From moving house to setting up a business premises, there are endless reasons why you might be looking into changing your broadband provider. Many people are simply unhappy with their existing provider, having found increased costs and slower speeds to be the norm once the initial honeymoon period has worn off.
Choosing a new package and provider can be hard when there are so many different factors to consider. Cost, speed, customer service, special promotions and availability in your area all play a part, along with many others. And if you’re looking for home broadband, then your needs are going to be different than if you’re a business.
But with so much choice out there and all of these considerations, how do you know which broadband supplier to go for? To simplify the process, here’s our guide to choosing an internet provider.
The number of premises unable to get decent broadband, when factoring in fixed wireless and fixed
Ofcom Connected nations report Autumn 2022
line, has dropped from 99,500 to 83,000 premises since our Spring update and those unable to
achieve decent broadband over a fixed line has increased from 506,0001 to 513,000 over the same
period.
Find out what options are available
Before you go any further, you need to figure out which broadband options are available to you to avoid wasting time. The first thing to do is check whether you’re still in contract with an existing provider, in which case you might not be able to switch without a hefty exit fee.
If you are free to move on, then have a look into which suppliers operate in your area. Those with specialist needs, such as rural internet users or businesses with unusually heavy usage, might need to do a bit more digging to find suitable providers. Comparison sites are useful but you won’t always find smaller companies on there, so it’s worth doing your own research.
Fixed broadband and Fixed Wireless Broadband isn’t an option for everyone, therefore you may need to look at alterantives. Below is a table from the latest Ofcom report showing the access to fixed & fixed wireless broadband in the UK.
| UK Broadband Access | Sept 2021 | January 2022 | May 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Access to full fibre | 28% | 33% | 37% |
| Access to superfast services | 96% | 96% | 96% |
| Access to Gigabit-capable services | 47% | 66% | 68% |
| Access to at least 10 Mbit/s services | 98% | 99% | 99% |
| UK Wireless Internet Service Providers (WISP) | 94% | 94% | 95% |
| UK Mobile Network Operators (MNO) | 7% | 7% | 7% |
Define your usage
What do you use the internet for? Do you watch a lot of Netflix or download films often? Do you work from home? If so, how regularly do you have video calls? These are all questions you should ask yourself in order to define your internet usage.
Knowing how much you use the internet is key to understanding how much monthly data you need. If you live alone and only really go online to check social media or send emails, then a low-cost plan with limited data should be adequate.
But if your usage is regularly medium to heavy – which will be the case if you have multiple smart devices, play online gaming or stream large quantities of media – then a plan with a higher data allowance will be necessary.
Remember that the number of people living in your household also comes into play here. Four people all with fairly low usage habits combined will still push up the overall household usage. Or, if you’re looking for business broadband, the number of people in your office and the type of work that they do should be considered. Most plans now include unlimited data (although this is rarely truly unlimited and, instead, usually refers to a very high data cap) but it’s still worth figuring out your usage in case you can get away with a cheaper, lighter plan.
Decide what speed you need
Broadband speeds are measured in megabits per second, which you’ll often see written as “Mbps”. A megabit refers to the data that is transferred when you either upload or download a file.
Streaming music is a type of downloading, as is checking social media, browsing the internet and watching films online. Uploading can include sending an email, updating file storage, or posting to social media. Some activities require simultaneous uploading and downloading, such as video calling.
For most people, downloading makes up the bulk of their internet usage. This is why when you see broadband speeds advertised, they are usually referring to download speeds, which are a lot higher than upload speeds.
For most basic tasks, a speed of around 10Mbps is sufficient. But with activities that require large quantities of data to be downloaded in a short amount of time, like online gaming, you’ll want at least 30Mbps. Anything over 30Mbps is referred to as superfast broadband.
We go into more detail in our guide to what internet speed you need, which will help you get a better understanding of your speed requirements so that you can make a more informed choice.
Set your budget
It’s no good figuring out what speed or amount of data you need if you can’t afford to pay for it. Setting a budget early on is therefore a good idea – we recommend having a range that includes what you’re willing to pay, with a hard limit on what you can actually afford. In the worst-case scenario of needing a plan that you can’t afford, you might have to consider making changes to your usage rather than your provider.
At the same time, there’s no need to spend more just because you can. Most basic packages are more than enough for most people’s needs. The average cost of broadband in the UK is £37.25, so use this as a ballpark figure when determining what you should be expecting to pay.
Choose which type of broadband
Broadband tends to cover three main types of internet connection:
- ADSL is currently the most common connection type in the UK. It uses existing phonelines to send data by splitting the signal into multiple frequencies, so that phone calls aren’t interrupted. The maximum download speed with ADSL is around 20Mbps.
- Cable is faster than ADSL but is not as widely available. It uses dedicated cables, which means a phoneline isn’t required in order to provide internet.
- Fibre optic is faster than both cable and ADSL, sending data through a glass-fibre cable in the form of light. The fast rollout of fibre optic means that it will soon overtake ADSL as the most common type.
These aren’t your only options, though. While city dwellers have the most choice and suburban areas are rarely without at least ADSL, rural communities often find themselves struggling to find a consistent internet provider. If that sounds like you, then it’s worth looking into alternative options like 4G broadband or fixed wireless.
Choose your plan and provider
Once you know your budget, data usage, speed requirements and what type of broadband you’re looking for, you can start comparing plans. Other things to consider during this process are:
- Customer service reviews
- Contract length
- Bundles
Lots of broadband packages come as bundles with phone calls or TV satellite services included. Bundles can help you to save money, but only if you would be paying for these services anyway.
For this reason, it’s best to lay out exactly what you’re looking for before starting your search. If you do want additional services, you can then weigh up the cost of paying for these separately vs as a bundle.
After you’ve chosen a broadband provider
Once you’ve picked a provider and a plan, you’ll need to get in touch with them in order to sign up. In most cases, your new provider will make all of the necessary arrangements, including contacting your old provider, but you should double-check with them that this is the case. After the switch has been made, keep an eye on your broadband speed for a couple of weeks to check you are getting what you signed up for.
Wave Internet is a specialist broadband provider, offering superfast alternative internet solutions to rural communities as well as large parts of Lancashire and Greater Manchester. We provide flexible contracts, rapid response times and unlimited usage for everyone. If you want to know more about how we can help you, contact us on 01254 377373.
