BT Halo is a service that promises to improve BT broadband customers’ connections and overall experience. It is included in several of BT’s top broadband deals, although any new or existing BT customer can upgrade to BT Halo for an additional monthly fee.
There are currently two versions of BT Halo: BT Halo 3 and BT Halo 3+. These were preceded by BT Halo 1 and BT Halo 2, which were discontinued early in 2021.
They both offer several benefits to customers, including free home technical support, no out-of-contract price hikes and a Keep Connected Promise. BT Halo 3+ offers even more benefits, although it comes at a higher price.
BT has teamed up with EE to provide a back-up 4G connection whenever BT’s broadband connection is down. For this reason, BT has advertised the package as “unbreakable broadband”.
What benefits do BT Halo 3 customers get?
If you upgrade to BT Halo 3, you’ll get several benefits, including:
Keep Connected Promise: if your broadband connection is down or has cut out at least five times in a 24-hour period, you can contact BT, which will send you a Mini Hub to help you get back online. The Mini Hub works as a back-up router, using a mobile SIM to provide wifi. And if you’re a BT Mobile customer, you’ll also be automatically upgraded to an unlimited data plan while your home broadband connection is offline. Once your broadband connection is up and running again, your Mini Hub will be switched off, and you will need to return it to BT
Price Promise: unlike regular BT broadband customers, the monthly cost of your package won’t increase once your contract comes to an end. However, this doesn’t include any price rises due to inflation. For example, if you signed up for a package that costs £32 a month, with an out-of-contract price of £40 a month, but the price of your package for new customers has increased to £34 a month since you bought it, you will pay £34 a month when your contract ends. Essentially, the price promise guarantees that existing BT Halo customers will never pay more than new customers
Access to Home Tech Experts: should you ever have a fault with your broadband connection, your router, or even your EE TV that needs investigating, you can call out a Home Tech Expert at no extra cost to you. You can also get their assistance to set up any new BT tech, such as an upgraded router, and they’ll even help connect non-BT devices to your wifi, too. On top of these callouts, you’ll also be visited by a Home Tech Expert every year as part of your Annual Health Check, where they’ll look to see if everything is connected correctly and offer any suggestions for how you can improve your service
Mobile Benefits: if you’re a BT Mobile customer, you’ll also get further benefits relating to your mobile plan, whether you’re on a monthly contract or a SIM-only package. These benefits include the automatic doubling of your monthly data allowance, as well as the previously mentioned Broadband Backup, where you’ll be provided with unlimited data on your mobile while your home broadband connection is down
What benefits do BT Halo 3+ customers get?
If you choose to go for the comprehensive BT Halo 3+ package, you’ll get all of the benefits that a BT Halo 3 customer gets, plus:
Smart Hub 2: BT Halo 3+ customers will be upgraded to the BT Smart Hub 2, which is the updated version of BT’s standard router. It has a few more helpful features than its predecessor and a longer range, and it’s compatible with Complete Wi-Fi, which comes with wifi range extender discs to boost the signal in areas of your home where the router’s signal is not strong enough. You may already have a BT Smart Hub 2 if you’re on one of the provider’s full fibre packages
Hybrid Connect: this is one of the main selling points of BT Halo 3+, combining BT broadband with the EE mobile network. You’ll be provided with a Hybrid Connect device that contains an EE SIM with unlimited 4G data. Whenever your BT broadband connection is down, your Hybrid Connect will automatically kick in, meaning you should never be left without an internet connection. This is what BT calls “unbreakable broadband”
Full Fibre Promise: if you’re not already a BT Full Fibre customer, your broadband connection will automatically upgrade to Full Fibre 100 as soon as it becomes available in your area, at no extra cost. This package provides superfast average download speeds of 150Mbps and upload speeds of 30Mbps, which should satisfy most households
Complete Wi-Fi: as a BT Halo 3+ customer, you’ll also receive a wifi disc along with your BT Smart Hub 2 router and Hybrid Connect device. This is essentially a range extender intended to boost the wifi signal throughout your home. BT guarantees you’ll receive download speeds of at least 10Mbps in every room, and if the speed is slower than this anywhere in your home, you can claim a credit of £100
How much does BT Halo cost?
The exact price of your BT Halo package depends on the version you get, your broadband speed and whether you’re a new or existing customer.
According to BT, adding BT Halo 3 to your broadband package starts at just £3 extra per month. However, upgrading to BT Halo 3+ will cost more depending on the speed you choose.
To simplify things, you can purchase any of BT’s full fibre packages with BT Halo 3+ if you’re a new customer or looking to switch your contract. The packages start at £84.99 per month for the Full Fibre 100 package and rise to £95.99 per month for the Full Fibre 900 deal. They all run for 24 months and come with a one-off equipment delivery charge of £9.99.
This is how BT’s Full Fibre packages compare with and without BT Halo 3+:
Gemma Ryles is a BJTC and PPA-accredited journalist with three years of experience writing across various publications. As a home tech expert at Independent Advisor, Gemma tests, researches and writes about broadband and home security.
Previously, Gemma reviewed and curated lists about consumer technology at Trusted Reviews, where she honed her skills in creating buying guides and features to help customers make informed decisions. She has previously worked at Yorkshire Post, BBC Yorkshire, Glitterbeam Radio and Bonus Stage.
Gemma has a BA in Journalism and in her free time can be found writing short stories, gaming and crocheting.
