TalkTalk broadband review 2025

Our rating: Four out of five

There’s much to recommend TalkTalk, but it’s worth bearing in mind that its broadband comes with some caveats.

• Good range of speeds

• Price-wise, it’s very competitive against the likes of BT and Sky

• Coverage is good across the UK

• Decent call bundles

• Cheap deals available to both new and existing customers

• TV offering isn’t as good as Sky or BT

• Customer service remains a weakness

Is TalkTalk broadband any good?

TalkTalk bills itself as a ‘value provider’. And compared to other big-name providers, such as BT, Virgin Media and Sky, it’s certainly very competitively priced.  

Speeds are pretty good too and are also in line with other major providers. They’ll easily be fast enough for most households and TalkTalk’s packages are very widely available.

Its rolling-contract TV add-ons are flexible. So you can add or subtract the likes of Netflix, Prime Video and NOW TV memberships from your package on a monthly basis.

More generally, we also like that TalkTalk extends cut-price promotions to existing customers. So the best prices are no longer reserved for new customers.

But there are some notable shortcomings when it comes to TalkTalk. Not least its reputation for customer service, which hasn’t always been great over the years.

It’s also fair to say that TalkTalk TV service is fairly basic, too. Its TalkTalk 4K TV set-top box doesn’t have all the latest features and looks a bit second best next to the likes of Sky Q and Virgin Media’s TV 360.

TalkTalk broadband review

Not sure whether TalkTalk is for you? Read on as we take a look at all TalkTalk’s key features to help you make your mind up.

Average TalkTalk broadband speeds

Fibre 35

With average download speeds of 38Mbps, Fibre 35 is a great entry-level fibre plan that's suitable for most users. You'll be able to stream games and TV without your internet slowing down.

Fibre 65

Fibre 65 takes things up a notch, with average speeds of 67Mbps designed to help households where kids are gaming, working on homework or checking out social media while parents stream downstairs.

Full Fibre 65

One of TalkTalk’s fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP) offerings, Full Fibre 65 offers 77Mbps average download speeds. It's two times faster than standard fibre. You’ll need to have had FTTP connected in your area, though.

Full Fibre 150

Fibre 150 has average speeds of 152Mbps, great for anyone who wants rapid access and has lots of devices connected to the web.

Full Fibre 500

Increasingly available, Fibre 500 has speeds of 525Mbps and is made for hardcore users. Love to watch endless movies and enjoy hours long gaming marathons? This is for you.

Full Fibre 900

As with other providers’ superfast services, Fibre 900 only works in certain areas. With average speeds of 944Mbps, it’s built for power users and is a good shout if you have a lot of smart home kit, like thermostats and lighting systems.

TalkTalk broadband packages review

TalkTalk packages are simple. Its most widely available packages pair fibre optic broadband with a landline at a price that’s significantly below the industry average.

Speeds on these packages are in line with those from other household-name providers. All plans are available on 18-month contracts.

In select locations you can sign up for its Full Fibre packages (Full Fibre 150, 500 and 900), which don’t necessitate a landline and offer excellent speeds. That’s thanks to full fibre technology to deliver broadband to your address.

The catch is that the full fibre service is not quite as widely available and you’ll require an engineer to get TalkTalk full fibre installed. Still, as TalkTalk continues to roll out its full fibre network, you'll have better chance of getting it at your address.

TalkTalk Fibre review

All of TalkTalk's packages are fibre optic.

Its entry-level fibre plans, Fibre 35 and Fibre 65, run fibre to your area before completing the last section to your home over copper.

Fibre 65, 150, 500 and 900 use full fibre that runs right into the home, delivering a stronger and faster connection. However, you'll need to have fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP) installed in your area if you want one of these packages.

The speeds are all in line with BT and Sky, while Virgin has a faster 1.3Gbps service. The latter is not as widely available, though.

In terms of cost, TalkTalk Fibre is cheaper than similar packages from other major providers. At the time of writing, its Full Fibre 150 plan costs from £28 a month. In comparison, BT's Fibre 100 deal comes in at £37.99, while Sky Full Fibre 100 is £38.

TalkTalk TV review

TalkTalk’s TV service is only available when you also take a broadband package. You can’t buy it as a standalone service.

You get its Netgem TV-powered TV 4K Box, which gives you access to 225 live channels and 40 popular streaming apps, such as YouTube, BBC iPlayer and Netflix.

If you have a 4K TV, it makes getting TalkTalk TV a smart move, especially as it's designed to work seamless with TalkTalk broadband to give your speedy, smooth streaming.

Critically, TalkTalk's TV service is also much cheaper. At the time of writing, you can add TV from just £5 per month. It's also more flexible than TV plans from the likes of Sky and Virgin Media, as you're not tied to a lengthy contract – you can cancel or switch up your subscriptions every month.

Want multi-room to watch TV in different channels around the home? To do so you’ll need to purchase another box or boxes at £25 each, plus an installation charge.

But the good news is that once you’ve got the additional box, there’s no subscription fee for multi-room viewing. Unlike the likes of Sky, which levies a monthly charge.

