Insights

Getting broadband without a phone line

16th December 2021 | by Beccy | 10 min read

Getting a broadband connection but no phone line is becoming an increasingly popular choice up and down the country. A survey in March 2021 by Uswitch showed 20% of households no longer have a landline (up from 5% in 2001) and revealed 26% of those with a landline don’t actually use it.

With the number of landline calls dramatically dropping (halving between 2012 and 2017 and continuing to decline), you’d be right to wonder if traditional phone lines are necessary. BT shares your view, aiming to eliminate all old copper lines from the national network by 2025, driving all customers towards digital voice services. But how easy is it to get a broadband-only deal? And is it any cheaper? We’ll take a closer look here.

Do you need a landline for broadband?

We might as well cut to the chase here and give you the straight answer: No. Over the last few years, more and more providers have started offering a broadband-only service, but it may depend on the status of the network in your area.

If your street cabinet (the green box usually positioned next to the pavement on your road or nearby) is connected to the local exchange by a fibre optic cable, then you are most of the way there. This is now the case with 95% of households in the UK.

However, if you have copper wires connecting your home to the cabinet, the best connection you’ll be able to get is FTTC (Fibre to the cabinet), and you will still need to rent the phone line. The same is true for the 5% of UK households who only have access to copper lines in their connection between the cabinet and the local exchange. Sadly, this will mean you still need a landline for broadband.

If you have a fibre-optic line connecting your home to the cabinet, or can get this installed as part of your broadband deal (and the cabinet is connected to the exchange with fibre), then you will be able to get the Internet without the phone line. If this is the case, you now have three options to access a broadband connection without a landline:

1. Full Fibre

Otherwise known as ultrafast broadband or FTTP (Fibre to the premises), this will give you an extremely fast connection capable of handling just about anything you want to throw at it. Full fibre broadband gives us full and free access to all the facilities, services, connectivity and creativity of a twenty-first-century world.

With speeds of up to 950Mbps/1Gbps (or 10Gbps for business lines), you’ll be able to enjoy all the gaming, sports, movies, boxsets, music streaming and live online shows you like, as well as practical activities such as video calls, tutorials, banking, investing, sharing large files and more.

You can even have multiple users within your household all doing their thing at the same time, and it won’t fall down. And of course, you’ll still be able to make calls on your phone. As of September 2021, 21% of homes in the UK had a full-fibre connection, with numbers growing every day. At Jurassic Fibre, we’re making it our mission to get full-fibre lines to every area in the South-West.

2. Cable

If you are connected to Virgin Media’s cable service (separate from the Openreach fibre network), then you will also be able to get a broadband line without a phone contract attached.

Covering around 52% of the country, this offers a complete cable line to your home and much faster broadband speeds than a FTTC connection. You’ll also have a number of bundle options to choose from, incorporating TV, Internet, mobile (and landline phone if you really do need it).

As ever, you’ll need to check with the provider regarding their coverage in your area. If you’re living in a rural location, then this service might not be an option for you.

3. Mobile Broadband

If cable or full-fibre fixed line options are not open to you, then your final choice for fast Internet access without a phone line will be a mobile broadband connection. This uses the data signal sent over the 4G or 5G mobile phone network, and can be connected to using any device with a SIM card, giving you wireless internet without a phone line. It can be a good alternative to a physical connection, as long as the signal strength where you live is sufficient for the Internet speeds you want, and you have a plan that accommodates all the data you’ll need.

Data-only SIMs are now becoming increasingly popular for use in tablets and laptops, allowing access to mobile data and WiFi broadband without needing any associated phone contract. They perform the same function as an old-style ‘dongle’ – enabling Internet access via a mobile connection, wherever the user may be.

Similarly, Mi-Fi devices (usually powered by a USB connection, although often also battery-run) act like a personal broadband router. They also use a mobile connection to access data, and then allow one or more machines nearby to connect. The signal strength is not huge, so you have to be quite close. This is very similar to using a mobile phone as a ‘mobile hotspot’ to deliver a broadband connection to any devices nearby.

