensation does not change the eligibility rules we publish. Those are set by the FCC. We report them as they are, and we would rather tell you that you do not qualify than pretend otherwise.
- No provider gets editorial review or approval over what we publish.
What we are not
Lifeline Access is a private website. We are not affiliated with or endorsed by any government agency, and we are not paid by any government programme.
You never have to pay a fee to apply for Lifeline. Applying through the National Verifier is free. Anyone asking you to pay to apply is not part of the legitimate process.
Your choice
You are never required to use our links or to ask us to connect you with anyone. Go to a provider directly and you get the same service on the same terms. If you would rather we did not pass your details to anyone, see Your Privacy Choices.
Questions
Want to know whether a particular link is monetised, or whether we are paid by a particular company? Ask us and we will tell you.