All you need to know about John Lewis broadband
John Lewis is a trusted high street brand with a great reputation for customer service. But while you might think of John Lewis mainly as a retailer of electrical and home goods, it also has its own home broadband services.
Launched in 2012, John Lewis broadband provides ADSL and fibre optic internet access, as well as home phone services.
What does John Lewis offer?
Broadband
John Lewis offers both ADSL and fibre optic home broadband using the Openreach telephone network. John Lewis is a reseller of Plusnet broadband, so if you’ve had Plusnet before you can expect similar performance.
Phone
A phone line is included with all John Lewis broadband packages. Inclusive evening and weekend calls are standard, but you can opt to upgrade to anytime calls, or anytime and 300 minutes to 35 international destinations. The anytime or anytime and international packages also have an optional mobile calls add-on.
John Lewis broadband coverage and speed
John Lewis - in common with most other providers - uses the Openreach (BT line) network for its broadband and phone services. This means speeds are broadly in line with the majority of home broadband ISPs, with the choice of an average download speed of 10Mb, 36Mb or 66Mb.
Using the Openreach network also means most homes around the UK will have the option of broadband from John Lewis. All you need is a BT telephone line, or the ability to install one if no socket is currently present.
To find out if John Lewis is available in your area, and what speed you might be able to get, enter a postcode:
John Lewis usage limits and traffic management
All John Lewis broadband deals are completely unlimited, so you can browse, download and stream to your heart’s content without facing extra costs or service restrictions.
John Lewis does use traffic management, though there’s very little detail about it. The FAQ states that it would only be applied in “exceptional circumstances” such as a network outage or major news event which could lead to increased demand on the network, so we don’t think it’s anything that regular users would need to be concerned about.
John Lewis broadband - in summary
Going by the monthly prices alone John Lewis is not especially good value, sitting in the middle of the pack in terms of pricing. But we appreciate its honesty - there are no hidden costs, and free setup is standard across the range. It also regularly offers free gifts and other bonuses, which go some way to offsetting the slightly higher pricing compared to budget ISPs.
To find out more read our full John Lewis broadband review