Author: Emma Davenport

Last updated: 14 November 2024

All about TalkTalk Broadband

TalkTalk offers good value deals. It also has fantastic availability across the UK.

If you enter your postcode into our deals checker, we can almost guarantee you’ll be able to sign up to either one of its entry-level packages: TalkTalk Fibre 35 or TalkTalk Fibre 65.

There’s also good news if you’re keen to get hold of a reasonably priced TV service. TalkTalk customers have the option to bundle in NOW TV memberships on a rolling monthly basis, such as NOW Cinema or NOW Sports, as well as an optional extra Netflix subscription.

Plus, if you want a convenient landline option on top, signing up to a bundled TalkTalk broadband and phone deal should shave a bit off your bills.

Let’s explore its packages in more detail.

TalkTalk packages and speeds

TalkTalk offers different broadband only packages, and gives you the option to add flexible add-ons during the checkout process. These include entertainment subscriptions for NOW TV, Netflix, or landline calls.

TalkTalk Fibre 35

• Download speed: 38Mb
• Upload speed: 9Mb

This is the entry-level TalkTalk fibre service, although you may find you can sign up a faster TalkTalk Fibre 65 for a similar price.

This is our recommended minimum for most households, it’s speedy enough for an individual or a small home. But it may struggle if you’ve got a busier home where everyone is trying to stream video or download at the same time.

TalkTalk Fibre 65

• Download speed: 67Mb
• Upload speed: 19.5Mb

Fibre 65 is the fastest TalkTalk service available to most homes. It’s also a great option for bigger families who may find the Fibre 35 package too restrictive. It’s typically very competitively priced.

TalkTalk Full Fibre 150

• Download speed: 152Mb
• Upload speed: 30Mb

If your home network has been upgraded to full fibre (FTTP), we recommend you future-proof yourself and opt for TalkTalk Fibre 150. This kind of speed can cope with multiple high-definition video streams and allows you to download large files quickly.

TalkTalk Full Fibre 500

• Download speed: 525Mb
• Upload speed: 72Mb

A good option for busy households with five or more people online at the same time. This speed will be good enough for everyone to stream high definition video at the same time.

TalkTalk Full Fibre 900

• Download speed: 925Mb
• Upload speed: 110Mb

If you’re able to sign up to full fibre speeds, ask yourself whether you need the most expensive package. Full Fibre 900 is for the most demanding homes where multiple people are either streaming in UHD, carrying out video calls or playing games at the same time. If this sounds like your house - then go for it!

• What is ‘full fibre’ broadband?

  Full Fibre broadband is also known as ‘Fibre To The Premises’, ‘Fibre To The Home’. This is often shortened to FTTP or FTTH. They’re all the same thing!

  Instead of copper telephone wire making up the final part of the journey from that green cabinet on the street, fibre optic cables are installed right up to your home.

  It’s amazing the difference in speed this small data journey can have. With full-fibre broadband you can expect to receive speeds of 1Gb+.

  The downside is full-fibre is only available to a small percentage of homes in the UK, and it’s taking a good while to get everyone up to speed.

How fast is TalkTalk home broadband?

To help you understand how fast the different TalkTalk broadband packages are, here are some examples of approximately how long it would take to download the feature film ‘Beetlejuice Beetlejuice’ in 1080p (HD) (5.85GB).

How well does TalkTalk perform when it comes to speed?

TalkTalk customers seem slightly underwhelmed by the performance of their home broadband service, according to the results of our 2024 home broadband survey, with a 67% satisfaction rate. 

Unfortunately, while TalkTalk's full fibre deals offer excellent download performance, the upload rates aren't as impressive. But, in fairness, you’ll see the same thing with high-speed broadband from other providers, too, including BT, Sky, and Virgin Media. The only way to get around this is by avoiding the bigger names and opting for a smaller, alternative network (altnet). 

Can I get full fibre broadband from TalkTalk?

Not everyone can get full fibre broadband yet. At the time of writing, less than half of UK homes have access to a full fibre service with an Openreach provider. But that figure is rising all the time.

