What full fibre broadband means

Fibre to the premises

Full fibre, or FTTP, means fibre all the way to the home. Typical products run from around 50 Mbps to well over 1 Gbps. Upload is usually much higher than on FTTC or legacy cable.

It is still address-specific

Openreach, Virgin Media, CityFibre, Hyperoptic, Community Fibre and rural builders all have different maps. A neighbour on a different network is not evidence that your socket is live.

FTTP, cabinet fibre, and cable

Fibre to the cabinet still uses copper from the street cabinet to the house. That copper is why upload is often modest and why speed falls with distance. Full fibre removes that copper from the access network. Cable is a different physical network with its own footprint. They are not three words for the same socket.

Openreach, CityFibre, Virgin’s newer build, Hyperoptic, Community Fibre, Fibrus and rural builders can all be full fibre where they have built. They are not interchangeable at one door. A provider that uses Openreach cannot sell you a CityFibre street, and the reverse is also true.

The first install often needs an engineer and a small optical network terminal on the wall. A router in the post usually means the fibre is already there. If you rent, ask before anyone drills. Listed buildings and mansion blocks add a permission step the advert skips.

How to buy the technology rather than the slogan

Filter by the address, then by upload, then by first-year cost. A 1.6 or 2 Gbit/s tier is wasted money if you wanted a reliable 150 Mbps and a low bill. Gigabit is not a personality trait.

Stop-sell of copper means some new orders will only be offered as full fibre where full fibre exists. It does not build fibre on a street that has not been engineered. ‘Full fibre ready’ on a marketing page and an orderable install date are different facts.

When you switch retailer on the same wholesale fibre, the change can be remote. When you switch from cable to Openreach, or from an alt-net to a different alt-net, expect a new install and a cease of the old network. Plan the overlap so you are not dark.

What to do with this guide

Use this page as a checklist, not as a quote. The decisions sit with you and with the provider: the address, the contract you already signed, and the offer they will actually sell. OneTouchSwitch can show a mock catalogue and explain the switching process. We do not send the One Touch Switch messages, we do not set exit fees, and we do not decide social-tariff eligibility.

Before you act, write down four things. The premises, including the flat number. The early-termination figure in pounds if you are still in a minimum term. Whether a television package, a phone number, or a care alarm depends on the line. And the date you can be at home if an engineer is required. If any of those is unknown, you are not ready to order, however clear the guide feels.

Then compare at the address. Look at the opening monthly price and, separately, the minimum-term cost: later months, setup, and a confirmed exit fee. A first-year figure is useful and it is not the whole term when the contract is longer. Order with the gaining provider only when you have decided the numbers work. Do not cancel the old service first. Keep the confirmation and the old router until the new line has worked. If the situation in “What full fibre broadband means” does not match what the provider just told you, use the provider’s written answer.

If you are helping someone else, you need their authority. Paying a bill is not authority. A parent, a landlord, or a housemate cannot One Touch Switch a contract that is not theirs. Sit with the account holder, or get the provider to note an authorised contact, before a date is agreed.

Related reading on this site is there to stop a second mistake. Full fibre is a way of building, not a speed. A social tariff is a provider’s discount for people who qualify, not a promo code. An exit fee is a number you ask for. Availability is the premises, not the town. If you only remember one of those, remember the premises.

When the new service is up, return borrowed kit to the address the old provider named and keep proof of postage. Check the first bill against the price you were told, including the month the introductory rate ends. If it does not match, query it while the order email is still easy to find. A comparison is finished only when the bill matches the promise.