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Virgin Media broadband vs Sky broadband

Our Broadband Expert says...

Dear Steve, Virgin Media (www.VirginMedia.com) and Sky Broadband (www.Sky.com) are two of the UK’s biggest broadband providers and both have unique packages on offer - Virgin Media offers 50Mb broadband - the UK’s fastest package, while Sky offers the UK’s only truly unlimited broadband package, with no fair usage policy.

Before comparing the two provider’s broadband packages, you should note however, that Sky does not offer any standalone broadband tariffs. If you want to sign up to one of its broadband packages you will have to bundle it with the ISP’s digital TV. You might also want to take Sky Talk, which will reduce the cost of your broadband and could even get you a “free broadband” add on.

While Virgin Media does offer standalone broadband packages, you will be charged more per month if you don’t take its phone line, which costs an additional £11 a month.

Broadband packages

Virgin Media offers three broadband packages, with speeds of up to 10Mb, 20Mb broadband and even 50Mb. Using its cable network - which is available to around 51% of the UK - it can deliver very fast, reliable connections.

Sky, on the other hand, uses its own local loop unbundled (LLU) network to offer speeds of up to 20Mb broadband, as well as a 10Mb package and a 2Mb package, which is free for customers also taking its Sky Talk home phone. Its top package, Sky Unlimited, is the only UK broadband tariff to offer unlimited downloads without restrictions.

Broadband speeds

In terms of headline rates, Virgin Media offers more than double the speeds of Sky’s top package, on its XXL 50Mb broadband.

As well as offering the UK’s fastest headline rates, Virgin Media also regularly ranks top when it comes to actual delivered speeds. According to telecoms regulator Ofcom, the national average stood at 4.1Mb in July 2009, the last time it measured broadband speeds across the UK.

However, Virgin Media topped Ofcom’s list of providers with an average of 8.1Mb to 8.7Mb - double the national average.

Sky came third in the list with an average of 4.0Mb to 4.7Mb, topped only by Virgin Media and O2 Broadband (www.O2.co.uk), which average between 4.1Mb and 5.1Mb.

Download allowances

All of Virgin Media’s broadband packages come with “unlimited” downloads, though its 10Mb L Broadband and the XL 20Mb Broadband packages both have fair usage policies attached.

If you go over your fair usage policy, Virgin Media will slow your connection for a number of hours to limit your downloading.

The 50Mb package currently does not have any traffic management, but this could change as increasing numbers of people sign up.

While Sky’s Unlimited package does not have a fair usage policy, its 10Mb Broadband Everyday has a 10GB download allowance and its 2Mb Broadband Base offers just 2GB a month, making it only really suitable for occasional users.

If you regularly exceed your set download allowance with Sky, you could be charged for the additional data or be forced to upgrade to a more appropriate - and more expensive - package.

Install our free Broadband Download Monitor to keep an eye on your downloads and make sure that you never exceed your limit.

Broadband prices

It is quite difficult to compare Virgin Media and Sky broadband in terms of price, since you have to take other Sky services in order to get its broadband at all. Both providers also regularly run special offers on their services, which can get you anything from free installation to six months free broadband.

Essentially, Virgin Media offers its broadband at two different prices; one as a standalone product and one when you take it in conjunction with a Virgin Media landline, though you can make further savings when you bundle more products.

Without taking any special offers into account, its 10Mb broadband costs £15 a month as a standalone product, or £12.50 a month when you take an £11 landline, the 20Mb package costs £30 a month as a standalone product, or £20 a month when you take a Virgin Media landline and the superfast 50Mb package costs £38 a month as a standalone product, or £28 a month when you take an £11 landline.

Virgin Media’s £11 a month landline comes with inclusive weekend UK landline calls.

In terms of Sky broadband, you can save £5 a month on each package if you also take Sky Talk. Line rental is £11 a month and comes with Talk Freetime, offering inclusive evening and weekend calls to UK landlines.

Without taking any other special offers into account, the 2Mb Base package is £5 a month or free with Sky Talk, the 10Mb Everyday tariff is £10 a month or £5 with Sky Talk and the 20Mb Unlimited package costs £15 a month or £10 a month with Sky Talk.

Compare broadband

Sky and Virgin Media are not the only providers that offer fast, reliable broadband, and if this is your priority, you should also consider O2 and BE Broadband (www.BeThere.co.uk), which are known for their fast downloads, generous fair usage policies and high standards of customer service.

Existing O2 customers can get great discounts, with a 20Mb broadband package for just £10 a month, while BE customers get the option to optimise their broadband packages to suit their individual needs.

TalkTalk Broadband (www.TalkTalk.co.uk) and Plusnet Broadband (www.Plus.net) have also recently launched high-end packages, with speeds of up to 24Mb and "unlimited broadband" downloads or 20Mb and a massive 80GB download allowance, respectively. TalkTalk’s Pro package costs £14.99 a month while Plusnet’s Premium tariff starts at just £11.99 a month, making them both great value deals.

NB Best buy tables (orange background) are always current.

Examples in the text of the article (white background) are correct at time of publication.

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If you have a general switching or provider query please email us at OurExpert@broadbandchoices.co.uk

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