How to get free broadband

Can you get free broadband? 

No, not at home. You may be eligible for cheaper, subsidised broadband.

There is no such thing as free broadband for the home. At the very least, you will have to pay for line rental. 

In the past, big broadband companies, such as BT and Sky, used to offer free broadband for the first 12 months. But you still would need to pay for the line rental. These offers were found to be misleading and companies are not allowed to advertise them as “free broadband” any more.

However, you may be able to get a discount on your broadband from BT.

Subsidised broadband with BT 

If you can’t afford broadband in the UK, you may be able to get subsidised broadband from BT. This is called BT Basic Broadband. You may be eligible if you get:

• Income support
• Income-based jobseeker's allowance
• Pensions credit (guaranteed credit)
• Employment and support allowance (income-related)
• Universal credit (and are on zero earnings)

You can apply here.

BT Basic Broadband 

BT Basic Broadband is the cheapest broadband you can get in the UK. You will pay around £10 per month including line rental. You will get a guaranteed speed of 10Mbps, the minimum speed you can get by law in the UK. Likewise, you can add phone plans and pay a little more per month. 

The only problem is that you have limited data access with 15 GB monthly usage. When this is over, you won’t be able to do any downloads and your internet connection will be very limited. On the other hand, you are given access to the BT Wi-Fi hotspot network. This can be a great option for someone that’s a light user. 

IMPORTANT NOTE: You can get unlimited broadband deals for around £20 per month with other providers. In this article, how to get cheap broadband, we give you some deals for less than £20 and with unlimited broadband. Usually, you can find them with Plusnet, Post Office, Now Broadband and Talk Talk. 

Cheap broadband deals 

If you want to learn more about cheap broadband in the UK, we recommend reading our guide about it, as we also give you some tips to haggle your broadband. To make your life easier, we have also listed some of the cheapest broadband deals at the moment in the UK. Usually, these deals are for ADSL broadband. Understand more about this type of broadband here. 

What to do if you can’t get subsidised broadband? 

If you can’t get subsidised broadband, you can still try to get some stuff for free. We have listed some of them below: 

Broadband deals with no setup fees

Most broadband providers will charge setup fees, so one way to get it cheaper is by going for the ones that offer it for free. 

Broadband deals with free gifts

Another way to get free broadband is trying to get a package with free gifts. Some broadband providers are well-known for giving reward cards, where you can get money to sign up with them. You can usually get reward cards with BT and Plusnet when you sign up for a broadband deal as a new customer, some of these cards can give you up to £100 to spend on most retailers in the UK. 

Broadband deals with free routers 

Last but not least, you can also get free routers. 

How to use the internet for free? 3 Ways!

If you really don’t want to pay for broadband, you will need to get creative! We have listed some ways to use the internet for free: 

Way #1 Going to places that offer free Wi-fi 

Usually, coffee shops, restaurants, pubs and libraries offer free public Wi-fi. Sometimes, you will need to spend some money by ordering some food or drinks, but it can be worth it. 

Way #2 Mobile tethering from a friend or family member 

If you have a friend or family member that has more mobile data than you, you can kindly ask for them to share with you via mobile tethering. The problem is that you will be dependent on that person to access the internet. 

Way #3 Free public Wi-Fi hotspot access

Sometimes you can find free public Wi-Fi hotspot access around your city. You just need to open your internet connections and see what it’s available. You will probably need to create a login with your name, email address, phone number and sometimes home address. These are initially for free, but after a time frame, you will need to pay.

How to get free broadband due to Coronavirus

Coronavirus has changed everybody's lives for the past year. With homeschooling as an alternative to containing the virus at schools, there was an increase in home broadband needs. The British Government has created different programs to help with this matter. One of them is The Get Help with Tech scheme, which aims to provide help to disadvantaged kids from 3 to 11 years old. If you are an EE, Three, O2, Vodafone, Sky Mobile, SMARTY, Tesco Mobile or Virgin Mobile customer, you can get access to more mobile data and 4G wireless routers for free. Access the government’s website for more information and to apply for this scheme. 

Summary 

Unfortunately, there isn’t such a thing as free broadband. If you are on benefits, you can get BT Basic Broadband, which is only good for a light internet user and people that live alone or with one more person. Another solution is to get a cheap broadband deal, which is provided mainly by Plusnet, Talk Talk, Post Office and NOW Broadband. If these deals don’t work for you, you can try to get broadband deals with no set up fees, free gifts and routers. And finally, if you don’t really want to pay for broadband, you can use some ways listed above to use internet for free.