What Is a Leased Line and Is It Worth It?

If you have outgrown standard broadband, the term "leased line" has probably come up. It sounds technical and expensive - and the second part can be true - but the concept is simple, and for the right business it is one of the best investments you can make in productivity.

What is a leased line?

A leased line is a dedicated, private internet connection between your premises and the provider's network. Unlike business broadband, it is not shared with anyone else. The full bandwidth is yours, all the time, with the same speed for uploads and downloads.

The "leased" part simply means you rent that dedicated capacity from a provider for a fixed monthly fee, usually on a one to three year term.

The three things that make leased lines special

1. Symmetric speed. A 100Mbps leased line gives you 100Mbps down and 100Mbps up. For businesses that upload to the cloud or run hosted phone systems, that upload speed is transformative. We explain why in our guide to symmetric vs asymmetric speeds.
2. Guaranteed performance. The speed you pay for is the speed you get, with no slowdowns at busy times.
3. A proper SLA. Leased lines come with a Service Level Agreement that guarantees uptime and fast fix times, usually with financial compensation if the provider falls short.

What does a leased line cost?

Pricing depends on the speed you choose and how far your premises are from the nearest fibre infrastructure. As a rough guide, UK leased lines typically range from a couple of hundred pounds a month for entry-level circuits to considerably more for high-bandwidth connections. There is often a one-off installation cost, though providers frequently absorb this on longer terms.

For a fuller picture of connectivity budgets, see how much business broadband costs.

Is it worth it?

Ask yourself one question: what does an hour of downtime cost my business? If the answer is "a lot" - because your team can't work, your phones go dead, or you can't take orders - then the guaranteed uptime and rapid support of a leased line is easy to justify.

If your needs are lighter, modern full fibre broadband may serve you perfectly well at a fraction of the cost.

Talk to a human first

A leased line is a commitment, so it pays to get the sizing right. Our Connectivity service handles the survey, install and ongoing support, and we will tell you honestly if broadband would do the job. Request a callback to talk it through.