Broadband is essential for most businesses, but domestic packages designed for home use probably won’t cut it. Your business needs a reliable connection, a fast broadband speed and a good level of service that only a business broadband deal can provide.
What is business broadband?
Business broadband caters for small to large businesses by providing a service beyond that of a personal broadband connection.
Services vary depending on provider, but can range from free set up and free equipment such as routers, to bundles that include free calls and unlimited usage – and special business features like service level agreements and static IPs.
Which providers offer business broadband?
A number of providers offer broadband deals specially for business use. They include:
- bonline
- BT
- Onebill
- Plusnet
- Sky
- TalkTalk
- Trooli
- Virgin Media
- XLN
Business broadband and phone packages
It’s possible to take out broadband-only business packages, which can help minimise costs, something you may wish to consider if you have a small business that doesn’t require a landline.
However, if your enterprise is expanding, a landline is a good option. It’s a central way for customers to contact you and there are a good options if you choose to bundle it with your broadband.
Phone packages for businesses can be carefully tailored to suit the needs if your business, you can have multiple lines installed so that staff have their own numbers and even get deals with international calls if you deal with people overseas. You may also be able to lock in plans that give you unlimited calls to both landlines and mobiles, rather than having to deal with fluctuating phone bills.
Business phone packages also come with additional features, such as call diversion, spam reduction tools and conference call options.
Should I bundle my business phone line with broadband?
Bundling your business phone line with broadband from the same provider is a no-brainer. Especially if you’re taking out a fibre-to-the-cabinet (FTTC) plan which requires a landline to complete the journey to your property from the street cabinet.
Doing so can lower overall costs, with big names happy to offer deals to suit your needs and offer flat rates for unlimited calls. It means setup will be easier too, without the need to call out engineers to sort the broadband and phone lines separately.
What are the benefits of business broadband?
Business packages differ from domestic broadband deals in a few ways, but the most obvious are that you may get dedicated technical support and you may experience a better bandwidth at peak times of the day, so your internet shouldn’t fall off when it is most needed.
In essence, you’ll get access to business-level features that you can’t get with a regular home broadband connection. Depending on the provider and package, you may get:
- Faster download and upload speeds
- Symmetrical download and upload speeds – ideal if you upload a lot of content or code and hold a lot of video calls
- Service level agreement (SLA), a guarantee that you will always receive a broadband service at a particular level
- A more secure connection, with additional cybersecurity
- Prioritised traffic, so you can always get the speeds you need
- Dedicated technical support to troubleshoot your connection issues
- Static IP address – essential for some business functions, such as hosting a server or setting up remote PC access
- Better routers, hardware, and Wi-Fi
- Extra digital features – for example, company email addresses, cloud storage, VoIP lines, or web hosting
Let's take a look at some of those in more detail...
Static IP address
Having a static IP address allows you to host your own servers. In layman’s terms an IP (internet protocol) address is the way other computers identify your business computer over the internet.
Most home broadband connections have a dynamic IP address, which means it changes each time you log on. But business broadband connections normally use a static IP address, which means your online identifier stays the same, much like a business address you would send and receive post to.
A static IP address is great for businesses because you can host your own servers, host websites, host email servers, create your own virtual private network (VPN), and log on to your network from anywhere in the world. Plus, if you wanted to, you could run a CCTV system via your network so you would be able to see the business premises anytime.
But of course, this is only the beginning, business broadband packages can also provide data management privileges, backup up and recovery services for your devices, and cloud-based software for when you are away from the office.
Technical support
How much technical support you need and receive will differ considerably with a business broadband account. This is due to the importance of your server and website. And if your server does go down, it is imperative that it is not down for too long because your company could lose business.
So when considering a business broadband provider, make sure you look though the service level agreement (SLA). The SLA will identify when you can get support (business hours or 24 hours), how much support you’ll get, if you can get engineers to fix the problem, and any response times. Any worthwhile business broadband provider will have an SLA and will often be open for negotiation n certain clauses.
You should also make sure to check for antivirus and anti-spam filtering features for your website and email, respectively. These security features are a must for businesses using a static IP address, because they are vulnerable and more easily hackable. Think about getting a password-protected extranet – a place to store data – which can be backed up daily or with a cloud-based network.
Business broadband mobile
It might be a good idea to get a mobile broadband account too, if you or your employees are out of the office a lot while going to meetings, for example. This will let you and your colleagues browse the internet, read and respond emails, and generally keep on top of work when away from the business premises.
