Guide to student broadband and finding the best student internet deals

Internet access is an essential part of student life. From the initial uni application to research to entertainment, it’s something the modern student can’t be without.

But broadband deals for students can be a tricky subject. Cost is a key consideration, but lengthy contracts also make things difficult for people who may not be in the same house all year round. Cancelling early can land you with some hefty charges, which isn’t ideal for those stretched student finances.

Student internet deals

Some broadband providers have recognised the need to provide a specialist student broadband service and offer 9 month broadband contracts to fit within term times.

Unfortunately these student broadband deals aren't that common and are only available for a limited time, around the summer when it’s most likely people will be looking for a student broadband deal to start in September/October.

If and when they do appear though, you can be sure we'll have them in the comparison table above as soon as they're released. They tend to be nine-month deals to get you from September through to June, with Virgin and BT regularly offering these tariffs in recent years.

Virgin even offer a student broadband calculator to quickly figure out how much the service will cost when split between housemates.

Rolling monthly and short term student broadband contracts

Another great option can be rolling monthly (sometimes called no contract broadband) or short term contracts.

On a rolling monthly deal you’ve got an ongoing 30-day contract with the provider which means you can cancel at any time and never pay for more than the remaining month.

Alternatively, short term contracts sign you up for a slightly longer period, typically three or six months. But these are rarer than even rolling monthly deals.

Either can be suitable if you’re often moving or are unsure about future plans, however both rolling monthly and short term can be more expensive when compared to an equivalent service on a longer term agreement. You’ll typically have to pay for the router, there may be a setup fee, and monthly charges can be higher. And remember that for anything other than Virgin student broadband you will need a phone line, too.

Phone line contracts

If you decide to take up an ADSL or fibre optic internet service you will need a telephone line and with many providers this will involve signing up for at least 12 months. Though there are a few smaller ISPs which offer phone services on a rolling monthly basis.

Also, if the previous occupants of your house did not have an active telephone line it may be necessary to pay extra to have the line installed or setup.

On a positive note, broadband and phone bundles can be a cheap way to get online and BT isn’t the only game in town. Phone services are now offered by many ISPs, each trying to undercut their competition.

But always bear in mind the cancellation fees which will apply if you have to terminate the contract early, and remember to consider the monthly line rental charges when comparing broadband as these are often listed separately.

If you don't want a phone at all and you're in an area covered by the Virgin Media network then you can get Virgin broadband without a phone line.

Staying all year? Long term contracts are cheapest

Student broadband packages assume that you’re only going to be there during term time, but it’s also not unusual to live in the university town all year round. In that situation the best broadband deals for students are the same as any other home broadband user.

If this is your situation then a long term broadband and phone contract is the best value option. You’ll get the best deals when signing up (free setup, free equipment, perhaps a few months of free, or half price, broadband) and the monthly costs will be lower.

If possible you’ll want a long tenancy agreement with the landlord to ensure there are no surprises a few months after entering into a lengthy broadband contract, but do remember that it is possible to move your broadband and phone service to another premises. The only major restriction is the availability of services such as fibre optic or cable internet - if your new home has a less equipped exchange your provider will move you onto the next best package.

Mobile broadband: perfect for student internet?

Fixed-line broadband services are the fastest and best value internet services available to consumers but for students the contracts may be an unwanted complication, so it could also be worth considering mobile broadband.

If you have free high speed internet access on campus you should be able to do your more data intensive work there (downloading large files, such as movies etc) and spare the limited data allowance of mobile internet. However there are other points to consider...

• Network coverage. Mobile broadband’s performance is dependent on the signal strength of the network. For one thing you need to ensure there’s coverage in your area, but it’s also possible that buildings or natural obstacles could impede the signal and greatly reduce your connection speed. It’s far less consistent and reliable than fixed line service.

• Speed. 3G mobile broadband will - signal allowing - typically offer speeds around 5Mb, though can often reach 10Mb. This is sufficient for web browsing and will handle media streaming, but downloads will be slow. Newer high speed 3G as offered by Three and others can go as fast as 20Mb (quicker than ADSL) but again depends on network coverage. 4G broadband (for 30Mb or more) is also now available in the UK, but has a limited reach at present compared to 3G. However it could be a great option in some of the larger towns and cities.

• Latency. If you play online games you’ll find the latency (the time it takes for data to travel between your computer and a server) quite high on mobile broadband. It’ll do for a round of Bejeweled on Facebook but fast-paced titles could suffer.

• Data caps. With some rare exceptions you won’t find any mobile broadband offering unlimited usage. The biggest allowances top out around 50GB, and PAYG mobile broadband is limited to how many top-ups you can afford. This is not a big deal if you’re mostly using it for browsing and email, but once video and files get thrown in the mix a small data cap is a real hindrance.

So should students bother with mobile broadband? While these downsides may seem a hindrance there are some positives too:

• No need for a phone. Since mobile broadband uses mobile networks you don’t need to pay for a fixed line, potentially saving money on setup costs and, more importantly, avoiding another contract.

• Portable. This is a big plus point: mobile broadband will work wherever there’s signal so you can take it to uni and there’s zero hassle with transferring the internet service when moving.

• Flexible payment options. Mobile broadband is available on pay-as-you-go and rolling monthly deals as well as longer contract terms. PAYG and rolling monthly are particularly useful for cash-strapped students as it offers far more control over the costs.

• Mobile Wi-Fi dongles. Standard USB dongles are fine if you’re just using mobile broadband on a single computer, but mobile Wi-Fi dongles allow you to connect multiple devices, and will work with anything that supports wireless networking including iPads and games consoles. That's really useful if you’ve gone for mobile broadband in place of a fixed line service.

Using your student broadband: security, file sharing and data caps

Internet for students isn’t just a case of choosing the right deal. Once you’ve got a broadband service it’s important to consider the security of your connection for shared student housing.

Wi-Fi networking is the easiest way to give everyone access but the password must be kept private or your neighbours could decide to use your connection rather than signing up for their own. If necessary you can also restrict access to each individual device by specifying the MAC address in the router’s security settings.

Everyone should have anti-virus too. This should go without saying but it’s worth double checking to ensure a virus doesn’t spread across your home network.

It would also be a good idea to set some ground rules regarding the usage of the connection. File sharing, particularly using BitTorrent, could land you in some legal hot water, and even worse may slow the internet for everyone.

This is particularly important if you have a limited monthly data cap, though we would always recommend unlimited broadband for student house shares to avoid any trouble here. Also make everyone aware of any fair use or traffic management policies which could kick in after heavy use; these are often limited to peak times so big downloads might have to wait until late at night.