Broadband deals in London
What types of broadband deals can I get in London?
There are hundreds and hundreds of different broadband deals available to anyone living in the capital – so which one should you pick? The best offer for you and your household isn’t necessarily the cheapest. Budget is an important factor, but don’t make the mistake of just picking the lowest price available. If you are using your broadband regularly every day the cheapest package might not meet your needs.
What broadband speeds can I get in London?
Speed – It’s the top most important factor for most. Too slow and you’ll struggle. Too fast and you’ll be paying for a service you don’t actually need.
The range of speeds available is London is huge. There’s everything from the most basic 10Mbps to ultrafast fibre with lightening speeds of over 1000Mbps.
So, how much do you actually need? This will depend on various factors such as:
- The number of people in your home
- The amount of devices on your Wi-Fi using the internet at the same time
- What your household are using the internet for e.g. working from home, gaming, steaming
As a basic rule, you’ll need at least 10Mbps per broadband user. Although this should be doubled for any users who are gaming or streaming 4K content.
If you want an even more simplified version without the need for any type of maths at all, we’ve broken it down again so you can have a better idea of what you should be shopping around for.
1-2 person households Recommended speed: 36-100Mbps
3-4 person households Recommended speed: 60 - 300Mbps
4+ households, or gamers Recommended speed: 70 - 1000Mbps
What is the fastest broadband available in London?
Currently the fastest broadband in London is Community Fibre. They offer plans with an incredible 3Gbps. Virgin Media is the second speediest with packages of up to 1,140Mbps.
But the first thing that you should be looking at before even beginning to whittle down the best deal is to find out what speeds are actually available to your home. The speed of broadband you can access depends on whether your postcode has access to full fibre broadband yet.
The higher speeds aren't available everywhere – or with every provider – just yet. Coverage varies throughout London’s different boroughs, depending on the full fibre rollout.
Check to see what the average download speeds are where you live with our broadband postcode checker.
Remember – there are two different types of fibre broadband in London
Fibre broadband is a type of internet connection that offers faster and more reliable internet connections than ever before. But most connections referred to as ‘fibre broadband’ should more accurately be thought of as ‘partial fibre’ or ‘fibre-to-the-cabinet’ (FTTC). This offers faster speeds than ADSL – also known as standard broadband – but slower speeds than full fibre.
Like standard broadband, partial fibre still connects from the street cabinets, hence the name fibre-to-the-cabinet. But, it’s faster, because instead of running through the older, copper cables from the broadband exchange, the fibre network uses its own new fibre-optic cables.
However, the network from street cabinet to your property, is still a copper phoneline, which means the absolute maximum speed that can be reached is 80Mbps. If you see any package advertising speeds between 30Mbps and 80Mbps, it’s likely that this will be through a partial fibre connection.
What exactly is full fibre?
Full fibre is the fastest broadband available. It’s also known as Ultrafast Fibre and can give you speeds of between 100 and 1000Mbps. That’s 30 times faster than standard broadband.
This technology relies entirely on fibre optic cables that run from the broadband exchange to your property, which is also why it can be known as ‘fibre to the premises’ (FTTP). It is future-proofing businesses and homes because, once installed, there won’t be the need to invest in new broadband cables for decades.
Do I actually need full fibre?
Full fibre gives you ultrafast speeds of between 100Mbps - 1Gbps.
Do you need these? Even if you are a small household with light internet usage it is still worth thinking about full fibre. Because of the latest competitive pricing, you might not be paying much more – or sometimes any more – for these significantly greater speeds.
Also, think future-proofing. With the quality of TV shows and video games improving, smart home devices expanding and hybrid home working on the rise, the need for more bandwidth will only get greater. So, if the price is right, full fibre would always make a sensible choice if available.
Can I get full fibre broadband where I live in London?
Before you get too excited about all those high speeds, you’ll need to make sure that you have access to full fibre broadband. Currently (September 24) 68.45% of London now has access to the fastest available broadband.
The government’s target to deliver full fibre broadband nationwide aims to see a minimum of 85% of premises being able to have reach by 2025. There is a £5 billion programme, Project Gigabit, now in place to enable hard-to-reach communities to have access to lightning-fast gigabit-capable broadband. It’s tackling pockets of poor connectivity in urban areas and rural and remote communities.
Enter your postcode to see whether your home has full fibre access:
Find out more about full fibre broadband.
Who are London’s best broadband providers?
We compare brilliant broadband deals from a range of trusted providers that service the capital, including:
Virgin Media
Virgin Media, it's an all-round digital powerhouse that offers the fastest speeds with a ton of tempting TV and mobile options too.
Our Virgin Media broadband deals
Our Virgin Media broadband review
Sky
Known for over 30 years as the UK’s biggest paid-TV provider, Sky now sits in the top three as a broadband service too.
Our Sky broadband deals
BT
Attracted by its well-known name, fast speeds and great TV and broadband bundles, BT is officially the UK’s biggest broadband provider.
Our BT broadband deals
Vodafone
Well known for its competitively priced deals and wide range of packages, mighty Vodafone is the biggest full fibre provider in the UK.
Our Vodafone broadband deals
TalkTalk
With its competitive pricing and wide range of packages, TalkTalk brands itself as ‘the value provider’. An attractive option for anyone looking to cut costs on their monthly broadband spend.
Our TalkTalk broadband deals
Community Fibre
If you live in London and are looking for ultrafast fibre broadband, then the alternative network, Community Fibre could be the best provider for you.
Our Community Fibre broadband deals
Our Community Fibre broadband review
Plusnet
Known for its straightforward, budget-friendly broadband deals and UK-based customer services, Plusnet is a tempting option for anyone looking to switch and save.
Our Plusnet broadband deals
NOW Broadband
Affordable and flexible with great TV add add-ons, NOW Broadband doesn’t have the quickest speeds but it does have some of the best prices and rolling one-month contract options.
Our NOW Broadband deals
Switching broadband has never been easier
It now only takes three simple steps to change providers.
- Check you're free to leave
Avoid cancellation fees by ensuring you're out of contract. Not sure? Check your current contract or give your current provider a call.
- Choose a new deal
Put your postcode into our checker and we'll bring you all the best broadband packages based on location, speed and cost.
- Enjoy better broadband
Your new provider will sort out your switch – including contacting your current provider. It’s fast and fuss free.
Compare broadband deals in London
Whatever you’re looking for, find the best broadband offer that works for you.
- Broadband and TV
- Broadband and phone
- Broadband only
- Fibre broadband
- Cheap broadband
- Gigafast broadband
Other broadband locations
Don’t live in London? Where you live will depend on what broadband is available to you. Find out more about the best providers for different cities, what the full fibre availability is and what broadband speeds you can expect from your location.
- Broadband in Birmingham
- Broadband in Glasgow
- Broadband in Liverpool
- Broadband in Bristol
- Broadband in Manchester
- Broadband in Sheffield
- Broadband in Edinburgh
- Broadband in Leeds
- Broadband in Leicester
Finding the right broadband deal in your area doesn't have to be complicated. We're here to help.