Vodafone Business broadband review 2024: Is it any good?
Dan Howdle • September 26th, 2024
Vodafone Business broadband is amongst the fastest providers out there, and offers a broad collection of desirable features for smell to medium businesses, including symmetrical upload and download speeds for some customers. And it's also great value for money.
Those with vast business empires should look elsewhere of course. The sort of customer who will get a lot out of Vodafone Business Broadband will be in the 1-20 employees category. That said, if you're intrigued as to the ins and outs of the service, we have everything you could possibly want to know right here.
Speed and packages
Vodafone Business broadband focuses on providing fast and reliable connectivity tailored for small and medium-sized businesses. It's moved away from offering ADSL packages (as have all other providers, thank goodness) and now offers some seriously fast Full Fibre options. These include speeds tailored to different business needs, such as the Business Full Fibre 200 with an average speed of 200Mbps, Business Full Fibre 500 with 500Mbps, and Business Full Fibre 900 with speeds up to 910Mbps.
For businesses that require very high speeds, Vodafone’s Full Fibre 900 (or 910 if you're somewhere CityFibre is providing the infrastructure) package offers an average speed of 900-910Mbps at a very tempting price.
Vodafone Business broadband includes one static IP address as standard and offers a couple of different routers depending on the speed/package selected, including the Vodafone Ultra Hub WiFi 6E router on the top speeds. Pro II Broadband packages also come with (on reuest) advanced Super WiFi 6E Boosters to extend range where needed.
Vodafone Secure Net (included in Pro II packages at no extra cost) provides additional protection against security threats like viruses, malware, and phishing for a small monthly fee. Other business services though, like dedicated cloud storage or email servers are not included. All packages come with access to the Vodafone Broadband app, which allows easy management of the router and Wi-Fi settings, quick troubleshooting, support access, and the ability to set up a guest Wi-Fi network.
Vodafone Business calling packages and line rental
Line rental is included in the overall price of Vodafone Business broadband packages. Additionally, businesses can add calling packages tailored to their needs, including options like UK Anytime Calls, Evening and Weekend Calls, and International Calling plans that offer free or discounted rates to select countries.
Additional features include voicemail, caller display, call management, and enhanced support options like Support Plus and Premier Support, ideal for businesses where service reliability is critical.
Is Vodafone Business broadband fast enough for your needs?
Vodafone no longer offers low-speed ADSL packages, focusing instead on high-speed fibre broadband. Available packages range from 35Mbps to 910Mbps, and therefore catering to a variety of business types and sizes. These speeds are suitable for everything from small operations to digital-reliant businesses that handle large files, provided you don't have a very large number of employees.
For businesses heavily reliant on broadband, Vodafone’s Full Fibre options, like the 500Mbps or 900/910Mbps packages, are ideal provided you can get them (availability of Full Fibre currently stands at 62% of UK properties). Smaller, less broadband-reliant businesses, such as retail or hospitality, will likely find lower speed options are good enough, and you can upgrade whenever you please, should you hit limits.
Vodafone Business broadband upload speeds
Vodafone Business Broadband upload speeds are a little complicated. For most, Full Fibre packages will offer so-called 'asymmetrical' upload speeds. These are the sorts of speeds we're all used to where the upload speed is a fraction of the download speed. For example, Vodafone Business Pro II Full Fibre 900 offers an upload speed of 105Mbps.
However, in some areas, these packages are offered via the CityFibre network, not via Openreach. And if you live in one of these locations (in major cities for the most part), you will get symmetrical upload speeds. In the example, the Vodafone Business Pro II Full Fibre 900 package, if you're getting it via CityFibre, it'll actually be Full Fibre 910, and your upload speed will be the same as your download speed.
Vodafone's offerings both in business and in residential broadband are rather too complicated in this regard, and you'll need to check with Vodafone when you sign up to know exactly which version of the package you'll be getting, since the difference in upload speeds is substantial.
Installation
Some of this can depend on what you're getting, whether you need a new phone line installed and whether or not you are already a Vodafone residential customer at the address in question. Either way, you'll receive a confirmation of the activation date when you sign up.
On your activation date, you’ll need to set up your Vodafone Business Broadband router (which varies depending on the speed/package level you opt for) according to the instructions provided. Installation usually involves connecting the router to your existing setup, without any complex set-up steps to consider.
Once your service is activated, follow the steps in the simple setup guide provided with your router to complete the process. The Vodafone Broadband app can also assist with managing your Wi-Fi settings and troubleshooting.
Router
Unlike some of the competition, Vodafone’s routers are generally referred to by their functional names rather than specific models, such as the 'Vodafone WiFi Hub' or 'Pro II router'. The newer models, like the Vodafone Pro II include advanced features such as Wi-Fi 6, which significantly enhances speed, coverage and reliability, and can reduce interference if your Wi-Fi network is located somewhere that's 'busy' with a lot of other networks competing with one another.
The latest Vodafone routers are dual-band, providing both 2.4GHz and 5GHz networks, and are equipped with updated beam-forming technology that adapts signal direction to deliver a stronger signal to the devices that need it most. The incorporation of Wi-Fi 6 in its Pro II router further improves things, offering better handling where many devices are connected at the same time.
Overall, Vodafone’s business routers offer a solid performance compared to other 'free' offerings from broadband providers, with enhanced features that cater to business requirements, including 'Smart WiFi' boosters that will extend the range of your Wi-Fi network (available upon request).
Customer service
There are currently no useful figures showing customer service and satisfaction levels among Vodafone Business broadband customers. And sadly, sources where customers get to write reviews act like magnets for those with an axe to grind, which distorts the true picture beyond all reasonable recognition, with most telecoms providers failing to reach the lofty heights of a 2/5 average. Obviously, this is not the true picture.
According to Ofcom's most recent report on service quality, 83% of the Vodafone broadband customer base were satisfied with Vodafone’s service overall, in line with the industry average of 82%. Though this is for residential customers only, and does not include business, it does provide a reasonable gauge of how Vodafone's broadband customers perceive them.
Conclusion
Vodafone Business broadband shares part of its network with most other providers (Openreach), and part uniquely on the CityFibre network, and there are quite a few notable differences depending on which of these you can get. Most significantly, upload speeds. We find this to be a little too confusing for customers, and would like to see this simplified or standardised.
Having said that, Vodafone Business broadband is a comparatively excellent value proposition. It's cheaper than many of the other providers that immediately spring to mind when you think of business broadband, has outstanding routers, and decent enough upload speeds that will suit most small to medium businesses.
There are a wealth of benefits thrown in like static IPs and next-level tech support thrown into the mix too. We would have no qualms about recommending Vodafone as a great choice for your small to medium business broadband provider.