You should also check about whether your provider has cloud features, because you can then use your server and data from anywhere, making your business completely mobile. Obviously you could also have a business mobile contract, or use the local Wi-Fi but these might not be as secure as a dedicated mobile broadband package or cloud service.
What about web hosting?
Web hosting is different to broadband, but worth knowing about. Companies will often offer three different ways of hosting your business’s website.
- You can have shared hosting, which means you share a server with different companies. This can be slow at times but are good for websites with a slower bandwidth.
- You can have a dedicated server, meaning you have the entire server alone, which pretty much guarantees a faster performance.
- Finally, you can have a cloud-based server, which draws from a pool of resources allowing for dynamic hosting.
Do small businesses need business broadband?
If your business relies on the internet in any way, a dedicated business broadband connection is a great idea.
At minimum, you’ll get guaranteed speeds when you need them, with an SLA promising compensation if it ever drops.
It’s also a simple and easy way to get certain IT functions, such as email addresses, guest Wi-Fi for your customers, or business-level cybersecurity.
It’s essential, too, if you need the internet connected at all times or require a static IP to host a server on.
On the other hand, if you’re a sole trader working from home, or constant internet access isn’t exactly vital for your firm, you may be happy enough with a standard home broadband connection.
A good number of business broadband providers have packages specially designed for small businesses. They give you features perfectly suited for SMEs, such as appropriate speeds, service guarantees, a web domain and company email addresses, better Wi-Fi, and extra tech support – ideal if you don’t have an IT department.
Exactly what broadband package is best for your small business, of course, will depend on what you need broadband for.
What types of broadband can I get?
You’ll find a broad range of options for business broadband. They include:
- ADSL – The most basic kind of broadband, using copper phone lines. You’ll get slower speeds (around 10Mbps) but lower prices – making it ideal for very small businesses that only need the internet for a couple of people to send emails and use the web. Be aware that standard fibre optic deals are often as cheap as ADSL and much faster.
- Standard fibre optic - Usually ranging in speed from 30-100Mbps, standard fibre uses fibre-to-the-cabinet (FTTC) tech, meaning the fibre optic cable runs to the nearest street cabinet, before completing the journey to your property over copper phone lines. It’s fast enough to handle connections for several people’s computers and phones, and can likely handle hosting a server too.
- Ultrafast fibre optic – This is fibre broadband at speeds around 100Mbps-1Gbps (1,000Mbps). It will be ‘full fibre’ or FTTP (fibre-to-the-premises), meaning the whole line is fibre optic from the exchange to your building. That makes it more reliable with very little lag, and it can handle all kinds of technical functions. Remember that FTTP is not yet available across the whole UK, although the rollout is happening quickly. Search your postcode to see if you can get it.
- Gigabit broadband – This is FTTP broadband over 1,000Mbps, offered by Virgin Media and some FTTP providers. These speeds are perfect if you have a larger business that needs a lot of staff to complete internet heavy tasks at all times.
- Leased line – A solution for larger businesses that truly rely on stable, fast internet. A leased line is a broadband line that your business has all to itself, not shared with a single other premises. So your speeds won’t be affected by anyone else whatsoever.
Sources and methodology
*Annual savings based on average monthly bill of £33.99 from nationally representative sample (1000) vs our cheapest monthly cost for superfast broadband (>55Mbs) £18.95/month, May 22. Annual saving: £180.48.
Can I get business broadband at home?
Yes, if your business is registered to your home address. Business broadband lines can be installed anywhere within the provider’s network, though usually only if it’s a registered business address.
It’s worth considering business broadband if your home business would seriously benefit from some of the features – like an SLA, the ability to host a server, or the dedicated IT support.
However, bear in mind it can be a fair bit more expensive than home broadband. If you don’t need any special business telecoms, it may not be worth it – you might be happy enough to work with a home broadband option.
What is the difference between business broadband and home broadband?
Business broadband tends to be faster and more reliable than home broadband. Providers offer more personalised customer service too, meaning that getting any issues fixed is faster than when you call about your home package.
Why is business broadband more expensive?
Business broadband is more expensive because providers use more resources to ensure that connections are always stable and that customer service is more readily available. Those higher costs are then passed on to customers.
Can I claim business broadband as a business expense?
If you’re installing business broadband, you can claim it as a business expense, and therefore deduce it from your year-end tax bill.
