Full list of all the cheap broadband tariffs you could be eligible for – and they could save you £144 a year

HOUSEHOLDS are facing price rises across the board from food to energy costs – and broadband bills aren’t getting off lightly either.

Virgin Media raised customers bills by an average of £56 while Sky customers have seen bills go up by £43 from this month.

Plus plenty more broadband providers are also hiking their prices including BT.

But many people may not realise they could qualify for cheaper tariffs, especially if they’re on benefits or receiving Universal Credit.

Many providers offer discounted packages, sometimes known as “social tariffs”.

While it’s estimated that up to 4.2million households could be eligible for these deals, regular Ofcom says only around 55,000 homes have taken advantage of the offers.

If you qualify for a social tariff, it could save you up to £144 a year, as they’re often considerably cheaper than standard deals.

To help households keep down the cost of their broadband, we’ve rounded up the cheapest tariffs you could be eligible for right now.

Vodafone

Vodafone expanded eligibility for its social tariff for Voxi customers amid the cost of living crisis today.

Voxi, which is part of Vodafone, is offering its half a million customers unlimited 5G data, calls and texts for £10 a month for up to six months if they are getting certain benefits.

You usually pay £35 for these Sim-only services at full price, meaning you could save £25 a month – or £150 over the full six months.

Anyone getting the Voxi for Now Tariff won’t need to sign up to a contract, and they can pause or cancel the plan at any time.

There’s also no credit check and you’ll need to show evidence of getting benefits when you signing up.

Sky

Sky launched a cheaper broadband tariff to those on low incomes yesterday.

The new £20 a month deal is called Sky Broadband Basics and will be for existing Sky customers who are getting Universal Credit or Pension Credit.

The new tariff will offer 36M/bs broadband for 18 months, and usually that costs £25 a month – so you could save £90 over that time.

If you need to cancel the contract at any time, you won’t be charged a fee for leaving.

At the end of the 18 months, you’ll return to the standard rate at the time, but you’ll be told how much this is ahead of time.

The same deal is available if you have Now TV, which is part of Sky.

Usually Now broadband costs £25 a month, so you could save £5 a month, or £60 over a year if you’re on Universal Credit or Pension Credit.

Now TV’s broadband deal is pay monthly, and you’ll need to give at least 31 days notice if you want to leave, but there’s no termination fee.

For both tariffs you’ll need to show that you are in receipt of these benefits.

Meanwhile, BT, Community Fibre, G.Network, Hyperoptic, KCOM and Virgin Media O2 also offer broadband deals at discounted rates to households struggling to afford internet.

These packages are priced at between £10-£20 a month for broadband speeds ranging from 10Mbit/s to 67Mbit/s.

You will need to be receiving Universal Credit or other eligible benefits to qualify for these discounted deals.

BT

BT launched a tariff Home Essentials costing £15 a month for broadband and phone last summer to help those in receipt of benefits.

It provides eligible customers with average download speeds of 36 Mbps and 700 mins of calls – saving £240 a year compared to an equivalent package.

Community Fibre

Community Fibre is another discounted package on the market for £10 a month but will only come with speeds of 10 Mbps.

It is also only available for customers in London. 

The package comes with a one-year contract, however after a year customers can choose to continue with the service at the same price, upgrade to a standard tariff, or cancel the service.

G.Network

London-based G.Network has a full fibre broadband tariff for the city’s lower-income households.

For £15 per month, customers will receive 50 Mbps download speed and 15Mbps upload on a one-year contract.

Hyperoptic

Hyperoptic launched its social tariff last year offering discounted rates on its 50Mbps and 150Mbps monthly rolling packages.

Its 50Mbps broadband-only service costs £15 a month, reduced from £22. It will cost eligible customers £18 a month to include phone service in the package, which was originally £25.

There will be no charge for installation and the package will come with a free router.

KCOM

KCOM’s Full Fibre Flex costs £19.99 a month and comes with a download speed of 30 Mbps.

It also include 20 local calls and 60 minutes of calls to 0845 and 0870 numbers.

Virgin Media

Virgin Media offers broadband-only package with average speeds of 15Mbps for £15 a month.

It promises no price increases as long as customers remain eligible.

The eligibility criteria is more stringent and customers need to be the named receipt of Universal Credit – no other benefits are mentioned.

More on broadband costs – we explain a simple check that could save £200 a year on your internet bills.

Plus, here’s how you can switch broadband mid-contract with no fees as providers.

Meanwhile, we round up a full list of benefits rising from this week – including Universal Credit and child benefit.