True Cost
The headline price is not the price. Pick a category to see when to act and what actually decides what you pay — the things comparison sites leave off the tile.
Broadband
Availability varies by area · Work out the true 24-month cost, not the headline monthly price.
Best windows: January and September
Providers push their sharpest offers at the start of the year and at the September back-to-school peak. If your contract ends outside those months, it is usually worth going month-to-month for a few weeks rather than signing in a quiet one.
What decides the real cost
The full term, not the monthly priceStart here
Multiply the monthly price by the contract length, add setup and router fees, then subtract any cashback you will actually claim. A £21/mo deal with a £30 setup fee and a rise after month 12 can finish above a £24/mo fixed one.
Biggest leverdo this first
Mid-contract price rises
Most contracts allow an annual increase. Find the clause before you sign — "fixed for 24 months" and "£X/mo for 24 months" are different promises, and only one of them holds.
Read the clausebefore signing
The speed you actually need
Paying for a gigabit line to run two phones and a TV is the most common overspend in this category. Streaming 4K needs about 25Mbps per screen.
Check usagenot the badge
We are not connected to live provider prices yet, so this page will not quote you a figure or tell you what your current deal costs — we do not know it. What is here is the method: the timing, and the terms that decide what you actually pay. When live pricing is switched on, it will appear here and every figure will carry its source.