Pay nothing for your broadband

Many broadband providers offer months of free internet on their current deals. We take a closer look.

It’s always nice to get something for nothing. And broadband is no exception!

There are a number of broadband providers currently offering deals which include months where you won’t have to hand over a single penny for the privilege of having internet access, though many of those deals are soon coming to an end.

So let’s take a look at the various providers, and their free broadband offers!

O2

I use O2 for my own broadband, and bar a couple of days recently where there have been a few issues, over the past year I’ve had no complaints.

One of the reasons that I gave O2 a go (following the disaster that was Post Office broadband) was that I would get a few months of broadband absolutely free, and a smaller monthly payment after that as I also am an O2 mobile customer.

The provider currently has two separate packages which offer three months free to new customers. However, the free usage period is doubled for existing mobile customers of more than 24 months. Here are the packages:

Name	Free period	Speed	Usage limit	Contract length	Monthly fee
The All Rounder	6 months for existing customers, 3 months otherwise	20mb	Unlimited	12 months	£12.50 for O2 customers, £17.50 otherwise
The Works	6 months for existing customers, 3 months otherwise	20mb	Unlimited	12 months	£21 for O2 customers, £26 otherwise

BT

The household name of BT has a couple of attractive deals at the moment where you can enjoy internet access for an allotted time frame absolutely free.

While the deals are attractive pricewise, they are not that good if you do a lot of downloading or streaming as you are limited to just 10GB, a total that will disappear in no time if you do a lot online!

If you want to take advantage of the Broadband, Evening and Weekend Calls package, you’ll need to act quickly as the deal finishes on 30 June.

Name	Free period	Speed	Usage limit	Contract length	Monthly fee
Broadband, Evening and Weekend Calls	4 months	20mb	10GB	18 months	£13
Broadband and Anytime Calls	3 months	20mb	10GB	18 months	£16

Tesco

Tesco is no longer simply a place to get your groceries – it seemingly has a finger in every pie, from credit cards to travel insurance to opticians. And it’s also a pretty competitive broadband supplier.

With both of its packages, you can enjoy the first four months of internet access absolutely free. What’s more, there are no usage limits, though the contracts do last for 18 months rather than a year.

Again, you’ll need to move quickly to take advantage of these packages, as in both cases the offer expires on 30 June.

Name	Free period	Speed	Usage limit	Contract length	Monthly fee
Broadband and Evening and Weekend calls	4 months	20mb	Unlimited	18 months	£8
Broadband and Anytime calls	4 months	20mb	Unlimited	18 months	£12

Orange

Orange is another mobile phone network which has moved into broadband, with consistently excellent deals.

The deal below offers an excellent three months of free broadband, while you’ll save a further £5 a month on your monthly bill if you’re an existing Orange customer.

Name	Free period	Speed	Usage limit	Contract length	Monthly fee
Broadband and off-peak calls	3 months	20mb	Unlimited	18 months	£7.50 for existing Orange customers, £12.50 otherwise

In addition to the free internet usage, with this Orange package you’ll also get a free HP printer worth £39.99!

Discounted deals

So those are the providers offering months where you don’t have to pay anything for your internet, but there’s also a number of broadband networks that offer an initial discount on your monthly bill for a couple of months. These deals can work out just as good as those that offer free months in the longer term!

Here are the best discounted deals that I can find:

Name	Discount	Speed	Usage limit	Contract length	Monthly fee (after initial discount period)
BT More Broadband and Calls	£7.50 (better than half price) for first three months	20mb	40GB	18 months	£18
Plusnet Value with Evening and Weekend Calls	£3.24 (half price) for nine months	20mb	10GB	12 months	£6.49*
Sky Unlimited + Talk Freetime	£5 (half price) for the first six months	20mb	Unlimited	12 months	£10
TalkTalk Broadband + Phone Essentials	£3.25 (half price) for first six months	24mb	40GB	12 months	£3.25**
TalkTalk Broadband + Phone Plus	£7.25 (half price) for first six months	24mb	Unlimited	12 months	£14.50**
Virgin Media L	£16 for first three months	10mb	Unlimited	12 months	£21
Virgin Media XL	£23.50 for first three months	30mb	Unlimited	12 months	£28.50
Virgin Media XXL	£30 for first three months	50mb	Unlimited	12 months	£35

**Deal ends 4 July

The hassles of switching

Many of us put up with naff service, or an overpriced deal, because we can’t bear the thought of switching provider – it just seems so much hassle.

However, things are starting to get a bit quicker and simpler thanks to the intervention of the authorities. If you want a hassle-free switch, be sure to have a read of Switch your broadband in five easy steps.

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