Review article by Steve Tattersall, Broadband Technology Writer, last updated 14 November 2024

What We Like (Pros): Feature-rich broadband packages, powerful Smart Hub 2 (pictured looking great in my hallway at home), no need for a landline phone (unless you want one), good value TV packages (from EE), easy ordering (only took me 10 minutes),

What We Dislike (Cons): Can be pricey, but I think it's worth it. Look out for BT sale/promo periods (like now) when there are offers on broadband. Ultrafast gigabit speed coverage is less than Virgin Media's. No rolling one-month broadband deals available

Our Verdict: 5 out of 5 

In this review: 1. Introduction 2. BT Broadband - At a glance 3. BT Broadband speed performance 4. BT Broadband prices (24-month contracts) 5. BT Broadband prices (12-month contracts) 6. Comparable services: BT Fibre Vs Sky Fibre & Virgin Media 7. BT home phone review 8. EE TV review (formerly BT TV) 9. BT Broadband, phone & EE TV deals 10. BT package & router details 11. Installation & setup 12. BT customer service performance 13. Questions & Answers 14. Our final verdict on BT

1. Introduction

BT, part of the BT Group, is the UK's number one broadband and phone supplier with over 9.3 million customers. Around 1.9 million customers bundle BT Broadband, phone and TV together to make generous savings, while there are also approxiamately 500,000 BT Mobile customers. With its number one position and 'best-known' status in the industry, we take a closer look ourselves at its broadband, phone and TV packages to understand costs, actual speeds and customer service performance. Learn what we like and dislike about BT Broadband with our review and compare it against Sky & Virgin Media. You can then decide whether a BT Broadband deal (with or without BT TV) is right for you. If you like, you can also start your BT order from this page.

2. BT Broadband - At A Glance

• Average speeds: Broadband 10Mbps, Fibre Essential 36Mbps, Fibre 1 50Mbps, Fibre 2 67Mbps, Full Fibre 150Mbps, Full Fibre 300Mbps, Full Fibre 500Mbps, Full Fibre 900Mbps
• BT Full Fibre Review: BT's Full Fibre rollout, via Openreach (see FTTP rollout map here), with top average speeds of 900Mbps, currently reaches around 13.8 million UK premises with plans to reach 25 million by 2026. BT Full Fibre 150Mbps prices start from £29.99 a month. You can find out more about BT full fibre availability and the BT Fibre Checker service here



• Latest BT Broadband prices (24-month contracts): from £29.99p/m for Fibre Essential, from £30.99p/m for Fibre 1, from £29.99p/m for Fibre 2, from £29.99p/m for Full Fibre 100Mbps (promo price), from £32.99p/m for Full Fibre 300Mbps (promo price), from £39.99p/m for Full Fibre 500Mbps & from £44.99p/m for Full Fibre 900Mbps (promo price). BT Reward Card up to the value of £50 available. Add the EE TV Entertainment package containing Sky Atlantic from NOW and Netflix for £14 a month. Find out how much is TNT Sports here. Get BT's unbreakable home Wi-Fi with BT Hybrid Broadband - simply add Hybrid Connect (pictured in our conservatory to get the best EE mobile signal) for the UK's only broadband backed up by EE, the UK's best mobile network (available for £7p/m)
• FREE Broadband Extras: The stylish BT Smart Hub 2 with all fibre plans - The UK's most powerful wireless router (also enables you to pause/control individual device access to the internet - which I found to be very useful as a parent), BT Virus Protect with Norton Security - Safeguard up to 15 of your devices from viruses, phishing & other online attacks, BT Parental Controls - Stay in control of what your family can access online and BT Cloud - 1000GB's of online storage for your important photos & files



