12-month broadband deals
A year seems like a nice round number if you’re signing up to an agreement. Unfortunately, 12-month broadband packages are now much harder to come by, as providers favour much longer 18 or 24-month contract lengths.
But that’s not to say they don’t exist anymore. With a little digging round, you can still find them!
On this page, we’re going to have a look at the broadband providers who still offer 12-month contracts. We’ll also discuss some other options, including one-month deals. These are also an option if you’re looking for a broadband package without committing to a longer term.
What are my options for broadband with a 12-month contract?
If you’re after a short-term broadband deal, you’ll still be able to sign up for a year with the following broadband providers:
- Community Fibre
- Direct Save
- Hyperoptic
- Onestream
- Rebel Internet
Community Fibre 12-month broadband deals
If you’re based in London, there are a couple of contract length choices available with Community Fibre. This includes unlimited broadband packages with download speeds of 150Mb and 1Gb fibre broadband. The set-up fee is the same regardless of whether you sign up for a 12-month or 24-month contract.
For the benefit of a shorter contract, you’ll have to pay an extra £6 per month. You’ll get the same Linksys WiFi 6 routers regardless of your contract term. We think that’s worth it!
See also:
Direct Save 12-month broadband deals
Direct Save is one of the rare internet service providers who still offer a basic, ADSL broadband package on a 12-month agreement for under £23 per month, including line rental. Although, without cancellation, this price rises to £27.95 per month. However, this package is now only available for homes with an older network.
You can also sign up to Superfast Fibre Broadband (35Mb average download speed), or Superfast Fibre Broadband Plus (63Mb average download speed) for a year. These are both available with additional home phone call tariffs. These include:
- Pay per use calls - £2.95 per month
- Up to 700 minutes per month inclusive calls to UK mobiles and landlines - £6.95 per month
- Free anytime calls to UK landlines and mobiles - £13.95
If you want to sign up to a full fibre package with DST, you’ll have to agree to a longer 18-month term.
See more at: 'Direct Save Telecom Broadband Deals'.
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What does ADSL mean?
ADSL stands for ‘Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line’. It’s broadband technology that allows the transfer data across regular telephone lines. You can make calls at the same time as being connected to the internet.
An ADSL line will, at minimum, allow for a broadband connection of up to 8Mb. These days, that’s pretty slow and won’t allow you to do much other than emailing or basic web searches.
ADSL2+ is now available at nearly all exchanges across the UK with slightly faster data transfer rates of around 10-11Mb.
Hyperoptic 12-month broadband deals
Hyperoptic offers 12-month broadband contracts on both its broadband only packages, and its broadband and phone bundles. There's no difference in price for a shorter contract, but you’ll need to make sure you cancel before your contract expires. Be aware, the cost after the initial term rises considerably.
All Hyperoptic broadband plans offer a symmetrical connection. This means that the upload speeds are the same as the average download speed. That’s pretty rare when you compare broadband speeds with other providers!
What’s the catch? Hyperoptic has limited availability across the UK as it doesn’t use a traditional phone line for its service. Instead, it runs its own fibre optic network. For a full list of areas this provider covers, you can read our Hyperoptic Broadband Review.
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What’s FTTP?
Full Fibre broadband is also known as ‘Fibre To The Premises’, ‘Fibre To The Home’. This is often shortened to FTTP or FTTH. They’re all the same thing!
Instead of copper telephone wire making up the final part of the journey from that green cabinet on the street, fibre optic cables are installed right up to your home.
It’s amazing the difference in speed this small data journey can have. With full-fibre broadband you can expect to receive speeds of 1Gb+.
The downside is full-fibre is only available to a small percentage of homes in the UK, and it’s taking a good while to get everyone up to speed.
Onestream 12-month broadband deals
Sign up to Onestream on Broadband Genie and you have a choice of either a 12 or 24-month contract. You'll pay around £4-£6 more for the privilege of a shorter contract, but the set-up fee should be the same.
It's worth noting that the monthly out of contract price for Onestream deals are much higher. There's also an annual price rise to contend with.
Rebel Internet 12-month broadband deals
Rebel Internet is unusual in that it only offers shorter term contracts - 12 months or 1-month. None of its 12-month contracts require a set-up fee.
Average download speeds start from 74Mb, but if you have access to the Openreach full fibre network, you could sign up to its fastest deal - 'Rebel 1000' with download speeds up to 944Mb.
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What is Openreach?
Openreach is the company that maintains the former British Telecom Network used for the majority of broadband and phone services. If a repair or installation is required, it’s Openreach who will send an engineer, not your provider.
More than 650 service providers using the Openreach network. That’s the majority of the UK’s broadband providers. This includes Sky, TalkTalk and BT. The exception to this is Virgin Media - it uses its own, separate cable network.
What are the pros and cons of a 12-month broadband deal?
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Can I get student broadband for less than 12 months?
Obviously, a student year tends to be 9-months rather than a whole year. This can cause issues if you’re in a shared house during term times only. Special offers for students are rarer these days, but if providers do offer them, they only tend to become available around September.
Another option is to look into no-contract broadband, which you may on a month-by-month-basis. Mobile broadband deals or home mobile broadband options can be a good alternative.
See also:
Frequently asked questions about 12-month broadband deals
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Can you get broadband for just 6 months?
6 month contracts aren’t really an option. Your best alternative is to look into a no-contract, rolling monthly deal.
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Can you get out of a 12-month broadband contract?
When you sign up to a 12-month broadband deal, you’re committing to pay every month for the whole year. Cancelling a broadband contract early can end up expensive, as you’re likely to have to pay an early termination fee. There may be some special circumstances where you can cancel for free, such as being ill. But this will need to be discussed with your provider.
If your provider is signed up to Ofcom’s Broadband Speed Code of Practice, you could also get out of a broadband contract early if you’re not receiving the speeds you signed up for. For more help, read our guide ‘how to cancel a broadband contract early’.
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Does Sky have 12-month broadband deals?
Currently, you’ll need to commit to a longer 24-month contract on all Sky broadband and TV packages.
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Does TalkTalk have 12-month broadband deals?
You’ll have to commit to a longer 18-month contract on TalkTalk fibre and full fibre deals.
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Which broadband providers offer one-year deals?
You can currently sign up to one year broadband deals with the following providers: Community Fibre, Direct Save, Hyperoptic, Onestream.
Expert Summary
You’ll have less choice when it comes to broadband packages and providers if you want to sign up to a 12-month contract, but they are readily available.
Internet Service Providers tend to offer more varied broadband only and bundled broadband and TV deals on longer 18-month or 24-month contracts.
On the plus side, a 12-month contract is ideal if you are looking for a shorter commitment, or you’re unsure what your circumstances will be in the near future. Remember, providers are normally very open to helping you keep your contract running if you move home. Some will even let you leave a contract for free if they can’t supply their service to your new address. (See also: 'Guide to broadband and moving home'.)
The downsides are that you’re likely to have to pay a higher set-up fee and a slightly higher price per month, in general.