Broadband companies are all fighting for your business. They’ll come at you with all sorts of packages and offers so that you sign up with them instead of with their competitors. So how can you be sure you’re getting the right deal? Don’t worry. This post has got your back. This is your ultimate guide to broadband and spotting the best deals.

Price

The first thing you’ve got to decide is how much you’re willing to pay. Although price isn’t a big factor, it’s not the only thing to consider, however. You’ll need to look at the overall deal and what it includes and if there are any extra costs you’ll also have to pay. A connection fee might be one such cost.

Once you’ve decided how much you’re willing to pay, you can start browsing the different broadband deals. Sites like Cable display some excellent deals. If you choose a deal that includes phone calls or a TV package, you can save money, paying less than if you were to sign up for them as stand-alone services.

Ways you’ll use the broadband

How are you going to use the broadband? Are you just doing a little light browsing, some online shopping and checking your emails or using social media? If that’s the case, you won’t need as fast a broadband speed.

If, however, you’re going to be working from home, streaming videos or playing games online, you should look for a higher broadband speed. A slow broadband speed could disrupt your enjoyment or your business operations, which could get very frustrating, to say the least.

Speed

A good average download speed — the speed at which your connection downloads information from the internet — for broadband is around 10 Mbps, but if you’re going to use the internet heavily, you’ll be better off with a speed of around 20 Mbps or more.

The higher the speed, the more easily you’ll be able to enjoy streaming services and work with your internet if you’re a heavy user.

Note that the type of connection is also important. ADSL is the standard connection type, but is a little slower. Fibre optic internet is a little more expensive, but it’s also faster. Although it’s not available everywhere in the UK, depending on the service provider, it’s still widely available.

Number of people in the household

The number of people you have in the household is an important factor to think about when choosing your package.

Unless they’re heavy users, a couple won’t require a high internet speed, whereas a family of four who are all using devices will be better off with one of 11 to 35 Mbps or more. Families of five will need a speed of more than 35 Mbps if they’re all habitual, heavy users of the internet.

When browsing internet deals, you should always check the service provider is available in your area before signing up. Note that some operators have their own network, which may incur extra costs if you switch to or from them.

It’s a question of weighing up the different factors above and deciding if you think this additional cost is worth it. You may find it is in the longer run.