• BT Complete Wi-Fi Review - Pay an extra £10p/m for BT Complete Wi-Fi & get BT's clever Wi-Fi Discs to extend your BT Smart Hub's signal to every corner of your home (I found these to work really well when I tested them in my converted office in my garage). BT Complete Wi-Fi offers the UK's fastest Wi-Fi guarantee or they'll give you £100 back
• BT Halo Review - Buy a BT Broadband plan with BT Halo 1, 2 or 3 included and enjoy some/all of the following benefits; the next-generation BT Smart Hub 2, access to Home Tech Experts, the BT Keep Connected Promise during broadband faults & house moves, double data on BT Mobile and a BT price promise when your broadband contract ends
• Cheaper BT Broadband for people on benefits: Please see BT Home Essentials Broadband for more information
• Looking for a shorter length BT Broadband contract? Take a look at the BT 12 month contract deals or the BT Student Broadband offers
• BT Broadband customer complaints Q3 2023: 11 complaints per 100,000 customers, (less than rivals Vodafone, TalkTalk, Shell Energy & Virgin Media) and less than the industry average of 15 per 100,000 (Source: Latest Ofcom Telecoms & Pay TV Complaints Report, published 25th January 2024)
• BT Broadband customer satisfaction 2022: 83% satisfaction with overrall BT Broadband services, which is slightly better than the industry average of 82% (Source: Ofcom Comparing Customer Service Report 2022, published 18th May 2023)

3. BT Broadband Speed Performance

The BT broadband speeds listed on this page and site (namely Broadband 10Mbps, Fibre Essential 36Mbps, Fibre 1 50Mbps, Fibre 2 67Mbps, Full Fibre 100Mbps, Full Fibre 500Mbps & Full Fibre 900Mbps) are average download speeds based on the speed available to at least 50% of BT Broadband customers at peak time (8pm-10pm). The actual speed you receive will depend on your location, phone line, internal home wiring, Wi-Fi connection and time of day. I particularly liked how BT informed me of the likely download speed I would receive at my house prior to me placing my online order.

Like Sky, TalkTalk, Plusnet and EE, BT uses the ADSL and fibre broadband network built and maintained by Openreach, which is part of the wider BT Group. Therefore, BT's speeds are similar to the average speeds of these other providers, but slower than Virgin Media, which uses its own fibre network and technology (expect to pay more for Virgin Broadband speeds).

So, how does BT's advertised download speeds compare to their real world 24-hour average speeds? The Ofcom UK Home Broadband Performance Chart Data (measurement period March 2023, published in September 2023) reveals that BT's advertised average 36Mbps FTTC (fibre to the cabinet) speeds (Fibre Essential) were 33.33Mbps with a 12.01 milliesecond latency/ping. BT's 50Mbps (Fibre 1) & 67Mbps (Fibre 2) FTTC speeds were 44.93Mbps & 67.15Mbps with respective latency/pings of 11.2ms & 10.25ms. The real world 24-hour average speeds of BT's full Fibre 100Mbps, 300Mbps & 900Mbps FTTP (Fibre to the premises) packages were very impressive and found to be 149.05Mbps, 304.22Mbps & 925.69Mbps. The respective and fast latency/ping rates of 7.32ms, 6.93ms and 6.93ms are equally impressive and well suited for gamers in particular. No data is currently available for BT's Full Fibre 500 package, though I expect it to be equally impressive.

4. Compare BT Broadband Prices On A 24 Month Contract

BT Fibre broadband deals with no landline phone service start from £29.99 a month and include extras like BT Cloud storage, Norton Security and BT Parental Controls. Order the BT fibre 1 package and above at BT.com and qualify for a FREE £50 BT Reward Card to go shopping with.

Pricing Information

* Please note the monthly price will rise from March each year by the Consumer Price Index rate of inflation (which is published in January each year), plus 3.9%.

