How to compare broadband and pay nothing upfront
Dan Howdle | February 26th, 2024
One of the most common ways that broadband companies incentivise their offers for new customers is by offering broadband with no setup fees. This usually means that you won’t pay for things like equipment or delivery, and that your new broadband service will be installed or activated free of charge.
It used to be that broadband with no set-up costs was quite a rare find. This was because when the UK transitioned from old-fashioned ADSL (standard broadband of around 11Mbps average), upgrading to fibre meant an engineer visit, usually to your house, but always to switch connect your line at the street cabinet. Those days are gone, and even with the advent of Full Fibre, broadband deals with no setup cost are fairly commonplace.
Now it's simply a case of most of the big providers waive the setup fee, sometimes just at certain times throughout the year, and sometimes always. And because some providers are doing it, others have had to follow suit to stay competitive.
What is no upfront cost broadband?
Broadband installation typically costs broadband providers money in terms of the time spent setting up your connection, whether that's installing a new line, upgrading your line to fibre, or indeed to Full Fibre. And although charging a hefty upfront fee is going out of fashion, there are a number of different types of cost that make up the upfront fee when they do. They are:
- Router postage fee: As the description suggests, when a provider has to send you your new router via a courier, there is a cost to the provider, and this is sometimes passed onto new customers as a router postage fee. Typically this is less than £10
- Refundable upfront fee: Providers will sometimes charge a small amount to your credit or debit card when you sign up, but then refund to you in your first month's bill. At the time of writing, Sky currently charges £5 upfront, but it's refunded. This is mostly just a security check
- Connection charge: If you're upgrading to fibre or Full Fibre, sometimes providers will charge you a connection fee. This is usually between £20 and £40, depending on the provider and covers the cost of the technician visiting your property, the cabinet in the street or both
- No-contract charge: Some providers such as NOW Broadband and Virgin Media offer one-month contract broadband deals that allow you to back out any time. Providers therefore have to cover the cost to them for getting you set up and sending you a router, in case you're only with them for a month. These charges can be steep – anything up to around £70
- New line setup fee: In some very rare instances, it's necessary to install a new phone line where either one doesn't exist or where the existing line is unfit for purpose (old and degraded). New line setup fees are typically £50 to £70
Note that many of these types of setup cost won't apply to mose people. Indeed, most new customers will find they're not charged anything at all up front, but it's good to know what you could be charged, especially if you're in an unusual situation like moving to an isolated barn conversion or in need of a one-month contract.
How to choose the right no upfront cost broadband provider
It's actually surprisingly difficult to say which broadband providers offer deals with no upfront costs at any given time because providers like BT for example frequently switch between having a set-up fee and not having a set-up fee. When they do this is often replaced with a higher reward voucher for new customers, and sometimes you'll get both: Free set-up and a reward card. This is why the words 'don't usually' are doing some heavy lifting, but we'll explain what the general lay of the land is here with each of the main providers:
Providers and their upfront costs
This is how each of the main providers approaches upfront costs.
Virgin Media broadband – Virgin Media has tended not to charge any kind of setup fee in recent times. True, you will sometimes find narrow windows throughout the year where a set-up fee is present, but it's rare. The lack of an installation charge with Virgin Media is especially good because Virgin Media has its own network, and switching to Virgin usually involves quite a lot of work from their end (none from yours)
Sky Broadband – At the time of writing, Sky Broadband typically charges £5 upfront on its broadband deals, but the £5 is refunded on your first bill. Outside of that, during some parts of the year, Sky will charge a set-up cost (typically around £30), but for most of the year it doesn't. You also won't find any set-up fees attached to bundles that contain Sky Stream TV at the current time
BT Broadband – BT Broadband is quite expensive in 2024, and added to that, of all the major providers it tends to spend more of the year charging something upfront. That said, there are plenty of opportunities throughout the year to get BT Broadband without a set-up fee, and BT also tends to offer reward card with new broadband deals, which can offset some of the expense of the service
TalkTalk broadband – TalkTalk often offers broadband with no extra costs throughout the year. In fact, we can't remember the last time we saw TalkTalk charging anything upfront. No set-up fees has long been the main way TalkTalk entices new customers – and it's probably not all that happy that most other big providers have now followed suit
Plusnet broadband – You won’t pay fees for installation or equipment with Plusnet broadband. You will need to pay for your first month in advance however – so not an extra cost as such, but it is an upfront cost, but it does mean you will have quite a long period before you need to settle your next monthly bill
Vodafone broadband – You won’t pay any extra costs with Vodafone fibre broadband (and it does only offer fibre now) even when a new phone line needs to be installed, which is very generous
NOW broadband – NOW Broadband always charges a postage fee for your new router of around £10. And because NOW Broadband offers one-month broadband contracts, those specific deals come with a hefty upfront cost of around £70 – and you won't ever get that back, as it's NOW Broadband's insurance you won't back out of the deal after a month, which is of course your prerogative with a one-month rolling contract
Understanding hidden costs in your broadband contract
The very existence of Ofcom, the telecoms regulator, is largely because media and telecommunications companies will try to get away with whatever they think they can. So Ofcom has to make and constantly revise the rules, which providers try new tactics to dodge them. The primary way you're going to get hit with fees you perhaps didn't expect is when providers hide costs in your contract – which almost no one takes the time to read.
