Vodafone vs BT: the price or the guarantee?

Vodafone and BT both sell broadband on Openreach's lines, so at most addresses the line itself is the same. Vodafone also sells on CityFibre's full fibre and over its own mobile network as 5G home broadband, which BT doesn't. The choice usually comes down to Vodafone's lower monthly price and smaller rise against BT's reward cards, TV and one thing Vodafone lacks: a speed guarantee under Ofcom's code.

How do Vodafone and BT compare at a glance?

The table takes prices, speeds, contract lengths, set-up fees, rewards and scheduled price rises from our live deal feed, so it matches the deals on our comparison pages today. The network, guarantee and exit-fee rows come from each provider's own pages, checked on 11 October 2026.

Is Vodafone cheaper than BT?

On the monthly price, yes at every tier. When we checked on 11 October 2026, Vodafone's Full Fibre 150 was £20 a month on 24 months, rising to £23.50 in April 2027 and £27 in April 2028. BT's Full Fibre 150 was £23.99, rising to £27.99 and £31.99 on 31 March each year, with a £90 reward card. At the top, Vodafone's Full Fibre 910 was £28 against BT's Full Fibre 900 at £32.99, which carries a £175 reward card.

BT's reward cards do some work. On the 150 tiers the gap is £3.99 a month at today's prices and widens by 50p with each April. BT's £90 card covers most of a 24-month contract's worth of it, so the two end up close. At 900, the £175 card flips it: the gap starts at £4.99 a month, so even across a full 24 months it adds up to less than the card. Vodafone's deals in our feed carry no reward at all.

Vodafone's cheapest deals are its 5G home broadband, at £19 a month for 50Mbps or 150Mbps when we checked, with no engineer visit. Both providers' prices are online offers and they move, so read the live table rather than either headline.

Which is faster, and what about upload?

On Openreach the tiers match and the uploads are close, as the table shows. Vodafone adds a CityFibre tier that uploads as fast as it downloads, and its Pro 3 range includes a Wi-Fi 7 hub, boosters and a 4G backup, according to its broadband page.

Vodafone's 5G home broadband is a different animal: a router that uses the mobile network, so speed depends on signal rather than a line. Vodafone says availability and credit checks apply and there is no engineer and no upfront cost. If you can't get full fibre, it is an option BT doesn't offer.

Can the price go up during the contract?

Yes with both, by a published amount, and the amounts differ. Vodafone's price changes page says "£3.50 for Home Broadband plans" on 1 April each year, and its broadband page shows the effect on a £24 plan: "£27.50 on 1 April 2027 and £31 on 1 April 2028". BT raises broadband by £4 a month on 31 March each year during the contract, for products bought on or after 10 April 2024, according to its price-change page.

Neither rise comes with a way out. Because both providers state the amount and dates in the contract, Ofcom's rules don't give you a penalty-free exit when they land. The difference between the two rises is 50p a month after the first and £1 a month after the second. Our price rise guide explains the rules.

Which one guarantees your speed?

Only BT, under Ofcom's code. BT is a signatory to the Broadband Speeds Code, so you get a personalised minimum speed when you order and a right to leave without penalty if BT can't fix a shortfall within 30 days. Its Stay Fast Guarantee adds a £20 reward card for each failed fix, up to four times a year.

Vodafone is not a signatory. Ofcom's list of residential signatories names BT, EE, NOW Broadband, Plusnet, Sky, TalkTalk, Utility Warehouse, Virgin Media and Zen, and we found no current speed promise on Vodafone's site. Vodafone still has to state the minimum, normally available and maximum speeds in your contract information, like every provider, but there is no personalised guarantee with a right to exit. Both providers are in Ofcom's automatic compensation scheme, which pays set amounts for missed appointments, delayed repairs and late starts.

Do you want a landline, TV or rewards?

BT has the most to offer here. Most BT deals in our feed carry a reward card, from £70 to £175, plus "Claim up to £200 switching credit" towards your old provider's exit fee. A landline is optional on the "+Pay As You Go" version of each tier, for about £5 a month more in our feed. TV comes as EE TV bundles, from £38.99 a month with Netflix included when we checked, which our EE TV channels guide covers.

