Compare the best cheap broadband deals

The main consideration if you are looking for a cheap broadband contract is obviously price. It is always worth trying to look beyond the headline monthly price for broadband because although the monthly price may seem appealing there could be other add-on fees that will increase the costs over time.

Look for additional costs that could be added by the provider. Research the answers to questions such as:

• Does a particular broadband provider charge an installation fee?
• Is there an exit penalty fee if the contract is cancelled early?
• Is the router supplied free of charge or do I have to pay for the router?
• Is post and packaging included free of charge for the router delivery?
• Do I own the router equipment or is it rented?
• Are there introductory offers applied that will run out after a certain time and costs will escalate?
• Could I get a better deal by taking out a bundle (broadband, phone and TV)?

Most broadband contracts will tie you into a contract over a period of time – usually between 12 months to 18 months. There are a smaller number of providers that offer short broadband contracts where which are effectively rolling contracts.

Generally the longer the broadband contract term, the cheaper the monthly cost. So if you do not need the flexibility that a short contract provides you would get a cheaper deal by opting for a longer contract term.

For example, a provider such as Virgin Media offer contracts over 30 days and 12 months. For the same contract you will get a cheaper monthly rate if you opt for the longer contract term. This is usually the case at other broadband companies also.

Uppermost in the minds of most people taking out a new broadband contract is how fast the broadband line will be.

If you are cost conscious and are looking at the lower cost end of the market it is inevitable that you will not be able to get the fastest broadband on the market. Most of the options available will be standard ADSL broadband and low to mid-tier fibre contracts.

Depending on your requirements an entry level fibre broadband contract could suffice (or if you are a light Internet user ADSL could be a good low cost option).

The level of speed you need will be dictated by your individual circumstances. If you don’t think you will be using your broadband for data hungry tasks on a regular basis it would be unnecessary and costly to choose a superfast broadband contract.

Depending on the type of contract you choose you may be subject to usage caps on your activity. Most broadband contracts feature unlimited usage, but the cheapest broadband deals could be subject to a monthly cap on downloads.

A contract that includes usage caps will likely be very cheap so if you are sure that you won’t exceed the usage cap then it could be a very cost effective deal. However, if you exceed the usage allowance then you will be hit for extra data fees which could significantly add to the overall monthly cost of your broadband.

If you are an existing customer and decide to take out a broadband contract with the same company it is possible that you will get a reduction on your monthly contract fee as a sort of “loyalty” bonus. For instance, if you have a mobile phone contract on the Vodafone network, by taking out Vodafone home broadband you can get a reduction on your monthly broadband bill that a non-Vodafone customer simply wouldn’t get.

There are other “existing customer” deals on offer so make sure you don’t miss out.

At the lower cost end of the scale the cheapest bundles would be for broadband and phone line. Most broadband companies require that you take out a phone line (with them) to get broadband, however, there are some companies that say a landline can be operated by another company or in fact is isn’t needed at all.

If you’re looking for a cheap overall package that includes broadband, phone and TV you will get the cheapest deals by bundling the products with the same provider.

A selection of providers such as BT or Sky will often offer a free gift with new broadband contracts to tempt customers to take out their broadband package.

There are often reward cards, Mastercard or Visa card offers where the provider will load an amount of money onto a card as a reward for a new broadband customer. This can be anything from £20, £50, £100 or sometimes more.

It is also worth keeping an eye on broadband deals with free tablet, PS4 or free TVs included.
By adding in the value of the free gift, comparatively it can substantially reduce the overall cost of the broadband contract.

Frequently there will be exclusive online only broadband sales or flash sales of broadband contracts where you will be able to get a fantastic reduction on broadband costs but the sales will only run for a day or two.

Keep a close eye on our site because on our broadband comparison deals tables we feature broadband sales along with the expiry date so if you see a fantastic deal make sure you grab it before it expires.

As with any broadband contract it is extremely important to ensure that you are able to receive service to your postcode area so enter your postcode in our broadband availability checker to see which providers service your area.

Our broadband comparison table allows you to filter contracts based on price so select the monthly price point that you are most comfortable with from the following options:

• £0-£20 per month
• £20-£25 per month
• £25-£30 per month
• £30-£40 per month
• £40-£60 per month
• £60+ per month