There’s also the option to add NOW TV Memberships, for access to Sky Cinema and Sport channels on-demand, as well as Netflix and Prime Video.

TalkTalk Router

The router you get depends on the broadband plan you have.

Its Fibre 35 and Fibre 65 plans come with the TalkTalk Wi-Fi hub, as does Full Fibre 65. This is pretty good, offering AC standard Wi-Fi, four ethernet ports for connecting and smart channel selection to ensure your connection doesn't drop.

With the Full Fibre 150, 500 and 900 plans, you'll get an Amazon eero mesh router, either with dual-band or tri-band Wi-Fi 6. This works with the eero app (which you can download to your smartphone).

The Amazon eero router is well-equipped to handle high speeds with ease. Plus, the Full Fibre 900 plan comes with an additional router to further extend the coverage around your home.

TalkTalk calls review

TalkTalk doesn’t offer a particularly wide selection of calls add-ons, but that probably reflects the fact that we’re using our landlines less and less frequently.

Your options for calls plans are:

• Unlimited UK calls – Anytime calls to UK landlines and mobiles

• UK Evening & Weekend calls – Unlimited UK calls from 7pm on weekdays and all day on weekends

• International Max calls – 1,500 minutes to landlines and mobiles in more than 50 locations, plus cheap calls to more countries

All call plans are on a one-month rolling contract, and come with Callsafe, TalkTalk's free call-screening service.

Its Full Fibre plans don't come with landline included. If you get the Fibre 35 or Fibre 65 package, it'll come with a phone line as standard. If you choose not to add a calls package, you’ll get pay as you go plan – so, you’ll only pay for the calls you make.

You can also make free calls to other TalkTalk landline customers, as long as your call doesn't go over three hours.

TalkTalk broadband cost

At the time of writing (June 2023), TalkTalk broadband deals start at the following prices per month:

• Fibre 35 – £27

• Fibre 65 – £28

• Full Fibre 65 – £28

• Full Fibre 150 – £28

• Full Fibre 500 – £39

• Full Fibre 900 – £45

TalkTalk extras

TalkTalk used to offer a range of so-called Boosts that let you customise your package. It no longer offers these to new customers.

Instead you can tailor your TV package by adding and subtracting NOW TV Memberships, which are sold at a discount, as well as subscriptions to Prime Video and Netflix.

Broadband security software is included with all plans, free of charge. But there’s also an option to upgrade to SuperSafe online security for £5 a month. Powered by award-winning security experts F-Secure, SuperSafe lets you protect up to ten devices from viruses, identity theft, bank fraud and scams.

If you’d like to protect yourself from price rises, TalkTalk fibre packages give you the option of adding ‘Fixed Price Plus’.

For an extra charge of £4 per month, this ensures your price will be fixed for the duration of your 18-month contract. This means no broadband price increases, nor out-of-contract price rises above the rate of inflation.

Customer service with TalkTalk broadband

TalkTalk has long had a bad reputation for customer service, offsetting its low prices.

Ofcom's 2023 report on customer satisfaction in the broadband space shows little has changed, with just 75% saying they were satisfied with their experience – that's lower than the average of 81%.

Not to mention, TalkTalk customers were less likely than average to recommend their broadband provider to a friend.

What are the pros and cons of TalkTalk broadband?

What’s good about TalkTalk broadband? And what’s not so good? We outline all the pros and cons below…

Pros

• Decent broadband speeds at cheap prices

• Flexible TV add-ons let you add and drop channels when you like

• Affordable, but pared down, TV service

• Often sweeten deals with vouchers and giveaways

• No subscription required for multi-room TV

• Free security software and parental controls

Cons

• Customer service could be better

• No option to get TalkTalk TV on its own

Our latest TalkTalk deals

How does TalkTalk compare with other providers?

TalkTalk has much to recommend it. But that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s right for you. Here we take a look at how it compares to rival providers to help you decide.

TalkTalk vs Sky

Sky and TalkTalk are pretty similar when it comes to their broadband service. Their packages offer roughly the same speeds and they’re both widely available.

The key difference is that TalkTalk is quite a bit cheaper.

Sky’s TV offering is far superior to TalkTalk’s, thanks to its Sky Q set-top box and a much wider range of channels. Once again, though, there’s a price to pay for that.

While TalkTalk TV can be had for just £5 per month, even the cheapest version of Sky TV will set you back several times that.

TalkTalk vs Virgin Media

Virgin Media’s efficient cable network means that it generally offers a faster broadband service than TalkTalk. The catch? It’s also more expensive and is less widely available.

Virgin Media is the clear winner for TV, though. Its TV 360 box has more storage, a high-tech remote and lets you record multiple channels simultaneously than TalkTalk’s TV 4K box.

TalkTalk vs BT

TalkTalk consistently undercuts BT for broadband, despite offering similar speeds. So if you’re on a tight budget, TalkTalk is your best bet.

A set-top box is at the heart of both providers’ pay-TV services. Both providers long ago scrapped a lot their complicated TV bundles and now offer more flexible add-ons based on NOW TV Memberships and streaming services.

TalkTalk's TV is much more flexible, though. With BT, you're tied to a 24-month contract.