Here are some of the types of fees you could be charged over and above the advertised monthly cost. For many, none of these will apply. However, it's good to be aware of them – they tend to be fairly universal among providers:
- Equipment rental fees: You won't find any charges for rental of the equipment (router, and potentially TV box), in your typical package. However, some providers offer upgrade options where instead of paying a one-off cost, you'll pay an additional monthly fee. The most common of these is a 'complete home wifi' system such as Sky Wi-Fi Max, BT Complete Wi-Fi and so on. The provider will give you a better router and/or range extenders in these instances, and you will pay an additional monthly fee
- Early termination fees: If you're tied into, for example, an 18-month contract and you need to back out after a year, you will be liable to pay off the remaining six months as a lump sum. When you sign up to a broadband contract you are contractually obliged to pay till it ends, whether you leave early or not, and this applies even if you move and cannot get your services in your new home. It's a harsh rule, and a good one to be well aware of
- Connection charge: If you're upgrading to fibre or Full Fibre, sometimes providers will charge you a connection fee. This is usually between £20 and £40, depending on the provider and covers the cost of the technician visiting your property, the cabinet in the street or both
- Broadband price rises: Providers currently raise their prices every year on April 1. The typical rise is RPI inflation, plus 3.9%. This year (2024) most rises are around 8% therefore. Price rises often don't apply for new customers, so if you got your broadband deal within a few months before April 1, it's unlikely you'll see a price rise. However, almost all broadband customers will see their bills rising at some point during their contract
What type of broadband comes with free installation?
In the past, broadband with free installation was generally with standard/ADSL packages, running on existing BT copper phone lines. Today, however, you're just as likely to find no-fee fibre broadband packages depending on what each provider is promoting at the time. And right now, since providers are keen to get customers moved onto Full Fibre if they can get it, most are offering the upgrade without any fees.
To help determine what broadband speed is right for your needs, read our guide.
Pros and cons
While broadband with no installation or delivery costs sounds like a no-brainer, it's not necessarily that simple. Whether it's wise to choose a broadband deal with no upfront costs entirely depends on the monthly costs and any other charges you might incur over the lifetime of the contract.
Here are some pros and cons for broadband with no installation fees.
Money saving – Some internet providers have surprisingly heavy charges for installation and delivery – particularly when bundling in TV services too. Avoiding these is an obvious money-saver, though you’ll need to make sure that monthly charges for your broadband aren’t hiked up to compensate for upfront savings.
Broadband-only benefits – If you’re looking for broadband on its own, without calls or TV options bundled in, then generally speaking you'll probably have the widest choice of no extra-cost options available.
Missing out on bundles – Bundles tend to have a higher likelihood of coming with an upfront cost than standalone broadband packages.
Bad timing – Sometimes your favoured provider will charge set-up fees, even when for most of the year it doesn't. And you could be unlucky enough to need a new broadband package when they do.
Compare broadband with no upfront costs
Broadband and TV with no upfront cost
Generally, combined broadband and TV packages are more likely to have extra setup, activation or delivery fees than other deals simply because there's more involved – for example satellite dishes and TV boxes. But from time to time they do come up, so use our comparison to see what's on offer at the moment – you might be in luck.
