In short: Business broadband vs leased line comes down to sharing and guarantees. Broadband, such as full fibre or SoGEA, is shared, usually faster to download than upload, and quick to install. A leased line, such as BTnet, is dedicated and symmetrical, with an availability SLA and faster fix targets, but costs more and takes longer to install.
The key difference
Business broadband connects your premises to BT's network over a line that shares capacity with other customers further up the network. Download speeds are usually much higher than upload speeds, and speeds can dip at busy times. BT backs its business broadband with a minimum speed guarantee, but not with a guaranteed bandwidth.
A leased line is a dedicated fibre circuit reserved for your organisation. The bandwidth is not shared, upload and download speeds are the same, and the service comes with a service level agreement covering availability and repair. BT offers two kinds: BTnet for internet access, and Ethernet for private links between your own sites.
Neither is better in every case. Broadband suits most small offices well; a leased line earns its cost when downtime or slow uploads cost you money.
Side-by-side comparison
| Part fibre (FTTC) or SoGEA | Full fibre (FTTP) broadband | BTnet leased line | Ethernet (site to site) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | Fibre to the street cabinet, copper to your building | Fibre all the way to your building | Dedicated internet access | Private link between your sites, not internet access |
| Shared or dedicated | Shared | Shared | Dedicated, not shared | Dedicated |
| Upload vs download | Upload much lower than download | Upload lower than download | Symmetrical | Symmetrical |
| Top speeds BT quotes | Depends on distance to the cabinet | Up to 900Mbps | Up to 10Gbps | 100Mbps, 1Gbps or 10Gbps fibre access |
| Service guarantee | Minimum speed guarantee | Minimum speed guarantee | 100% availability SLA (BT states) | Service level confirmed in your quote |
| Repair target | Standard; faster with Prompt Care on Pro | Standard; faster with Prompt Care on Pro | 5-hour target fix (BT states) | Confirmed in your quote |
| Installation | Usually quickest | Quick where FTTP is already available | Longer; confirmed after a site survey | Longer; confirmed after a site survey |
| Backup options | Hybrid Backup on 4G | Hybrid Backup on 4G | BTnet resilient option (a second connection) | Diverse and Diverse Plus resilience |
| Static IP | Free on Enhanced, or as an extra | Free on Enhanced, or as an extra | IP addressing confirmed in your quote | Not applicable |
Prompt Care, included on Pro and Ultra, aims to fix faults by the end of the next working day. See BT business broadband packages for what each tier includes and BT business full fibre for FTTP availability. Pricing for every option: ask us for a quote.
Five questions to decide
- How many people use the connection at once? A handful of staff on email and cloud apps is comfortable on full fibre broadband. Dozens of people on video calls, large uploads and cloud phones point towards a leased line.
- How much do you upload? Cloud backup, CCTV viewing, large files sent to clients and hosted servers all need upload capacity. Broadband uploads are lower than downloads; a leased line is symmetrical.
- Do your phones run over the connection? Cloud voice works well on good broadband, but on a busy line calls compete with other traffic. BTnet prioritises voice traffic for services such as BT Cloud Voice and SIP.
- What does an hour offline cost you? If losing the internet stops sales, bookings or production, the availability SLA and 5-hour target fix of BTnet are worth paying for. If you can work on mobiles for a while, broadband with Hybrid Backup may be enough.
- What is available, and when do you need it? Full fibre may already reach your building. A leased line needs a survey and sometimes construction work, so allow for a longer lead time.
Typical choices
- Small office or shop, up to around ten people: full fibre broadband on the Enhanced or Pro tier, with Hybrid Backup. See small business broadband.
- Busy office on cloud apps and cloud voice: BTnet, or BTnet Meraki if you want the firewall managed too.
- Head office plus branches: BTnet at head office, broadband at the branches, and Ethernet where sites need to share private systems. See multi-site connectivity.
- Security first: BT Business Ultra adds a Cisco Meraki firewall to broadband; note that a static IP isn't available on Ultra.
- Both: a leased line as your main connection with business broadband as a separate backup path is a common way to add resilience.
Installation and lead times
Broadband is usually live sooner, especially where full fibre already reaches your building. BT says broadband activation usually takes around 14 working days, and packages with Hybrid Backup can get you online over the EE Business 4G network while you wait.
Leased lines take longer, because each one involves a site survey, often a landlord's permission (a wayleave), and sometimes civil works to lay new duct. We give you a realistic date once the survey is complete, and we can put 4G or broadband in place to keep you working while you wait. Read the full process in leased line installation.
How we help you choose
We look at how your team works, what each address can get and how much downtime you can live with, then recommend one option, not a menu. If broadband is enough, we will say so. If you are already outgrowing it, we will show you what BTnet would change.
Contact us and ask us for a quote for both, so you can compare them for your own address.
Why buy BT through Forever Communications
Forever Communications Ltd is a BT Business Partner, supplying BT Business connectivity, voice and mobile services to UK organisations. You get BT's network with a named team who knows your account.
- Impartial advice on the right BT product for each site, from Essential, Enhanced, Pro and Ultra business broadband to BTnet and BT Ethernet
- One point of contact for availability checks, orders, installations, moves, upgrades, faults and renewals
- Ready for the PSTN switch-off: digital phone lines, SoGEA, BT Cloud Voice, BT Cloud Phone and Digital Voice for Business, with your numbers kept where possible
- Multi-site and sector know-how for schools, GP surgeries, retailers, hospitality venues and growing offices
- Mobile and security too: EE Business mobiles from BT Group, Hybrid Backup on the EE Business 4G network, and BT security options alongside our wider Cyber Essentials help
We sell to businesses, schools, charities and public sector organisations. We do not sell consumer or home products.
Want a BT Business quote for your sites?
Tell Forever Communications what you need and we will come back to you by email with options, not a hard sell.
Contact usFrequently asked questions
Is a leased line faster than broadband?
Not always on download: full fibre broadband reaches up to 900Mbps. The difference is that a leased line's bandwidth is dedicated to you, upload matches download, and BT backs it with an availability SLA. BTnet scales up to 10Gbps.
Is full fibre the same as a leased line?
No. Both use fibre, but full fibre broadband is a shared service with lower upload speeds, while a leased line is a dedicated, symmetrical circuit with a service level agreement.
Do I need a leased line for VoIP?
Not necessarily. Cloud phone systems work well on good business broadband for small and medium teams. A leased line helps when you have many concurrent calls or a busy connection, and BTnet prioritises voice traffic.
Can I have broadband and a leased line together?
Yes. Many organisations use a leased line as the main connection and keep business broadband as a separate backup, or use broadband at smaller sites and a leased line at head office.
How long does a leased line take to install compared with broadband?
Longer. A leased line needs a site survey and sometimes wayleaves and construction work, so the date is confirmed after survey. Broadband is usually quicker, particularly where full fibre is already available.