Provider	Package Details	Average Speed*	Download Limit	Contract Period	Monthly Cost	More Info
Average speed*: 150Mb, Download limit: Unlimited, £0 setup, 1st year cost £359.88, £29.99 per month, increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9%*	BT Full Fibre 100 Broadband *For 24 months. No landline phone service included (can be added if required). Annual price increase applies	150Mb	Unlimited	24 months	Increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9% £29.99* 1st year cost: £359.88 £0.00 setup	Add EE TV Entertainment Including Netflix & NOW For £14p/m Check availability at BT Powerful Smart Hub + Speed Guarantee + £50 BT Reward Card To Go Shopping With
Average speed*: 67Mb, Download limit: Unlimited, £0 setup, 1st year cost £359.88, £29.99 per month, increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9%*	BT Fibre 2 Broadband *For 24 months. No landline phone service included (can be added if required). Annual price increase applies	67Mb	Unlimited	24 months	Increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9% £29.99* 1st year cost: £359.88 £0.00 setup	Add EE TV Entertainment Including Netflix & NOW For £14p/m Check availability at BT Powerful Smart Hub + Speed Guarantee + £50 BT Reward Card To Go Shopping With
Average speed*: 36Mb, Download limit: Unlimited, £0 setup, 1st year cost £359.88, £29.99 per month, increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9%*	BT Fibre Essential Broadband *For 24 months. No landline phone service included (can be added if required). Annual price increase applies	36Mb	Unlimited	24 months	Increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9% £29.99* 1st year cost: £359.88 £0.00 setup	Add EE TV Entertainment Including Netflix & NOW For £14p/m Check availability at BT Powerful Smart Hub + Speed Guarantee
Average speed*: 50Mb, Download limit: Unlimited, £31.99 setup, 1st year cost £403.87, £30.99 per month, increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9%*	BT Fibre 1 Broadband *For 24 months. No landline phone service included (can be added if required). Annual price increase applies	50Mb	Unlimited	24 months	Increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9% £30.99* 1st year cost: £403.87 £31.99 setup	Add EE TV Entertainment Including Netflix & NOW For £14p/m Check availability at BT Powerful Smart Hub + Speed Guarantee + £50 BT Reward Card To Go Shopping With
Average speed*: 300Mb, Download limit: Unlimited, £0 setup, 1st year cost £395.88, £32.99 per month, increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9%*	BT Full Fibre 300 Broadband *For 24 months. No landline phone service included (can be added if required). Annual price increase applies	300Mb	Unlimited	24 months	Increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9% £32.99* 1st year cost: £395.88 £0.00 setup	Add EE TV Entertainment Including Netflix & NOW For £14p/m Check availability at BT Powerful Smart Hub + Speed Guarantee + £50 BT Reward Card To Go Shopping With
Average speed*: 500Mb, Download limit: Unlimited, £0 setup, 1st year cost £479.88, £39.99 per month, increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9%*	BT Full Fibre 500 Broadband *For 24 months. No landline phone service included (can be added if required). Annual price increase applies	500Mb	Unlimited	24 months	Increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9% £39.99* 1st year cost: £479.88 £0.00 setup	Add EE TV Entertainment Including Netflix & NOW For £14p/m Check availability at BT Powerful Smart Hub + Speed Guarantee + £50 BT Reward Card To Go Shopping With
Average speed*: 900Mb, Download limit: Unlimited, £0 setup, 1st year cost £539.88, £44.99 per month, increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9%*	BT Full Fibre 900 Broadband *For 24 months. No landline phone service included (can be added if required). Annual price increase applies	900Mb	Unlimited	24 months	Increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9% £44.99* 1st year cost: £539.88 £0.00 setup	Add EE TV Entertainment Including Netflix & NOW For £14p/m Check availability at BT Powerful Smart Hub + Speed Guarantee + £50 BT Reward Card To Go Shopping With

5. Compare BT Broadband Prices On A 12 Month Contract

BT's 12 month broadband deals work out more expensive than their 24 month contracts above, however, they do offer that bit more flexibility should you not wish to be tied into a longer contract period. My neice has found this to be a good option whilst at University, while those people renting should also consider it. Take a look below or read our article on BT Broadband 12 month contract deals.

Pricing Information

* Please note the monthly price will rise from March each year by the Consumer Price Index rate of inflation (which is published in January each year), plus 3.9%.

Provider	Package Details	Average Speed*	Download Limit	Contract Period	Monthly Cost	More Info
Average speed*: 36Mb, Download limit: Unlimited, £29.99 setup, 1st year cost £497.87, £38.99 per month, increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9%*	BT Fibre Essential Broadband *For 12 months. £5p/m landline phone service included (can be removed if required). Annual price increase applies	36Mb	Unlimited	12 months	Increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9% £38.99* 1st year cost: £497.87 £29.99 setup	Unrivalled Security Find out more at BT Powerful Smart Hub + Speed Guarantee
Average speed*: 50Mb, Download limit: Unlimited, £29.99 setup, 1st year cost £509.87, £39.99 per month, increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9%*	BT Fibre 1 Broadband *For 12 months. £5p/m landline phone service included (can be removed if required). Annual price increase applies	50Mb	Unlimited	12 months	Increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9% £39.99* 1st year cost: £509.87 £29.99 setup	Unrivalled Security Find out more at BT Powerful Smart Hub + Speed Guarantee
Average speed*: 67Mb, Download limit: Unlimited, £29.99 setup, 1st year cost £557.87, £43.99 per month, increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9%*	BT Fibre 2 Broadband *For 12 months. £5p/m landline phone service included (can be removed if required). Annual price increase applies	67Mb	Unlimited	12 months	Increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9% £43.99* 1st year cost: £557.87 £29.99 setup	Unrivalled Security Find out more at BT Powerful Smart Hub + Speed Guarantee

