Choosing the best broadband deal
There are several major factors you'll need to consider when choosing a new broadband deal. The price, obviously, but also the speed you'll get, the provider and its reputation, how long you'll be tied into the contract and more. Here we'll take a look at those factors in more detail.
Monthly price – setting a budget
How much you pay should begin with understanding how much you're prepared to pay. Most of us will come to this with a budget in mind, but what you pay ultimately is tied to six main factors:
- Speed – Broadly speaking the faster the broadband, the more you will pay. However, this is not always the case comparing across different providers as each has its own pricing scale
- Provider – Each provider sets its pricing differently, depending on where it pitches itself in the general marketplace. That means the same broadband speed can be offered across a broad range of pricing from one provider to the next
- Contract length – Almost all broadband packages are either 18 or 24 months in length now. However, some providers do offer one-month rolling contracts, for which you will pay a premium either in terms of a hefty up-front cost (NOW Broadband), or an extraordinarily hefty monthly bill (Virgin Media)
- Package contents – Comparing like for like speed doesn't always tell you the whole story. For example, one package may be a few pounds more expensive than the other, offer the same speeds, but come with a wealth of extras like (for example) an internet security package, or phone line with anytime calls. You have to look at the detail to understand why things are priced as they are, but sometimes it just comes down to where a provider chooses to set its price
- Mid-contract price rises – Every broadband provider still currently raises its prices by inflation plus 3.8% every April 1. Ofcom, the telecoms regulator is cracking down on it as we speak, but until then, unless stated otherwise, you should expect this
- Special offers – Most broadband providers have intermittent offers running which can add anything from several months free, to a gift or reward card, to a free TV or games console. These sorts of offers are well worth seeking out and can add substantial value
Choosing a download speed
There are various ways of determining the right speed for you and your household. None of them will ever be dead accurate however, since getting the right speed is more art than science. That's because for most households, there will be long periods of the day and night where you could happily get by with 10Mbps, and others where you're hitting upper limits no matter how fast your broadband is – when downloading a new game, for example.
Broadly, our advice is to get the fastest thing you can get, if you or members of your household regularly download videogames, and for the budget conscious, get the fastest thing you can afford. For everyone else, the following rough guide should help.
| Broadband users |
Type of broadband |
Speeds |
| 1-2 people |
ADSL or Fibre |
10-60Mbps |
| 3-4 people |
Fibre or Full Fibre |
100-300Mbps |
| 5+ people |
Full Fibre |
150-500Mbps |
| Gamers or streamers |
Full Fibre |
300-1Gbps or more |
Contract length
There's a lot less variety when it comes to the length of your contract than there used to be, with almost no 12-month contracts now available, a smattering of 18-month contracts still out there, and a wealth of 24-month contracts, with the latter becoming the new normal. BT started this trend of two-year contracts a couple of years ago, and extended it to the other brands it owns: EE Broadband and Plusnet. Subsequently, brands like Sky Broadband, NOW Broadband and Vodafone Broadband have followed BT's lead.
Suffice it to say we are not fans of these very long contracts becoming the norm, because there are no tangible benefits to you, the customer. Longer contracts are better only for providers, and that's that.
Choosing a provider
Obviously, being able to provide the speed you need at the right price, with a good quality router and reputable customer service are all factors connected to the provider you choose. Rather like the price you should be paying, choosing a provider is connected to every other factor in this section of the guide – or more to the point, understanding what you need out of your broadband package should help you choose a suitable provider.
Promotions and incentives
These are well worth keeping your ear to the ground for. You can see all the offers on right now by selecting the 'Deals with rewards and offers' filter in our comparison table. You'll usually see a range of different offer types.
Vouchers, gift cards, cashback and bill credit
Vouchers are just that: money-value tickets you can spend in specific stores – quite rare these days. Gift cards are the same, but come in the form of a card or electronically via a code. Cashback is usually supplied in the form of a 'reward card', which is essentially a pre-paid Mastercard you can spend anywhere. And finally, bill credit is where a designated amount comes off your first bills, so £100 bill credit on a £25 per month package would mean you get the first four months free.
Free gifts
An exclusive and rarer category, but you do still see deals like this pop up from time to time – usually on broadband and TV bundles. A free TV or games console have been the most recent of these, though in the past there have also been various smart home devices – Ring doorbells, smart speakers, bluetooth headphones and the like.
Black Friday
On Black Friday (the last Friday of November wherever that happened to sit), some providers will roll out their very best deals and offers. Is it worth waiting for Black Friday to choose a new broadband deal? No. Not really. The offers are sometimes marginally better, but not enough that sticking with an expensive or inadequate package while you wait is going to be offset. If you happen to be switching broadband provider around the end of November though, your chances of finding a great deal are going to be higher.
Haggling with your current provider
If your primary motivation for switching is to find a cheaper deal, but you're pretty happy with your current provider, calling them up to renegotiate a new contract at the end of your existing one can be a good idea. Here's what you need to do.
- Find a cheaper alternative package – Before calling, familiarise yourself with a couple of options that would make your existing package and speed cheaper if you got it from another provider. If you're threatening to switch if they don't give you a better deal they will ask you to which package you're threatening to switch to. Make sure you have an answer
- Call them – You will be put through to their retentions team most likely. They will tell you what deals are available to you if you re-contract
- Be prepared to walk away – If what they offer isn't as cheap or as good as what you could be switching to, be prepared to walk away. Thank your existing provider and tell them you are switching because they could not match the deal you found
- Actually switch – And here's the secret knowledge no one ever mentions. The moment you sign up to a new provider your existing provider is notified. The last time we refused our existing provider's offer and went to switch, they were on the phone to us within five minutes with a much better offer. This won't always work, but bear in mind there is a difference between threatening to leave and actually leaving when it comes to how you are perceived by your existing provider
What our expert says...
"If you’re new to the world of broadband it can be a dizzying experience both understanding your own needs and matching those against the many, many packages available from a huge quantity of providers. If I were to offer one tip though it’s this: Get the fastest speed you can comfortably afford and you will never be far wrong."
Dan Howdle, Broadband and mobile expert
