Millions of homes could beat broadband price rises saving hundreds of pounds by upgrading to faster, more reliable full fibre broadband

• Low speed users could save as much as £119 in 12 months by upgrading to full fibre
• High speed users could save as much as £458 in 12 months by upgrading to full fibre
• Over 45% of the UK has access to broadband services over full fibre networks
• 64% of consumers don’t know the difference between full and part fibre
• 22% consumers expect that full fibre broadband will be ‘prohibitively expensive’

A comparison of broadband and phone packages from national ISPs highlights that consumers choosing entry-level, low-cost products could save as much as £119 in 12 months [i], while those requiring faster ‘gigabit’ speeds could save up to £458 in 12 months [ii] by upgrading to a full fibre broadband network, according to CityFibre, the UK’s largest independent full fibre platform.

With millions of households now expecting inflation busting price rises for their broadband of up to 14%, further market research of broadband services shows that across almost every price point or speed tier, there is a faster and/or cheaper broadband service available over full fibre than over the legacy copper network (operated by BT Openreach), or cable network (operated by Virgin Media).[iii]

The rapid nationwide rollout of full fibre infrastructure means that now over 45% of UK homes have access to the new technology.[iv] Full fibre is the gold-standard of digital networks, capable of supporting far faster downloading and uploading speeds than legacy copper or cable networks and providing far more reliable performance.

Despite the growing availability of full fibre, research has shown that 64% of consumers don’t know the difference between full and part fibre networks and that 22% believe incorrectly that switching to the new technology will mean higher costs.[v] The lack of consumer education is hampering take-up over the new networks and leaving significant household savings unrealised in a cost-of-living crisis.

The availability of specific full fibre products and prices does vary by network provider. ISPs using CityFibre’s networks, which currently reach over 2.2 million UK homes, are typically able to offer faster speeds and/or lower prices to those customers than the services offered to homes served by BT Openreach’s full fibre networks.

Additionally, services delivered over CityFibre’s networks are almost always symmetrical, offering the same speed uploading as downloading. This is in stark contrast to copper and cable-based services that typically offer upload speeds that are just 10-25% of the download speed.[vi]

Dan Ramsay, Chief Marketing Officer at CityFibre said: “Full fibre broadband is proof that a new technology, offering faster and more reliable services, doesn’t have to be more expensive. Millions of consumers will soon see their broadband prices increase significantly, and given the already huge pressure on people’s finances in this cost-of-living crunch, now’s the time to upgrade to full fibre. Not only will they receive a better quality broadband experience, but they could save hundreds of pounds in the process.”

As an additional incentive to upgrade, CityFibre is offering a £50 connection offer to every home joining its network. By registering for the offer online at https://refer.cityfibre.com/cityfibre-26, households can check availability and a range of full fibre broadband services. 30 days after their new service goes live, they will receive their choice of a £50 Amazon voucher or £50 PayPal credit.

Notes to editors:

• Consumers in receipt of benefits such as Universal Credit may be able to access lower priced entry level products.
• Full details on CityFibre’s £50 connection offer can be found here: https://refer.cityfibre.com/cityfibre-26

[i] Based on:

• Comparing BT’s Fibre Essential package (copper network - 36/9 Mbps with voice) at £33.99/m +six months free, + free connection to Vodafone’s Full Fibre 1 package (full fibre network – 41/41Mbps with voice) over CityFibre at £21/m + free connection.
• Monthly saving £5.74/m x 12m = £68.88
• Saving + CityFibre £50 new connection offer = £118.88
• NB: Products and Prices correct as of 13 January 2023

[ii] Based on:

• Comparing Virgin Media’s Gig 1 Broadband + Phone package (cable network – 1130/52Mbps with voice) at £64/m + free connection charge to Vodafone’s Full Fibre 900 package (full fibre network – 910/910Mbps with voice) over CityFibre at £30/m.
• Monthly saving £34/m x 12m = £408
• Saving + CityFibre £50 new connection offer = £458
• NB: Products and Prices correct as of 13 January 2023

[iii] Based on:

• Vodafone Full Fibre 1 over CityFibre (41/41Mbps) at £21/m vs Vodafone Full Fibre 1 over Openreach (36/9Mbps) at £22/m
• TalkTalk Fibre65 over CityFibre (78/20Mbps) at £25/m vs TalkTalk Fibre65 over Openreach FTTP (76/20Mbps) at £26/m.
• Vodafone Full Fibre 100 over CityFibre (100/100Mbps) at £24/p vs Vodafone Full Fibre 100 over Openreach (100/18Mbps) at £25/m.
• TalkTalk Fibre 900 over CityFibre (948/112Mbps) at £36/m vs TalkTalk 900 over Openreach (948/112Mbps) at £49/m.
• NB: Products and Prices correct as of 13 January2023

[iv] https://www.ispreview.co.uk/in...

[v] Ci “State of the Nation” research for CityFibre, February 2022. Sample of 1007 nationally representative households in the UK.

[vi] Based on:

• BT Fibre Essential (Download 36Mbps, Upload 9Mbps (25% of download));
• Virgin M125 Broadband (Download 132Mbps, Upload 20Mbps (15% of download));
• Virgin Gig1 Broadband (Download 1130Mbps, Upload 52 Mbps (5% of download)).