6. Comparable Services: BT Fibre Versus Sky Fibre & Virgin Media Fibre

How does BT Superfast Fibre stack up against its main competitors Sky and Virgin Media? Take a look at the table below to see how BT Superfast Fibre speeds and prices compare with similar fibre packages from Sky and Virgin Media. Use our fibre broadband checker to compare BT with other suppliers.

* Please note prices may change during the contract

Provider	Package Details	Average Speed*	Download Limit	Contract Period	Monthly Cost	More Info
Average speed*: 150Mb, Download limit: Unlimited, £0 setup, 1st year cost £359.88, £29.99 per month, increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9%*	BT Full Fibre 100 Broadband *For 24 months. No landline phone service included (can be added if required). Annual price increase applies	150Mb	Unlimited	24 months	Increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9% £29.99* 1st year cost: £359.88 £0.00 setup	Add EE TV Entertainment Including Netflix & NOW For £14p/m Check availability at BT Powerful Smart Hub + Speed Guarantee + £50 BT Reward Card To Go Shopping With
Average Speed*: 145Mb, Download limit: Unlimited, £0 setup, 1st year cost £360, £30 per month, prices may change during contract*	Unlimited Sky Broadband Ultrafast + Unlimited Sky WiFi + Sky Talk Pay As You Go Calls To UK Landlines & Mobiles * For 18 months. Includes Sky phone line rental. Pricing may change during this 18 month period	145Mb	Unlimited	18 months	Prices may change during contract £30.00* 1st year cost: £360.00 £0.00 setup	No Setup Fee Find out more at Sky Includeds Sky Wall To Wall Wi-Fi Guarantee
Average speed*: 132Mb, Download limit: Unlimited, £0 setup, 1st year cost £408, £34 per month, prices may change during contract*	Virgin Media M125 Fibre Broadband + Weekend Calls To UK Landlines & Mobiles * For 18 months. Includes Virgin Media phone line rental. Pricing may change during this 18 month period	132Mb	Unlimited	18 months	Prices may change during contract £34.00* 1st year cost: £408.00 £0.00 setup	FREE Setup + 14-Day Money Back Guarantee Find out more at Virgin Media Now With Intelligent WiFi To Automatically Sort WiFi Issues

7. BT Home Phone Review

BT offers a range of simple, flexible home phone calling plans to suit the way you chat, plus some useful home phone features, like Call Protect, which is free to use and can protect you from unwanted calls.

To start with though, all BT Broadband packages do not include a landline phone service - which is perfect if, like me, you don't use your home phone to make calls. You can easily opt to add a digital landline phone service if you need to - with pay as you go calls being charged in accordance with BT's latest call rate tariffs which can be found on their website.

If you make regular UK calls on your landline, BT's home phone calling plans are a good choice as there's no rules around the times (e.g evening and weekend) you can make the calls. This means you can talk whenever you want, without the worry. For £7 a month, you can get 700 minutes to make calls to any UK landline number or UK mobile, day or night. A 30 day rolling contract applies, so they're flexible too if your needs change. If 700 minutes a month is not enough, there is an option to add Unlimited Minutes for £15 a month.

Phoning abroad? If you have friends or family living abroad, you can stay in contact cheaply by adding one of BT's international call plan add-ons. For example, Friends and Family International is just £2.02 a month and gives you discounted call rates to 236 international destinations. Alternatively, for £8.61 a month, International Freedom gives you 600 minutes of inclusive calls to BT's most popular international destinations.

Other BT home phone call features that can be added to your calling plan (some are chargeable) include BT 1571 Voicemail, Call Diversion, Three-Way Calls and Caller Display.

8. EE TV Review - With Sky Channels From NOW & All Of Netflix

EE TV (formerly BT TV) is EE's flexible digital TV service which offers 5 core channel packs; Entertainment, Big Entertainment, Sport, Big Sport and Full Works - all of which, though available on 24 month contracts, can be changed each month. The Entertainment channel pack, currently from £14 a month, includes the BT 4K recordable TV box, all 80 Freeview TV & radio channels, the NOW Entertainment Membership with 20 premium channels including Sky Atlantic, Sky One, Discovery & Comedy Central, over 300 Box Sets on demand from NOW TV, all of Netflix, plus catch-up TV (with a unique scrollback EPG) using the BBC iPlayer, ITV Hub, All4 & My5. Other channel packs, featuring the likes of TNT Sports, Sky Sports and Sky Cinema, can be added and changed on a monthly basis.

