With Black Friday and Cyber Monday fast approaching, millions of households have a once-in-a-year opportunity to lock in a low price on broadband. One broadband advice service has outlined some tips to help people find a fast, cheap broadband deal this Black Friday.
Tom Paton, founder of broadbandsavvy.com, has explained five key things to know if you want to slash your costs.
Find out which broadband providers you can choose from
Tom said: "Nearly all British broadband providers offer different levels of discounts during Black Friday sales. If you aren't aware of all the different providers that service your address, you might miss out on finding the cheapest or fastest deal you can get."
There are three main categories of broadband providers available in the UK:
- Openreach: BT's broadband network, which is available almost everywhere in the UK. Providers include BT, Sky, Plusnet, TalkTalk, NOW Broadband, and more.
- Virgin Media: Virgin's broadband network, available in 56% of the UK.
- Altnets: small, independent broadband providers that service specific cities, towns, or counties. Providers include Community Fibre, Hyperoptic, CityFibre, and more.
Tom added: "Over the past five years, a huge number of alternative broadband networks, known as altnets, have sprung up around the UK. At the moment, these small networks are fighting tooth and nail for market share, meaning they often offer very competitive prices, especially during Black Friday sales. To save the most money, it pays to look for these smaller networks, and compare their deals to those from the major providers."
To find alternative networks that service their region, consumers can Google search for broadband providers in their town or city and look for results from independent providers.
Tom said: "Many comparison websites will not display results from smaller network operators once you type in your postcode, so you may need to do a bit of digging to find all of the networks that service your address."
Calculate how much broadband speed you need
To save as much money as possible on broadband, it's important to calculate what download and upload speed you need.
Tom said: "If you just want to get the fastest possible broadband for a cheaper price, Black Friday is a great opportunity to do this. However, if your main goal is to save as much money as possible, it pays to think about what download speed you really need.
"For most households, there's no point paying £50 to £60 per month for a 500 to 1,000 Mbps broadband connection. A 100 to 200 Mbps tariff will offer plenty of speed, even if you have a large family. And for singles and couples, 50 to 100 Mbps should suffice."
To get an idea of what download and upload speed they need, given how they use the internet, consumers can use this bandwidth needs calculator.
Know when sales start and end
Tom said: "Black Friday broadband deals are generally very easy to access, which is great. You don't have to constantly be checking prices on the day, or be worrying about deals ending early. And what's more, broadband deals can't sell out, unlike a hardware product like a Playstation 5.
"Most broadband providers start their Black Friday sales in mid-November and end them in the first week of December. However, some providers release their deals as early as the beginning of November, and some end them a bit earlier, after Cyber Monday.
"The best time to place your order is in the week leading up to Cyber Monday. Don't be afraid to take your time to find the best deal, but don't leave it beyond the end of Cyber Monday, or you might find some deals disappearing."
Watch out for mid-contract price rises
While Black Friday broadband deals can help consumers save 20% or more on a new broadband tariff, compared to the regular monthly cost, it is important to be aware of how mid-contract price rises may affect the monthly cost in future.
Tom said: "It's very common for broadband providers to automatically increase your monthly cost each year, in line with inflation. The problem is, they don't just increase the fee you pay by the inflation rate - they add on an extra increase of 3% to 4% as well. This means that if inflation is high, you might find that your monthly cost increases by 10% or even 15% a year from now, wiping out your Black Friday savings.
"When shopping for a broadband deal, read the terms and conditions carefully, to find out how your bills might increase in future. Some providers, such as Hyperoptic and Zen, promise not to increase your prices mid-contract."
Assess each provider's customer service performance
Tom said: "While buying the cheapest possible Black Friday broadband deal may seem tempting, it's important to check how good each provider's customer service is before entering into a contract. The last thing you want is to be facing issues with slow speeds or poor Wi-Fi signal, once you switch providers.
"Fortunately, Ofcom, the telecoms regulator, issues quarterly reports that assess customer satisfaction with different broadband providers in the UK. They look at overall satisfaction ratings, volumes of official complaints, as well as how long it takes each provider to answer the phone on average, helping you figure out which providers offer the best customer service."
Consumers can use the Ofcom website to review data on major broadband providers' customer service performance.
