Alarm systems, local alarm rules, and your internet bill
Monitoring costs $20 to $60 a month, and false alarms can cost far more than that if you don't know the local rules. Internet is usually the easiest bill to cut with one phone call.
Last checked Oct 20, 2026
Alarm rules in Sunnyvale
| Alarm permit | $35 a year, within 30 days of installing ($250 penalty if you don't) |
|---|---|
| False alarm fees | 2 free per 12 months, then $200 to $750 each |
| Who responds | Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety |
150 residential burglaries in 2024, down from 210 in 2022: roughly 1 per 1,000 residents a year (California DOJ).
What monitoring costs
| Service | Monitoring per month | Contract |
|---|---|---|
| Ring Protect | ~$20 | None |
| SimpliSafe | ~$22–32 | None |
| ADT (professional install) | ~$25–61 | Often 36 months |
Prices from comparison sites, not the companies. A monitored burglar and fire alarm often earns 5–15% off home insurance, which is $125–375 a year on a $2,500 policy: real money, but rarely enough on its own to pay for monitoring.
Internet
Available here: Xfinity cable everywhere; AT&T Fiber in much of the city; Verizon and T-Mobile 5G home internet; Starlink.
Call when your promo price ends
$360–720 a yearIntroductory prices typically jump $30–60 a month after 12 months. Calling to ask for a current offer, or switching to fiber where available, usually brings it back down.
Low-income plans
Xfinity Internet Essentials: $14.95/month (75 Mbps) or $29.95 (100 Mbps). Access from AT&T: for households in a qualifying program or below 200% of the poverty line.
Sunnyvale's 2% utility users' tax applies to landline and mobile phone service but excludes internet access (Measure N, 2016). There's no senior exemption.
Facts are checked against the public sources listed on each page. Rates change every year; each page shows when it was last checked. Individual bills are confidential in California, so personal numbers are estimates from public rates. Nothing here is legal, tax or insurance advice.