The short answer: switching at contract end is the single most effective thing you can do. New customer prices are almost always lower than what existing customers pay out of contract. Before you switch, call your provider's retentions team with a competitor offer and ask them to match it. Many people save £5-10 a month without changing provider at all.
Switch at contract end
Broadband providers make their money from customers who do not shop around. New customer deals are subsidised by the higher prices paid by everyone sitting on a rolling contract after their fixed term expired. The gap is typically £5-15 per month.
Your contract end date is on your original order confirmation email, or in your online account. Providers must also send you a notification 10 to 40 days before your contract ends, reminding you it is about to expire and telling you what you will pay going forward.
That notification is your cue to act. Start comparing deals at least 40-60 days before your contract ends. You can usually lock in a new deal in advance and time the switch to happen on or just after the end date, so there is no gap in service and no overlap in billing. See our guide on how to switch broadband for the full process.
Call retentions before you switch
Before placing an order with a competitor, call your current provider and ask to speak to the retentions team. Do not call general customer service. Say the words "retentions" or "disconnections". These teams have access to unadvertised discounts that ordinary customer service agents cannot offer, and their job is to keep you from leaving.
Have a specific competitor offer ready when you call. Something concrete: "I've found [provider] offering [speed] for [£X] a month. Can you match that?"
The best time to make this call is within the 30 to 40 days before your contract expires. At that point the provider knows you have options and the retentions agent has the most flexibility to make you a deal. You might walk away with £5-10 off per month, a free speed upgrade, or both, without the hassle of switching.
If they cannot match it: thank them, end the call, and go ahead with the switch. The competitor deal is real money saved every month for the contract length.
Check if you qualify for a social tariff
If you or anyone in your household receives certain means-tested benefits, you may be eligible for a social tariff. These are heavily discounted broadband packages that most major providers are required to offer. They are not widely advertised.
Qualifying benefits typically include Universal Credit, Pension Credit, Employment and Support Allowance (ESA), Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA) and Income Support. Prices vary by provider but are significantly below standard rates.
Current examples include BT Home Essentials at around £15 per month, and Vodafone Broadband Basics at around £12 per month. Virgin Media, Sky and others also offer social tariffs at various price points.
See our full broadband social tariffs guide for a list of what is available and how to apply.
Use cashback sites
TopCashback and Quidco regularly offer £50-150 cashback on new broadband contracts from major providers. The cashback is paid once your service has been active for 60-90 days and the provider has confirmed the sale.
Before signing up directly through a provider's website, check both cashback sites and compare what they offer. Sometimes the cashback amount is large enough to outweigh a slightly higher monthly price on that deal compared to going direct.
Do the maths over the full contract length. A £100 cashback on an 18-month contract is worth around £5.50 per month equivalent. Factor that into your total cost comparison.
Consider no-frills providers
Providers like Plusnet, Now Broadband and Utility Warehouse often price below the main household names. Plusnet is owned by BT and uses the same Openreach network, so the underlying connection is identical to BT's, at a noticeably lower price. Now Broadband offers rolling monthly contracts if you want to avoid an 18 or 24-month commitment.
The trade-off is customer service. Smaller or budget providers typically have longer wait times and less polished support. If your broadband works reliably day to day, that rarely matters. If you have frequent faults, a provider with better support may be worth the extra cost.
Do not assume a bundle saves you money
TV and broadband bundles from Sky, Virgin Media and BT look attractive but are worth checking carefully. The TV element adds to the total cost, and if you do not use it heavily, you are paying for content you do not watch.
Add up what a standalone broadband deal would cost, then compare it to the bundle price minus the monthly cost of equivalent streaming subscriptions you would keep regardless (Netflix, Disney+, etc.). The bundle often costs more in total once you account for the TV component.
If you watch little or no live TV, cutting the TV portion and going broadband-only almost always saves money.
Check you are on the right speed tier
If you are paying for 500 Mbps but your household only uses one or two devices at a time for streaming and browsing, you are paying for speed you do not use. Most households are comfortable on 50-150 Mbps. Ask your provider what a lower speed tier costs per month, or check our guide on what broadband speed you actually need.
The caveat: do not downgrade to a speed tier that will genuinely cause you problems. The small saving from dropping a speed tier is not worth degraded service if your household regularly has multiple people online simultaneously.
Time your switch well
Providers often put out better deals around Black Friday (November), in January, and in the run-up to or aftermath of annual price rise announcements. If your contract happens to end near one of these windows, it is worth waiting a week or two to see what comes out.
That said, do not delay a switch by months to chase a deal. The money saved from leaving an expensive out-of-contract arrangement each month will almost always exceed whatever marginal improvement a seasonal deal might offer.
What you do not need
You do not need to accept a mid-contract price rise. If your provider raises prices during your contract and the rise was not clearly pre-agreed in the original terms, you have the right to leave without an early termination fee. You must act within 30 days of the notice. Read more in our guide to understanding broadband contracts.
You do not need gigabit broadband to save money or get a good connection. Entry-level full fibre at 100-150 Mbps costs around the same as or only marginally more than FTTC, and is a better connection. Paying for 900 Mbps+ when 100 Mbps is sufficient is one of the most common ways people overpay.
You do not need a TV bundle to get good broadband. Broadband-only deals from providers on the Openreach network (Sky, BT, Plusnet, Vodafone, EE and others) are often cheaper than equivalent bundle deals once you strip out the TV element.
Frequently asked questions
How much can I realistically save by switching?
On average, customers who actively switch at contract end save £5-15 per month compared to staying out of contract with their current provider. Over an 18-month contract that is £90-270 saved. Switching from a bundle to broadband-only can save considerably more if you were paying for TV you did not use.
Will I get a better deal as a new customer than as an existing one?
Almost always, yes. Providers use introductory pricing to attract new customers, and out-of-contract rates for existing customers are typically higher than equivalent new customer deals. This applies even within the same provider. If you call to renew, the headline new customer price online will usually be lower than the renewal rate you are automatically moved onto.
Is it worth calling retentions if I genuinely want to stay with my provider?
Yes. Retentions teams can offer discounts regardless of whether you are genuinely planning to leave. Having a competing offer ready makes the conversation much more productive. The worst outcome is they say no, and you proceed with a switch to the cheaper deal.
How long does it take to switch broadband?
For an Openreach-to-Openreach switch (for example, BT to Sky), typically 10 to 14 days from placing the order, usually with no gap in service. Switches involving full fibre installation or moving from one network to another (such as Virgin Media to Openreach) may take longer. See our switching guide for the full detail.
Can I switch mid-contract to save money?
You can, but you will likely owe an early termination fee equal to the remaining monthly payments. Work out whether the monthly saving from a cheaper deal outweighs the exit fee over the remaining contract period. If you have only one or two months left, it is almost always better to wait.
What is a social tariff and do I qualify?
Social tariffs are discounted broadband packages for people on qualifying means-tested benefits. Universal Credit, Pension Credit, ESA, JSA and Income Support are the main qualifying benefits. Prices start from around £10-15 per month for basic speeds. See our social tariffs guide for the current list of offers.
Do cashback deals affect the actual broadband contract?
No. Cashback from TopCashback or Quidco is paid separately, after the provider confirms the sale. Your contract with the provider is identical whether you signed up via a cashback site or directly. The cashback is an additional rebate on top of the deal. Just make sure you click through from the cashback site before completing the order, or the cashback will not track.