The first step to buying any broadband service is to check availability in your area with a postcode check. Something you can do right here on Broadband Genie. Try it now!

If you’re not seeing TalkTalk full fibre deals just yet, you can put your postcode into the Openreach fibre checker. Once you get your results, you can select ‘Keep me updated’ and enter your details to receive announcements on new full fibre developments.

Does TalkTalk offer a social tariff?

Unfortunately, TalkTalk doesn’t offer a social tariff to those on benefits. However, if you’re seeking employment, you may be able to claim six months of free, unlimited fibre broadband.

For more information on TalkTalk’s free broadband for jobseekers, visit our guide, ‘social tariffs and cheaper broadband if you’re on benefits’.

Is TalkTalk broadband good value for money?

TalkTalk offers low-cost broadband services. The best value package is usually Fibre 65, which is often available for just a little more than Fibre 35.

We think if you can sign up to its entry-level full fibre deal, ‘TalkTalk Full Fibre 150 Broadband’, this offers excellent value for money for well under £30 per month.

Although it doesn’t typically have the cheapest broadband deals, you can frequently get great rewards to boost up the value too.

We love the fact that there’s never any activation fee to pay with TalkTalk when you sign up as a new customer.

• Broadband cashback and rewards

TalkTalk rewards

Although it’s a budget provider, TalkTalk doesn’t usually have the cheapest broadband deals you’ll find listed on Broadband Genie. But you can often get great rewards to boost up the value.

Typically, a TalkTalk reward deal will include an Amazon voucher worth around £50-£70.

When comparing deals, please remember the offer details section. You can check the effective monthly cost for a price breakdown, including any one-off fees and rewards.

You can compare the latest TalkTalk offers on our TalkTalk rewards page. For general help with rewards, visit our guide to claiming free gifts and vouchers.

Will TalkTalk add price rises this year

In April 2025, customers who joined before 12 August 2024 will see an annual price increase of a fixed £3 per month every April.

Meanwhile, older customers will be subject to a price rise of December’s CPI rate + 3.7%.

If you’re keen to make sure you won’t see a price increase above the rate of inflation for the duration of your contract, you can sign up to ‘TalkTalk Fixed Price Plus’. However, this will cost an extra £4 per month.

For more help understanding broadband price rises, visit our guide: 'Broadband price increases in 2024: price rises from BT, Virgin, TalkTalk & more'

How reliable is TalkTalk home broadband?

In our 2024 Broadband Awards, TalkTalk ranked below many other popular broadband providers for reliability, including BT, Three, Vodafone, NOW Broadband and Sky. It tallied in with a total of 72% satisfaction. Although this was a slight improvement on the year before.

TalkTalk is signed up to Ofcom's voluntary Broadband Speed Code of Conduct. This means if report you're having problems with your internet, but it can't be fixed within 30 days, you must be able to leave your contract without paying an early exit fee.

TalkTalk broadband and phone deals

Does TalkTalk offer home phone packages?

Not all TalkTalk phone and broadband packages come with inclusive calls. If you do use a landline to make calls without a pre-agreed package, you'll be charged at TalkTalk’s standard per-minute rate.

Call boosts available for an extra monthly price. These only have a one-month contract length, so you can cancel easily if you find you’re not using your phone. The add-ons aren’t expensive and can save a great deal of money in the run, especially if you use your phone for international calls.

• Unlimited UK Calls: unlimited calls to UK landlines and mobiles at any time.
• UK Evening & Weekend Calls: unlimited UK calls from 7pm on weekdays and all day at the weekend (for the first 60 minutes)
• International Max: 1500 inclusive minutes to landlines and mobiles in 50 countries, plus discount rates on all other calls.

TalkTalk call boosts can be added to or removed from your package at any time without penalty.

Does TalkTalk offer broadband and TV bundles?

