Business Broadband and Phone Bundles vs Separate Deals

Should a business buy broadband and phone together?

Buying business broadband and phone from one provider makes sense when you value one bill, one contract end date and one number to ring when something breaks. It makes less sense when the bundle ties a service you’re happy with to one you aren’t, or when a single fault can take out both.

Most small firms never really decide. The phone line came with the broadband when the office opened, the contract renewed, and that was that. Whether the bundle is still the right shape for the business is a question that tends to get asked on the day the phones go down.

This guide sets out what a broadband and phone bundle is in Ofcom’s rules, which protections a small business gets, and what to check before you sign either way.

What counts as a broadband and phone bundle?

Ofcom defines a bundle as “a contract or two or more closely related or linked contracts, at least one of which relates to the provision of an internet access service or a phone service”. So a bundle doesn’t have to be one document. Two contracts sold together and linked to each other can count.

The other parts can include equipment. Ofcom’s summary mentions content services and terminal equipment such as mobile handsets, and for an office that might be a router or desk phones supplied on the same agreement.

The definition matters because several of Ofcom’s contract rules say, in brackets, “this rule also applies to bundles”. If your broadband and phone are linked, the protections below reach across both.

Bundle or separate deals: how they compare

There isn’t a universal winner between a broadband and phone bundle and two separate deals. The trade is between simplicity and flexibility, and it looks different for a two person office than for a shop with a card machine, a booking line and a back office.

	Broadband and phone together	Separate providers
Bills and admin	One bill, one account	Two of each
Contract end dates	Usually aligned	Can drift apart, which helps or hinders depending on the day
When something fails	One provider to call, and no argument about whose fault it is	Each provider may point at the other
Switching one service	May mean unpicking the whole bundle	You can move one and leave the other
Price	Depends on the provider and the term. Compare the total over the full contract	Depends on the provider and the term. Add both together before comparing

We haven’t put prices in that table on purpose. They depend on the provider, the term and your address, so any figure here would go stale quickly.

One practical point on resilience. If calls run over the same connection as your internet, a broadband fault can silence the phones too. That’s true whether you bundle or not, but with one provider it’s one fault and one fix. Our guide to business broadband service level agreements explains what a provider commits to when the line drops.

What protections does Ofcom give a small business?

Ofcom’s General Conditions give every business some protections, and add more for those with ten employees or fewer. The size of your firm decides which column you’re in.

Every business

• Providers must offer at least one 12 month contract for each service, such as landline or broadband.
• You must get at least one month’s notice of any contract change that isn’t to your benefit, with the option to leave without penalty.
• You must be sent end of contract and annual best tariff notifications.
• Providers must publish customer information, including service descriptions, tariffs and standard terms.
• Condition C7 protects you when you switch landline or broadband provider, move location with the same provider or change services, and it covers mobile customers whether or not you keep your number.

Fewer than 250 employees

Providers must publish information about their standard contracts for small and medium firms, including any service level agreements and guarantees, and give it to you free of charge and in a durable medium when you enter a contract.

Ten employees or fewer

• Key contract information, including charges, contract length and how to cancel, must be given in writing before you’re bound.
• You must get a contract summary before you agree: one page, or three pages for bundled services.
• No broadband and phone contract can be offered with a commitment period longer than 24 months, and that applies to bundles.
• The provider needs your consent before renewing at the end of a commitment period.
• Buying an extra service can’t extend your existing contract unless you agree.
• End of contract and best tariff notifications must cover the other contracts in a bundle, not just one of them.
• The terms for ending a contract mustn’t act as a disincentive to switching provider.
• You must be told when an included allowance is used up, and what you’ll be charged after that.

These are taken from Ofcom’s summary of the General Conditions, published 6 March 2024 and read on 12 November 2026. Ofcom notes the summary isn’t the full text, and that the rules that apply can change if your headcount does.

What to check before you sign for broadband and phone

The contract summary is the document to read. If you have ten staff or fewer, you’re entitled to it before you agree to anything. Then work through these.

1. The commitment period for each part. One end date, or two? If the broadband and phone terms differ, leaving at the earlier date may cost you on the later one.
2. What adding to it does. Ask in writing whether adding a line, a handset or a faster speed changes the end date. Under Ofcom’s rules for the smallest firms it shouldn’t, without your consent.
3. Price changes during the term. The key information must cover charges. Find the clause on increases and read it.
4. Your numbers. Confirm in writing which numbers are yours to take with you if you leave, and what the provider’s process is for moving them. Do it before you sign, not when you want to go.
5. What happens in a fault. Is there a service level agreement, and does it cover the phones as well as the broadband?
6. Complaints. Providers must have a complaints procedure meeting Ofcom’s approved code and belong to an approved dispute resolution scheme. Note which one before you need it.

If you’re weighing up the broadband itself, our guide to what business broadband plans give you over a home plan is the place to start. Phone lines bring their own questions, and our business landline switch off guide deals with those.

Compare business broadband

When separate deals are worth the extra admin

Separate providers for broadband and phone suit a business that wants to change one thing without touching the other. If your broadband is fine but your phone system needs replacing, a bundle can turn a small decision into a large one.

They also suit firms that want a second route in. Two providers on two networks don’t share every fault. Whether that’s worth two bills depends on what an hour without phones costs you, which only you can put a number on.

What rarely suits anyone is the third option, which is leaving a broadband and phone bundle to renew year after year because nobody has looked. Ofcom’s rules mean you’ll be sent an end of contract notification. It’s worth opening.

Frequently asked questions about business broadband and phone

Sources

• Ofcom: General Conditions that protect business customers. The definition of a bundle and the contract, notification, switching, complaints and bundle rules by business size. Published: 6 March 2024, read 12 November 2026.

Checked 12 November 2026.