Existing BT customers and many switching Sky and Virgin Media TV customers are using the EE TV Entertainment pack (which includes Freeview) to save money on their digital TV bills as the monthly subscription is from just £14. They then simply bolt on additional channel packs like Sport on a flexible monthly basis.

EE TV Big Entertainment Package - From £30 A Month

New or existing BT Fibre Broadband customers also have the option of adding the EE TV Big Entertainment pack to their BT Fibre Broadband online order. With the EE TV Big Entertainment package, the following is provided:

• The 500GB TV 4K recordable set top box worth £299 (pause, rewind & record live TV)
• Over 80 Freeview TV and radio channels, including 15 HD channels
  
• The NOW Entertainment Membership with 20 premium TV channels including Sky Atlantic, Sky One, Discovery and Comedy Central
  
• Over 300 Box Sets on demand from NOW
• All the Sky Cinema channels, plus over 1,000 movies on demand from NOW
• All of Netflix
• Catch Up TV (with unique scrollback EPG) using the BBC iPlayer, ITV Hub, All4 and My5
• Add other channel packs like Sport (all 4 TNT Sports channels and Box Nation for £20p/m) or Big Sport (all 11 Sky Sports channels and all 4 TNT Sports channels and Box Nation for £45 a month)
• TV Everywhere app enabling you to watch the TV channels you have subscribed to on your mobile, tablet or laptop
  

Whether you're a new or existing BT Broadband customer, we've found the new EE TV channel packs to be a flexible, affordable way to enjoy must-have TV and in most cases are cheaper than similar Virgin Media and Sky packages.

9. Compare BT Broadband, Phone & EE TV Deals

Pricing Information

* Please note the monthly price will rise from March each year by the Consumer Price Index rate of inflation (which is published in January each year), plus 3.9%.

Provider	Package Details	Average Speed*	Download Limit	Contract Period	Monthly Cost	More Info
Average speed*: 150Mb, Download limit: Unlimited, £0 setup, 1st year cost £527.88, £43.99 per month, increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9%*	BT Full Fibre 100 + TV Entertainment Package (4K TV Box With Pause, Rewind & Record, Over 80 Freeview Channels (15 In HD), The NOW Entertainment Membership With 20 Premium TV Channels Like Sky Atlantic, Sky One, Discovery & Comedy Central Plus Over 300 Box Sets On Demand From NOW, plus all of Netflix) *For 24 months. No landline phone service included (can be added if required). Annual price increase applies	150Mb	Unlimited	24 months	Increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9% £43.99* 1st year cost: £527.88 £0.00 setup	Includes Sky Atlantic & Sky One From NOW + All Of Netflix + 3 Months FREE Apple TV+ Find out more at BT Powerful Smart Hub + Speed Guarantee
Average speed*: 150Mb, Download limit: Unlimited, £0 setup, 1st year cost £539.88, £44.99 per month, increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9%*	BT Full Fibre 100 + Sport TV Package (4K TV Box With Pause, Rewind & Record, Over 80 Freeview Channels (15 In HD), The AMC Channel, All 4 TNT Sports Channels With 52 Live Premier League Matches & Every Single Champions League Game + Box Nation *For 24 months. No landline phone service included (can be added if required). Annual price increase applies	150Mb	Unlimited	24 months	Increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9% £44.99* 1st year cost: £539.88 £0.00 setup	Includes TNT Sports + 3 Months FREE Apple TV+ Find out more at BT Powerful Smart Hub + Speed Guarantee
Average speed*: 150Mb, Download limit: Unlimited, £0 setup, 1st year cost £779.88, £64.99 per month, increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9%*	BT Full Fibre 100 + Big Sport TV Package (4K TV Box With Pause, Rewind & Record, Over 80 Freeview Channels (15 In HD), The AMC Channel, All 4 TNT Sports Channels With 52 Live Premier League Matches & Every Single Champions League Game + All 11 Sky Sports Channels From NOW Sport With 128 Live Premier League Matches, F1, Golf Majors & More *For 24 months. No landline phone service included (can be added if required). Annual price increase applies	150Mb	Unlimited	24 months	Increases on 31st March 2025 by CPI + 3.9% £64.99* 1st year cost: £779.88 £0.00 setup	Includes All TNT Sports & Sky Sports Channels + 3 Months FREE Apple TV+ Find out more at BT Powerful Smart Hub + Speed Guarantee