For an extra £5 per month, you can sign up to receive the 4k Ultra HD TalkTalk TV hub on selected full fibre packages. Powered by Android TV, this gives you access to 70+ live channels (including Freeview channels), as well as streaming apps such as Netflix, Prime and NOW.

You’re able to customise your TalkTalk TV plan to include Netflix and/or the following, flexible NOW memberships:

• NOW Sports (for all Sky Sport channels)
• NOW Cinema
• NOW Entertainment
• NOW Hayu

Unlike many other broadband and TV bundle providers, there are no lengthy commitments.

How good is the TalkTalk broadband router?

All bundled TalkTalk Wi-Fi routers, including the Wi-Fi Hub, Eero 6 and Eero Pro 6 are easy to use and offer reliable connectivity. Although you're free to use third-party devices with TalkTalk, it's highly unlikely you'll need to, especially if you're on a full fibre deal.

As a bonus, the Amazon Eero 6 and Eero Pro 6 will work with Alexa and smart home devices. These routers also use the latest Wi-Fi 6 technology. This is capable of 500Mb download speeds, and can connect 75 devices at once.

For more information on TalkTalk hubs, including full specifications, you can read our full TalkTalk router round-up.

TalkTalk Digital Voice app

By the end of January 2027 the UK's traditional copper phone lines will be switched off. This means, to make calls, you'll need to plug your home phone into your TalkTalk Wi-Fi Hub. The good news is this does away with extra line rental charges.

Alternatively, the TalkTalk Digital Voice mobile app allows you to make and receive calls using your landline number on your mobile phone.

This Digital Voice service is currently available to existing TalkTalk customers who upgrade their package to a full fibre deal.

For more information on how TalkTalk are handling this, visit our guide to the PSTN switch-off.

TalkTalk: pros and cons

Which TalkTalk package should I choose?

Your choice of TalkTalk broadband package will firstly depend on whether your home network has been upgraded to offer a faster full fibre service. Next, you’ll need to bear in mind how many people live at home and what your internet connection is typically used for. You can find more help with this in with our ‘guide to broadband speeds’.

TalkTalk Fibre 65 is a good entry-level standard fibre broadband service that’s readily available to homes across the UK. This would suit a household of 2-4 people streaming video content in standard HD rather than Ultra HD.

For larger households, or those that want to use the internet for constant streaming, gaming or downloading, a full fibre plan is likely to be more suitable.

TalkTalk Full Fibre 150 or TalkTalk Full Fibre 500 will be a fantastic option for most busy homes and should be fast enough to cater to everyone being online at the same time - even if they’re gaming, streaming or video calling.

We think that TalkTalk Full Fibre 900 should only be required for super busy, data-intensive homes.

Next, you’ll need to decide whether you’re interested in adding in TV bundles to your plan. Luckily, with TalkTalk, there’s no lengthy commitment for entertainment packages, so you can afford to experiment and cancel if you’re not making use of them.

Points to consider before you choose

• How many people will be using your broadband connection at any one time, especially for heavy downloading or online gaming?
• Would an 18-month contract be too long for you?
• Do you watch a lot of TV, or make many phone calls?
• Do you want to be able to record programmes?
• Are you willing to pay a premium for a fixed price for the duration of your contract?

What are the benefits of TalkTalk fibre broadband?

Can be an expansion on Pros and Cons, but additional feature notes not already mentioned are preferable

Regular rewards for new customers - Its baseline monthly cost may not be the lowest on the market, but it’s a generous giver of gift cards for new customers. Time it right, and you can get your effective monthly cost right down.

Truly unlimited - There are no restrictions when it comes to usage and no traffic management. So this means you shouldn’t find yourself subject to slower speeds during peak times.

Flexible TV packages - A TalkTalk TV Hub can be added for just £5 extra per month. Alternatively, you can sign up to flexible monthly NOW or Netflix subscriptions as part of your package.

Flexible call options - You can easily cancel or switch TalkTalk call bundles as they’re on a rolling monthly agreement.

What are the drawbacks of TalkTalk fibre broadband?

