Is BT broadband any good?
We have reviews and ratings from 53 verified customers of BT broadband.
We surveyed new customers 60 to 120 days after switching to BT - here's what they told us:
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Got a good deal plus a voucher, communications were good & engineer was on time and got everything set up quickly. Speed is ok and consistent considering distance from the main road. Have lost connection a few times due to work on lines and presumed faults but only a few days. Overall happy with the switch and service provided.
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Broadband speed similar to previous supplier, however have had more dropouts than with previous supplier. A mistake in giving e-mail address took a lot (approx 5 chat calls) of sorting out, with a promise each time that it would be sorted. A little frustrating at the time.
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My switch has not gone well. Am now 3 months in and they've still not ported over my phone number. Now it’s been so long they claim that can’t.
On average, people switching to BT saved around £1.1 per month, and rated their BT broadband 8.6/10.
New customers told us that they waited around less than 2 weeks between ordering and getting set up with BT.
To read more about what customers think of BT's broadband deals, check out our BT reviews page for 50 more reviews and in-depth ratings data.
Everything you need to know about BT
BT, or British Telecom, is the oldest, most established and best recognised broadband provider in the UK.
BT broadband is aimed at the mid-market, so you won’t find the industry’s cheapest deals here.
BT tend to increase their prices after the minimum 24 month contract is up, so it’s worth keeping an eye on the deals available elsewhere if you’re coming to the end of your contract.
All BT broadband comes on an 24 month contract as standard. BT Call Protect to keep out unwanted or nuisance callers is enacted on your BT phone line as standard.
You’ll have to pay some up front costs for your router and likely an activation fee as well. Postage and packaging is not included.
To offset these extra costs BT occasionally offer free prepaid Reward Cards ranging in value from £50 to £120.
While BT broadband is extremely well established, a note of fair warning: it often tops the most complained about provider lists and does not come with an unblemished reputation for customer service.
What can you get with BT?
ADSL broadband
BT has unlimited ADSL broadband at maximum speeds of 17Mbps.
Calls
Yes can take BT broadband package without a calls package if rarely or seldom us a landline to make calls so you can just pay for calls on a pay as you use basis.
Adding 500 anytime landline/mobile calls costs an extra £5 a month.
Unlimited Anytime Calls to landlines and mobiles comes in at an extra £15 a month.
Mobiles
BT has a wealth of SIM Only and contract phone deals available, including mulitple SIMs and discounted family plans. BT uses the EE network for voice calls and data. See all the latest BT SIM Only deals here.
Fibre broadband
BT have three kinds of Fibre Essential at Average download speed of 36 Mbps , Fibre 1 at 50Mbps and Fibre 2 at 67Mbps.
In October 2017 BT announced that existing Infinity 1 customer would get a free upgrade to 76Mbps along with an extra 100GB of cloud storage.
TV
BT TV is a subscription service added on to BT Broadband. You will need Fibre services to access some of the channels available, including any HD channels. BT recommend a download speed of at least 30Mbps for AMC and Sky Sports HD channels.
Just watch out for the small print: if you stop your service in the first year, BT will charge you up to £99.
You’ll also need at least 12 months left on your broadband package to take BT TV deals. If not, you will have to recontract with BT broadband to get access to their TV deals.
You can add Netflix to BT TV and if you watch using your Youview box it won’t take up any of your broadband data. If you watch Netflix on your laptop or phone then it will count towards your broadband data usage.
BT TV Starter
TV Starter is BT’s lowest cost option and includes a Youview box with 80 Freeview channels and BT Sport included. You get all the standard BBC and ITV channels and their HD equivalents, along with American premium channel AMC, BT Sport 1, 2, 3 and BT Sport ESPN. Your Yourview box can pause and rewind live TV, but there’s no record option available at this level.
Entertainment TV
100 channels are on offer here with the upgraded Youview+ box. You get all of the standard Freeview channels, along with a couple of extra premium channels like UK Gold, Syfy and MTV. You can pause, rewind and record live TV. BT Sport does not come as standard but you can add it for an extra £3.50 a month.
Max TV
BT’s most comprehensive TV package with 141 channels available and HD versions of the channels in the Entertainment package. It comes with all the standard Freeview channels along with a range of premium kids channels like Nickelodeon, The Disney Channel and Boomerang
This is where you will find BT Sport 4K Ultra HD – if your internet connection can support it. For normal viewing you’ll need consistent download speeds above 5Mbps. As mentioned above, for some of the Sky Sports HD channels and AMC you will need at least 30Mbps.
Business broadband
BT offers a range of business broadband deals, promising unlimited free WiFi with 24/7 tech support.
Why choose BT?
BT has one of the largest broadband networks in the UK so it may be your only option if you live in a rural area.
While it can’t compete on price with some of the budget operators on the market, if you’re a sports addict then BT Sport is where the party is at.
Some people feel more comfortable buying from the most established broadband name in the business but watch your bills because BT likes its paid add-on extras.
Not sure if BT is right for you? Have a look at what else you could get with our best broadband deals and compare before you order.