10. BT Broadband Package & Router Details

BT Fibre uses BT's hybrid fibre optic and last mile copper broadband network to deliver the Internet at impressive speeds. The fibre sends and retrieves data down a glass network at the speed of light which produces a faster, smoother online experience resulting in the Internet in an instant. BT Fibre is great for households where many people are online at the same time or if you're downloading and uploading heavy files. Prices start from just £29.99 a month BT's Fibre 2 package with average download speeds of 67Mbps. No BT landline phone service is included within that price.

In Detail: The BT Fibre 2 Package

• Average 67Mb download speeds
• Average 9.5Mb upload speeds
• Unlimited download usage allowance
• FREE access to over 5 million BT Wi-Fi hotspots across the UK (the UK's largest Wi-Fi network). Simply download the BT Wi-Fi app from your favourite app store and it will connect you to a Wi-Fi hotspot whenever you are in range
• 1,000GB of FREE BT Cloud online storage to back up your important documents and precious photos - which can be easily accessed from anywhere on any device
• The original BT Smart Hub, the UK's most powerful Wi-Fi router compared to broadband routers from other large broadband suppliers. Awarded 'Which? Best Buy'status, the BT Smart Hub is an attractive looking router (it looks great on my desk!) containing 4 gigabit network ports and 7 antennas which are specifically positioned to maximise Wi-Fi performance around the home. The Hub is packed with the latest and best Wi-Fi technology supporting both the 802.11b/g/n and Wave 2 802.11ac standards which means it works well with both old and new Wi-Fi devices. Other smart features include 'Smart San' where the Hub continually scans its performance and also the network, re-booting where necessary. With 'Smart Channel Selection' your devices will also auto-connect to the fastest Wi-Fi channel and frequency available. If you buy or upgrade to a BT fibre package with Complete Wi-Fi, or a BT fibre package with Halo 2, you'll qualify for the new BT Smart Hub 2 which is just as stylish as its predecessor and feels a bit lighter too. This router has Wi-Fi controls available via the BT app where you can quickly pause/unpause the Internet and manage the screen time of family members
• Comprehensive FREE online security tools, including BT Virus Protect with Norton, offering protection for up to 15 devices from phishing, viruses and other online attacks. There's also BT Parental Controls enabling you to control what your family can access online by setting filters for inappropriate content
• Access to the BT SmartTalk app enabling customers to save money on expensive calls from their mobiles
• FREE 24/7 technical support either online or over the phone - more details further below in section 12
• 24 month contract
• £20 activation fee & £11.99 hub packing and postage (P&P) charge does not apply
• From £29.99 per month for 24 months. No BT landline phone service included (can be added). Annual price increase applies
• Please click here for further information at bt.com

11. Installation & Setup

If you're new to BT, BT will usually get your broadband up and running within 2 weeks of you placing your online order (my broadband was up and running in 10 days). If you have an active BT/Openreach phone line and socket at your address, then an Openreach engineer visit will not be required. BT will handle the whole switch-over process for you and liaise with your current provider so you don't have to. You can then simply plug the BT Smart Hub into your phone socket once you receive a 'service live' text or email from BT on the activation date. Setup instructions are provided by BT as standard and are particularly useful if, like me, you've chosen BT Complete Wi-Fi with Wi-Fi discs and/or BT TV.

If you don't have a BT phone line already installed, or perhaps are switching from a cable service like Virgin Media, then an Openreach engineer visit will be required to install or re-connect a BT phone line. Depending upon the availability of an engineer, this can sometimes mean the 2 week period quoted above takes a little longer. If you are a Virgin Media customer switching to BT, please remember to cancel your Virgin Media service yourself and arrange a suitable end of service date that's close to your BT activation date.

You can easily follow the status of your BT broadband order and check your activation date by tracking your order online at BT.com, or via the My BT app - which we found to be particularly useful.