Can be an expansion on Pros and Cons, but additional feature notes not already mentioned are preferable

Mid-contract price rises - Customers will see monthly price rise every spring, unless they sign up to the ‘Fixed Price Plus’ option and pay an extra £4 per month.

Average customer service reputation - Although TalkTalk hasn’t received the highest level of complaints this year compared to some other big-named providers, it doesn’t seem to go above and beyond.

No short deals - You’ll have to commit to an 18-month contract with TalkTalk broadband. However, most of the larger providers don’t offer shorter contract and the likes of Sky, for example, only sales 2-year deals.

30-day guarantee - New customers can try out their new fibre broadband connection for 30 days from going live. If there are any issues or customers aren’t happy with the service in any way, they can leave without paying a penalty. This is known as the ‘Great Connection Guarantee’.

How to switch to TalkTalk

TalkTalk is set up for One-Touch Switch (OTS). That means that in most cases, when you sign up to TalkTalk it will handle the cancellation of your existing provider and help arrange a convenient switchover date.

During checkout, you will need to let TalkTalk know who your existing provider is, and it's also helpful to share your current account number for reference.

Remember, you can’t switch if you’re still in contract with your current internet service provider without having to pay an early termination fee. This can end up being expensive.

Read our guide on ‘how to switch broadband and get an amazing deal’ for more hints and tricks, learn how to save money and upgrade your home's internet connection with little fuss.

Expert Summary: how good is TalkTalk broadband?

Most homes across the UK will have access to a TalkTalk deal. But you’ll need to add your address and postcode into our deals checker to find out if its full fibre optic deals are available in your area.

There are many options for those who need a no-frills broadband only service, and you will never have to pay a set-up fee. You can also rest easy that all packages come with truly unlimited usage. So you should never experience any unwanted slow-downs during peak hours, even when you’re carrying out large downloads.

We also love the flexible take on TalkTalk’s TV options. The extra cost is very reasonable if you just want a reliable new set-top box to view live TV on Freeview, or make use of free streaming apps such as BBC iPlayer. But if you’re keen to boost your entertainment choices, there are rolling-monthly options for NOW TV or Netflix too.

Just be aware, prices will rise every Spring, unless you sign up to a premium service called ‘Fixed Price Plus’.

Finally, switching to TalkTalk comes with little risk if you find it doesn’t fix any existing problems. Its ‘Great Connection Guarantee’ means that new customers can leave within 30 days without any quibbles or penalties to pay.

Frequently Asked Questions about TalkTalk

• How much is TalkTalk a month?

  The price of a TalkTalk broadband package will vary depending on speed or limited offers, but expect to pay under £30 per month for a part-fibre deal or entry-level full fibre deal. Meanwhile, its fastest full fibre deal - ‘TalkTalk Full Fibre 900’ will set you back around £45 per month.

• How do I speak to a person at TalkTalk?

  You can call TalkTalk on 0345 172 0088. For more information and other contact options, visit our TalkTalk customer service guide.

• What channels does TalkTalk TV offer?

  There are over 70+ live TV channels available on the TalkTalk TV Hub, including Freeview channels. You can also make use of On-Demand services like BBC iPlayer, or a subscription to Netflix. Various NOW TV memberships are available at an extra cost.

  NOW Entertainment

  Channels include Sky Atlantic, Sky Crime, Sky Comedy and Sky Max.

  NOW Cinema

  Channels include Sky Cinema Select, Sky Cinema Greats, Sky Cinema Sci-fi & Horror

  NOW Sports

  Channels include Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sport Football, Sky Sports Premier League and Sky Sports Cricket.

  You can view the full up-to-date listings on TalkTalk’s TV Channels Guide.

• What other internet providers are like TalkTalk?

  If you’re interested in TalkTalk because of the price, you’ll find plenty of other options for cheap broadband, including deals which cost less than TalkTalk. If it’s the appeal of getting broadband, phone, and TV in a bundle, then you’ve also got a few other providers offering similar deals. That includes BT, Sky, Virgin Media, and NOW.