Vodafone's deals in our feed carry no reward and no TV. A landline is "Optional" on its standard and Pro plans, according to its broadband page. Its perk is for its own mobile customers: Vodafone Together gives "Monthly discounts on eligible new additional plans". If you want TV with your broadband, BT is the only one of the two that sells it.

How do their service records compare?

Ofcom's complaints figures for January to March 2026 put Vodafone at 8 complaints per 100,000 broadband customers, down from 11 the quarter before, and BT at 7, against an industry average of 6. Both appear in the Trustpilot row of the table above, with the caveat that sits under it. Our complaints rankings guide has the full tables.

What does it cost to leave early?

Vodafone's help page sets the fee at "80% of the monthly cost of your Home Broadband and Phone Plan, minus any applicable discounts, multiplied by the number of months left on your minimum contract period". On Full Fibre 150 at £20 with four months left, that is £64, on the price we checked.

BT works from the price without VAT, takes off the costs it saves (£15 a month in its own example), discounts by 1% for early payment and adds VAT back. Its Consumer Price Guide, effective 25 September 2026, gives the example: £35 a month with four months left comes to £67.32. On Full Fibre 150 at £23.99 with four months left, the method comes to about £24. Our exit fee calculator has both providers' rules built in.

What about set-up and contract length?

Both sell 24-month deals in our feed with no set-up fee. Vodafone's broadband page adds one line worth knowing before you order: "Subject to credit check, acceptance and availability". Its 5G home broadband is also sold on a 30-day rolling basis on Vodafone's site, though our feed carries the 24-month version.

Where can you get both?

Almost everywhere, because both sell on Openreach, so every one of our 153 broadband area pages lists both providers. Vodafone adds two more routes: CityFibre's full fibre in the towns CityFibre has built, where its deals say "CityFibre", and 5G home broadband wherever its mobile network is strong enough. Vodafone says full fibre and 5G together reach "over 26 million" UK properties. Check your postcode for the exact options.

Why you might choose Vodafone

• You want the lower monthly price and a £3.50 rather than £4 rise each April.
• You want CityFibre's symmetric 80Mbps tier, or the Pro 3 range with its Wi-Fi 7 hub and 4G backup.
• You can't get full fibre and 5G home broadband at £19 a month would do the job.
• You're a Vodafone mobile customer and would use the Together discount.
• You don't need TV or a reward card.

Why you might choose BT

• You want Ofcom's Speeds Code protections: a minimum speed in writing and a right to leave if it isn't met.
• You want a reward card, worth up to £175 on the deals we checked, and switching credit.
• You want EE TV with your broadband.
• You might leave early and want a method that deducts the provider's saved costs rather than charging 80%.
• You want a social tariff: BT Home Essentials is open to new customers on qualifying benefits.

How do you switch between them?

On Openreach this is the easy kind of switch: the new provider takes over your existing line rather than installing a new one. One Touch Switch handles it. Tell the new provider, and it arranges the end of your old service, with no more than one working day without broadband under Ofcom's rules. Our One Touch Switch guide walks through it. Moving to a Vodafone CityFibre or 5G deal is a new connection instead, so the old line ends when the new one is live.

If you're mid-contract, the exit fee above applies to the provider you leave. BT's switching credit can cover up to £200 of Vodafone's fee; Vodafone's deals in our feed offer nothing towards BT's. Both providers also list a social tariff, which our social tariff guide covers.

Sources and how we checked

Prices, speeds, contract lengths, set-up fees, rewards and scheduled rises come from our live deal feed, checked on 11 October 2026 and refreshed whenever the site updates. The rest comes from the sources below, read on the dates shown.

• Vodafone, read 11 October 2026: broadband page, price changes page, early termination fee page and 5G home broadband release.
• BT, read 10 October 2026: price change page, broadband page, terms and the Consumer Price Guide effective 25 September 2026 at bt.com/tariffguide.
• Ofcom: telecoms complaints data for January to March 2026, and codes of practice for Speeds Code and automatic compensation membership.

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