You can also access the 4G or 5G network using a dedicated 4G or 5G router in your home. This just needs a power supply, with the option to possibly boost the signal with an external antenna if you live in a remote area.

As ever, all the above rely on a strong, reliable signal in your area. You’ll need to check with your provider about their coverage and what speeds you can actually expect locally. In the end, mobile broadband is suitable really for only single or lighter users, and can be quite expensive for higher speed use or if you go over the usage limit. Gaming and sharing large files could be a problem!

How to get Internet at home

On a basic level, you need to agree a contract with an Internet service provider (ISP) and to use a router to connect to their servers via the lines running into your property. Typically, the ISP will provide you with such a router as part of the deal, enabling several devices in your home to connect to the Internet at the same time.

If you have ‘fibre to the premises’ (FTTP), giving you a full-fibre connection between your property and the exchange, then you will be able to get a broadband-only deal. You’ll have access to the Internet at home, and will simply use your mobile for any phone calls. This is the perfect solution for households who currently have a landline, but barely use it.

How to get the Internet without a phone line – step-by-step

Step 1 – check your options

Checking the market, shopping around and finding out what are the best options for broadband without a phone line in your area is always the best place to start. Moneysupermarket.com makes it easy with their checker for the best deals for your location (also highlighting current best-buy deals).

Step 2 – check the speeds

Once you know which providers offer attractive deals (or simply reliable coverage) for your property, you’ll need to investigate each one to find out the exact speeds you can expect. Many advertise a top-line ‘average’ speed, but the real final speed you can get will depend on your postcode and the network infrastructure in your area.

Step 3 – get connected!

Once you’ve made your choice, then your provider should help you get everything up and running. If you’re getting an upgraded connection, such as full-fibre broadband, then they may need to carry out a survey of your property and the line to the cabinet before carrying out the work needed to install the full-fibre cable. You’ll also get a new box where the line enters your house and a dedicated compatible router.

At Jurassic Fibre, we make every stage as easy as it can be, and will guide you through each step of the process so you know exactly what’s going to happen.

Cheap broadband without a phone line

Jurassic Fibre has made it their mission to get every home across the South-West connected to the UK’s full fibre network. We’ve invested millions in new infrastructure and hiring a dedicated team of friendly engineers and support staff to make it all happen.

Because we want to get every business and home onto the same level of connectivity as the rest of the country, our packages are designed to be both reliable and affordable. Mindful of the changing use of phone lines, our options are perfect for customers looking for a broadband only deal. Find out more below.

Broadband or WiFi only deals with no phone line

To save you the effort of searching online, here are the key points on our simple, straightforward home broadband packages below.

Our deals scale to reflect the size of your household and the amount of use you’ll need, from simple TV, social media and email use to full-on gaming, streaming, video calling and cloud computing by multiple users. And, with our rolling 30-day contracts you’ll be able to upgrade or downgrade your package when you see fit.

SmartHome 150

Perfect for smaller households and new families, this package allows you to enjoy boxsets, video calls and simple streaming without any disruption to your connection. All the usual excitement without the frustrations.

Download speed: 150 Mbps

Upload speed: 30 Mbps

SmartHome 450

Perfect for busy households full of avid gamers, home-workers and TV addicts, this package allows multiple users to stream sports and shows in HD, transfer large files, make video calls and more without interruptions.

Download speed: 450 Mbps

Upload speed: 100 Mbps

SmartHome 950

The big daddy of broadband packages that’ll mean you never had to worry about Internet speed ever again. Perfect for multi-device households, home schooling, live conferencing, sports, gaming, high levels of data use – the works.

Download speed: 950 Mbps

Upload speed: 200 Mbps

Still want to have a phone line, too?

It’s simple to add our HomePhone service to your plan for crystal-clear phone calls. Check out the options and see which could fit your needs.

Get connected

If you’re not using your landline for calls, then now is the time to look into a broadband-only deal and potentially save money.
Full-fibre broadband is already available in many areas across the South-West, and we’re working hard to get the infrastructure in place to offer complete coverage. If it’s where you are, you can sign up now to get your full fibre connection installed.