Loading
Broadband is cheaper per megabit and adequate for a lot of businesses. Dedicated access costs more and is the only option when downtime has a number attached. Here's the actual difference.
A private, uncontended circuit with a committed rate and an SLA.
Full specificationShared capacity, asymmetric, best-effort delivery.
| Criterion | Dedicated Internet Access | Business Broadband |
|---|---|---|
| Contention | 1:1 — capacity is yours | Shared with other subscribers |
| Speed at peak times | Unchanged | Degrades, often significantly |
| Upload speed | Symmetric — matches download | A fraction of download |
| SLA and service credits | Contracted, with credits | None |
| Fault response | Prioritised, NOC-monitored | Consumer-grade queue |
| Static IP addressing | Block included | Usually extra, sometimes unavailable |
| Cost per megabit | Higher | Much lower |
| Install lead time | 7–21 working days | Often days |
| Contract commitment | 12–36 months | Shorter terms available |
| Suitability for VPN / VoIP / hosting | Designed for it | Workable but unpredictable |
A tick marks the stronger option for that criterion only. Rows with no tick are genuinely a draw — and every option here wins something.
For a ten-person office doing email and Microsoft 365, broadband is very often the right answer and we'll say so. The place we'd push back is voice — if calls matter, broadband will disappoint you at 4pm and no amount of extra headline speed fixes it.
Yes, and it's a sensible path. The one thing to plan for is the static IP change if you've built anything around the address — that's the part that catches people.
For bulk downloads, often yes. For voice, video calls and remote access, usually no — the 50 Mbps symmetric uncontended circuit will feel more reliable because the numbers that matter are jitter and upload, not peak download.
Tell us what you're running and what's going wrong. We'll tell you which is right for you — including when it's the cheaper one.