Please note that on the day of service activation, BT may switch on your broadband at any time up to midnight. Your broadband speeds may also vary during the first 2 weeks as they optimise to find the most stable speeds for your phone line - don't worry though as we found that it soons settles down.

12. BT Broadband Customer Service Performance, Satisfaction, Support, Complaints & Phone Numbers

If you need help or technical support with BT Broadband, Mobile, Landline, TV & Sport, or have a question/complaint with regards to your account and billing, moving home or email, there's a number of ways you can contact BT. You can free phone the BT Customer Service number on 0800 800 150 (all BT's call centres are now based in the UK), use BT's live web chat service (I've used this a few times now and found it to be a quick way to contact BT), read articles in their comprehensive online knowledge base and use self-help diagnosis & repair tools.

BT's vibrant online community is also worth visting. Every week thousands of customers solve an issue by visiting the BT Community. BT's friendly forum experts are also on hand to help you with the problems or queries you have about BT's products and services.

Looking at BT Broadband customer complaint levels, Ofcom's latest Telecoms & Pay TV Complaints Report, published in January 2024, revealed 11 complaints per 100,000 BT Broadband customers for the period Q3 2023. This is lower than BT's competitors Vodafone, TalkTalk, Shell Energy & Virgin Media and lower than the industry average of 15 complaints per 100,000 customers (Source: Latest Ofcom Telecoms & Pay TV Complaints Report, published 25th January 2024)

Overrall customer satisfaction with BT Broadband services lies at 83% according to Ofcom's 2022 Comparing Customer Service report, published in May 2023. This is marginally better than the industry average of 82%. See Ofcom's Comparing Customer Service Report 2022 for further details.

13. Questions & Answers

Question 1. When will BT Full Fibre Broadband be available in my area?

Answer 1. Full fibre is being rolled out across the UK by infrastructure providers like Openreach (a BT Group business) and City Fibre. Over 13.8 million homes can now access BT Full Fibre, with that expected to increase to 25 million homes by 2026. Have a look at our BT Full Fibre Checker article for further information on specific areas.

Question 2. What's the best way to contact BT?

Answer 2. I had to wait around 2 and a half minutes when I tested contacting BT by phone. I found it quicker using their Web Chat service.

Question 3. Is my BT Broadband monthly price fixed for the length of my contract?

Answer 3. No, BT apply an annual price increase each Spring, which is calculated by taking the previous January's CPI rate of inflation, plus an additional 3.9%. This meant that on the 31st of March last year, BT (and other providers) increased their prices by around 14.4%.

Question 4. Do BT offer cheaper broadband for people on benefits?

Answer 4. Yes, BT's social tariff is called BT Broadband Essential. It costs £15 a month on a 12 month contract and provides average fibre download speeds of 36Mbps. There's no setup fees or early exit fees. Find out if you can qualify for cheaper broadband by reading our guide on social broadband tariffs.

14. Our Final Verdict On BT Broadband

Latest BT Broadband Reviews & Ratings By Customers

If you're unsure as to some of the terms used on this page, please read our beginner's guide to broadband or our guide to switching supplier.

Important Note - Please Read

We are not BT. We do not provide broadband, phone or TV connections ourselves. Should you have a problem with your BT order or connection, we advise you to contact BT directly.

We specialise in offering you independent advice, reviews and comparison tools that should help you choose the right broadband provider and package for you. We provide this impartial service to you for free, whilst being paid a small commission from each ISP we generate a new customer for - so we are like an Independent Financial Advisor. You do not pay any extra for your chosen broadband package by signing up through this site.

About The Author, Steve Tattersall

Steve Tattersall is a broadband technology writer with 20 years experience within the Internet industry. Based in Hampshire, England, he founded the BBC recognised broadband information site, BroadbandInternetUk.com, in 2004 and is currently the Director Of Marketing & Operations. During this time he has helped thousands of people across the UK with their Internet requirements by compiling a comprehensive range of broadband information, comparison tools and guides, all delivered on BroadbandInternetUk.com. A graduate of Buckinghamshire New University (Brunel Business School) with a first class honours degree in Business, Steve has first hand experience of working for a broadband provider, having had a previous career at the broadband supplier NTL. Following its merger with rival Telewest, NTL is now known as Virgin Media, one of the UK's leading broadband, phone & TV providers. If you would like to contact Steve, please visit the contact us page or follow him on Twitter, LinkedIn and Quora. You can also find out more about BroadbandInternetUk.com on our about us page.

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