Broadband availability and costs

Asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL) is generally available at download speeds of 16Mbps (megabits per second), although some providers can offer download speeds of up to 24Mbps depending on your area. The faster the speed, the more expensive the service. The upload speed is fixed at 256kbps (kilobits per second) for lines under 2Mbps, and 756kbps for lines up to 2Mbps and up to 1,331Mbps for lines up to 16Mbps. See the page in this guide on types of broadband.

For most small businesses 1Mbps to 2Mbps is adequate for email and simple web browsing for up to six or seven users, but heavier usage requires faster speeds. The actual download speeds that you achieve will depend on a number of factors, including how far away you are from your exchange.

Availability:Whether broadband is available at your business premises depends largely on the distance to the local broadband-enabled telephone exchange. Costs:Initial costs include any hardware, such as an ADSL modem and router and cables.Monthly broadband subscriptions are usually fairly low, possibly around £15 to £30. Some mobile phone providers even offer free broadband if you subscribe to a monthly call package. However, if you want a fast service with all the bells and whistles you will have to pay more.


Many ISPs offer a set allowance of anywhere from 2GB to 15GB [Source: ADSLguide.org.uk], which is included in the basic monthly subscription. As soon as you exceed this limit you begin to incur charges for each additional gigabyte you download. You should check your contract to see if such additional charges are likely to be incurred and, if necessary, find an ISP that doesn't charge extra for large data transfers. This is particularly important if you are connecting a number of users to your broadband connection via a local area network, as it is easy to exceed download limits when a lot of people are using the same broadband link.