The most important factors when choosing a new ISP – ranked

If you’re thinking about choosing a new ISP, you’re in the right place.

Our website lists hundreds of broadband deals for postcodes throughout the UK, from a wealth of providers and with numerous different line speeds, costs, inclusions and conditions.

In fact, choosing a new ISP can be daunting with so much choice across a hotly contested domestic broadband sector.

If you’re one of the many people who puts up with an existing supplier’s mediocrity because the prospect of finding a new provider feels overwhelming, we may be able to help.

We’ve taken the unusual step of attempting to rank the most important things to consider when finding a new ISP.

Inevitably, that will vary in some cases.

If you live in one of the 90,000 UK homes with internet speeds below the 10Mbps threshold considered a ‘decent internet’ connection, speed will be an overwhelming concern.

If you’re the sort of person who can stretch a loaf of bread and a piece of cheese across several evening meals, price considerations are likely to be paramount.

However, there are some general principles which will extend to most households thinking about choosing a new ISP.

These are our recommendations regarding what to look at – and in which order…

The most important attributes in a new ISP

1. Speed.

It’s only once you live in a property with an ADSL connection of 10-11Mbps that you recognise how often day-to-day online activities take a higher connection speed for granted.

HD streaming, online gaming, outgoing emails with large attachments, updating OneDrive, video calling, photo processing – these are some of the tasks which strain slower connections.

A key problem is that speeds on ADSL and FTTC connections are asymmetric. If you’re a regular content creator or work from home, look for symmetrical upload/download speeds.

2. Cost.

As mentioned above, we could have placed cost above speed. However, people are more likely to change ISP to receive faster line speeds than to save a few pounds each month.

Nonetheless, cost remains hugely significant when comparing ISP deals, especially since flagship packages might have ultrafast line speeds you can’t justify paying a premium for.

Look beyond the monthly headline figures and consider setup fees, router charges and exit penalties if your circumstances change. Does that ISP offer slower speeds at cheaper prices?

3. Customer service.

This is an industry where “never again” is routinely used to underscore tales of unreliable service, recurring billing errors, unhelpful tech support and questionable customer service.

You can find a great deal about customer service in a simple web search. Look at business review platforms like Trustpilot, and ask your neighbours who they’d recommend or avoid.

Consider where a potential new ISP scores highly or falls down. Would poor service bother you? Is speed important? Are myriad tales of poor tech support a potential deal-breaker?

4. Contract length.

If the three criteria above have all been satisfactorily met by an advertised ISP deal, it’s time to think about how long you’d like to remain a customer for.

Is there a possibility you might be moving house in the next two years? If so, avoid a 24-month deal. Are you in a student let? A rolling one-month contract might be better than an annual commitment.

Longer contracts tend to represent better value, and they reduce the frequency of renegotiating contracts/changing ISPs, but being locked in isn’t great if you become unhappy.

5. Extras.

The days of triple-play and quad-play contracts are slowly receding, but many people still welcome getting phone and/or TV packages bundled into broadband subscriptions.

Some ISPs specialise in offering television, landline and/or mobile phone contracts, depending on their other business areas of expertise.

However, don’t assume these bundles are automatically good value. You might not want or need a thousand hours of smartphone talk time, or yet another TV package to add to all your streaming subscriptions.