Broadband price rises by provider in 2025

Dan Howdle • January 21st, 2025

The way providers alter their pricing yearly has changed numerous times across the past decade, each time at the behest of Ofcom, the UK telecoms regulator. Each change has been designed to keep providers honest about the changes you can expect to see to what you pay across the length of your contract.

The reason the rules keep changing is because providers tend to find loopholes. This new change, at the start of 2025, loosely amounts to the price changes that are set to hit customers while they're in contract being shown next to the monthly price. It's not a simple system and there's a lot to say about it. So without further ado, let's look at the change and how it applies to the main providers.

Price rises by provider

Here is a summary of the remaining providers you can compare on BestBroadbandDeals.co.uk and what their price rise policy is in keeping with the new rules. Note that at the time of writing, some providers are still TBC on the precise pounds and pence amount that will be added to your bill each April. We will update this page as more providers fall in line with the rules.

How are providers responding to this? Well, we'd love to tell you they're all complying with identical wording and phrasing in order to make things as simple as possible, but sadly there's no such clause in Ofcom's new rules, meaning not all fo them are doing things the same way. Here's a detailed breakdown of how the changes are taking effect with the UK's biggest four providers.

Sky price rises 2025 to 2026

Sky has thus far failed to comply with the rules as we understand them at the time of writing, instead opting to use the wording 'Prices may rise during your contract' or similar rather than stating the pounds and pence price rise amount as required by Ofcom. The same goes for NOW Broadband, which is also owned and run by Sky. What Sky's thinking is on this is unknown at this point, but watch this space and we will update you should this situation change.

BT price rises 2025 to 2026

BT is falling fully in line with the new rules, advertising all of its packages at the headline monthly price followed by a stated increase of £3 per month across all of its packages on March 31 of both 2025 and 2026. BT contracts are two years so the provider finds itself in the perhaps unfortunate position of having to show two future price increases. BT is currently showing a £5 per month increase for both years on bundles that incorporate TV.

Virgin Media price rises 2025 to 2026

Virgin Media contracts are 18 months – somewhat of a rarity these days. That means that for half of the year it's only going to have to show one price increase in its listed pricing. However, like all broadband providers, the price goes up steeply at the end of the contract – a means to encourage you to sign up for another one. It is also waiving a price rise this April for anyone signing up between now and then. Current advertised pricing then shows a £3.50 per month increase from April 2026, but also states the new higher price you'll see when your contract ends.

TalkTalk price rises 2025 to 2026

TalkTalk also offers its broadband on a 24 month contract, and therefore has to show two price increases alongside its listed monthly pricing. This currently reads as a £3 price increase on all packages from April 2025, and again from April 2026.

Ofcom's price advertising rules

To understand why changes to pricing are now being shown next to the monthly price, it's probably a good idea to briefly discuss how we got here. About a decade ago (January 2014) a new rule came in meaning that if your provider raised the monthly price of your broadband contract, you would be given the opportunity to quit and switch to another provider. The measure was designed to prevent mid-contract price rises, but it did not.

Instead, over the subsequent years, providers found ways around it, eventually asking customers to agree to a yearly price rise as part of their contract terms, thereby denying them the right to quit and switch. This was called the 'transparency clause', and providers jumped on it, warning new customers of price rises each year during their contracts of CPI inflation rate plus 3.8%.

And it's been that way for some time now. But clearly this clause has not been serving customers well, especially during the years of exceptionally high inflation we suffered through during the COVID years. And since 2022, Ofcom has been consulting again on how to address the issue and prevent broadband providers from hitting their customers with mid-contract hikes.

What's changed?

We now have a new system as of 17 January 2025. Here's an overview:

• Exactly what’s changing – Broadband providers must display any mid-contract price rises in clear pounds and pence terms, right next to the headline monthly cost. This goes beyond the vague 'inflation + x%' buried somewhere in your contract that defined the previous system. Now you’ll see something more like '£25 p/m until April 2025, then increases by £3.50 each April during contract'
• Why Ofcom has introduced it – Ofcom found that many people were caught out by price hikes hidden in the small print. By forcing providers to spell out how much more you will pay over time, it hopes you’ll be able to make a more informed choice before signing up
• How it works for adverts – Any advertised price (online, TV, posters, comparison sites) has to include a clear indication of future costs, the goal being to ensure you know exactly what you’re getting yourself into
• What providers must do – Providers need to put this information front and centre, not hidden away. If they use an 'inflation plus x%' formula, they have to provide a pounds and pence figure to support it. It has to be explained plainly, so you’re not left scratching your head over complex calculations
• What broadband comparison sites must do – Comparison services like BestBroadbandDeals.co.uk must also show the new price-rise wording next to pricing in all of its listings. You can see this in action right now in our broadband comparison
• The impact on you – If you’ve ever been frustrated by unexpected price hikes, these new rules do give a firmer idea of ongoing costs throughout the length of your contract. It allows you to compare deals more confidently, understanding what you’ll likely pay in the future as well as what you'll pay at the outset

Why do prices go up?

We'd love to say it's a simple matter of inflation because it's certainly a part of the answer. Up until this new rule change, yearly price rises were inflation linked, albeit at inflation plus 3.8%. With most providers now showing annual price rises of at least £3 pr year under the new system, for many broadband packages the situation is actually now worse than it was, with a typical £30 per month broadband deal adding a full 10% or more to its monthly price.

Broadband providers often cite rising operational costs, along with investment in network infrastructure as the primary factors behind annual price rises. This is likely a half truth. Some of what you pay surely does go back into investment in the network. However, these are mostly public companies, and public companies have shareholders to please.

What we think

I cannot be argued that the new pricing rules mean every customer will have a much clearer idea of that they are going to pay in each year of their contract. However, if Ofcom's aim was to try to stymie the never-ending increase in expense of what has ultimately become a necessary utility, it's not going to have that effect.

Instead, providers will now advertise price increases that seem reasonable on the face of it, but are actually multiples of the current inflation rate. At £3 per month extra added to your monthly bill every April 1 for most providers, customers are likely not to be too worried about suddenly not being able to afford their broadband. However, many customers these price rises are steeper than they were before.

This is partly because previously under the old 'CPI inflation plus 3.8%' system, those on cheap broadband deals would see a smaller increase than those on all-singing, all dancing broadband, TV and mobile bundles.

How to avoid price rises

If you sign up to a particular new provider who is telling you up front what the cost increases will be each year, there is no way to avoid the annual hikes. You agree to them as part of the Ts and Cs of your contract. However, if your provider hikes the price beyond what is agreed in your contract, you can still leave with 30 days notice.

There are also some other ways to get out of your contract that don't have anything to do with pricing. For the sake of covering every angle, here's a short breakdown of situations in which you can leave your contract without paying any fees.

• Price rises not disclosed upfront – If your provider hikes the monthly cost beyond what was clearly spelled out when you signed up, you can usually walk away without exit fees.
• Failure to meet promised speeds – Ofcom rules allow you to leave penalty-free if your broadband consistently falls below the minimum guaranteed speed and the provider can’t fix it within a reasonable time
• Significant changes to contract terms – If your provider makes a major, unilateral change to your contract (beyond agreed conditions), you may have the right to leave
• Persistent service faults – Chronic outages or technical problems that the provider fails to resolve can also give you grounds to leave early
• Cooling-off period – If you signed up online or over the phone, you have 14 days to change your mind and cancel without penalty