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Sometimes, yes. But only if you actually use the home phone enough to justify the added cost.

That is the short answer.

In some households, a broadband and phone bundle still offers decent value. Especially if someone regularly uses the home phone, wants inclusive calls, or prefers one simple bill. But for plenty of homes, broadband-only is now the better-value option. If the landline barely gets touched, adding phone service can turn into a cost you keep paying without really benefiting from it. The smart move is to compare total monthly cost, contract length, call usage, and whether the bundle adds real value or just extra habit. To start comparing options, look at Compare Broadband Deals, Broadband Comparison, and Compare Broadband Prices.

Quick comparison: broadband-only vs broadband and phone

When broadband and phone bundles can be cheaper

A broadband and phone bundle can still work well in the right situation.

Not because bundles are automatically better. But because they can line up neatly with how some households still live.

For example, bundles can make financial sense when:

• the home phone is used regularly
• inclusive calls would otherwise cost extra
• one household bill matters more than absolute lowest price
• the package includes useful calling rather than just a token phone line

This is often most relevant for older households, people who still make daytime calls from home, or homes where a landline still feels like a useful part of everyday life. In those cases, broadband and landline packages can still offer decent value, especially if the cost difference against broadband-only is small.

It also depends on what the provider has actually bundled in. A package with meaningful call inclusion may work better than one that simply includes a phone line with extra charges on top. Broadband Freedom’s Broadband and Phone Deals for Pensioners: Your Simple Money-Saving Guide is a good internal read here, because it shows where call-inclusive setups can still suit the right type of user.

If you are still unsure whether a home phone even matters today, Do You Still Need a Landline in the Digital Age? and Why the Bell Tolls for Thee, O Landline help explain the shift clearly.

When broadband-only is usually better value

For a lot of homes, broadband-only is now the cleaner choice.

And usually the cheaper one too.

That is especially true for:

• mobile-first households
• streaming-only homes
• younger users who never use a landline
• people who mainly want internet for browsing, TV, gaming, and video calls

If nobody in the house is making regular home-phone calls, then paying for a broadband with phone line setup can become dead weight. The feature is there. But the value is not.

This is where the broadband and phone vs broadband only comparison becomes less theoretical and more practical. If the phone line is only kept “just in case,” or the handset sits untouched most of the week, then broadband-only often wins on pure cost efficiency.

For households like this, Broadband Without Landline Phone is an especially relevant internal link. It gives readers a more direct path into the alternative setup. Broadband Without Landline and Broadband With No Phone also naturally support this decision.

In other words, if you mostly live on mobile and use broadband for entertainment and internet access, a phone bundle may not be saving you money at all.

What to compare before deciding

This is where most people make the right choice or the wrong one.

Not at the ad.

Not at the headline price.

At the detail level.

Monthly cost

Start with the obvious one. But do not stop there.

A bundle might look only slightly more expensive than broadband-only, which can make it feel like a harmless upgrade. But if you are not really using the phone service, even a small monthly difference adds up over the contract term.

Compare:

• broadband-only monthly price
• broadband and phone monthly price
• whether calls are included or extra
• total value across the full term

Pages like Pricing, Compare Broadband Prices, and Broadband Deals are useful here.

Setup fees

Cheap monthly pricing can hide setup costs.

Before choosing either option, check whether there is an activation fee, router delivery charge, or any up-front payment that changes the real first-year cost. This matters for both package types, but especially when comparing similar-looking deals.

Contract length

A lower monthly rate on a long contract is not always better value.

If your situation might change, or if you are still unsure whether you need the home phone element, flexibility matters. Broadband Freedom’s Broadband Contract Lengths Explained, 1 Month vs 12 Month Broadband Contracts: What’s the Real Cost?, and Compare 1 Month Rolling Broadband are useful supporting reads here.

Line rental or bundled line cost

This still confuses people.

The wording has changed, but the cost question remains. In older deals, line rental was often shown clearly. In newer deals, it is more often baked into the package price. That means it may not appear as a separate charge, even though the service cost is still there in some form.

That is why you should compare total package cost rather than obsessing over whether “line rental” is visible on the bill.

Price rises

This is another big one.

Even when the starting price looks competitive, you still need to think about what happens later. Will the cost rise during the term? Will the bundle still represent value after the opening period? Supporting internal links here include Broadband Price Rises and Exit Fees and BT and EE Out-of-Contract Price Increases Explained.

Quick comparison: broadband-only vs broadband and phone

Here is the simplest way to think about it.

Broadband-only is usually better if:

• you rarely use a landline
• everyone relies on mobile
• the home mainly uses internet for streaming, browsing, gaming, or work
• you want the simplest and often cheapest setup

Broadband and phone is usually better if:

• someone in the household still uses a home phone often
• you want inclusive calls
• one bill matters
• you would otherwise spend more on separate calling

That is the real broadband-only vs phone bundle trade-off. Not which one sounds more complete. Which one actually fits the household better.

For readers who want broader context before making the decision, Best Broadband and Phone Deals UK: What to Compare Before You Buy and Broadband and Phone Deals for Pensioners: Your Simple Money-Saving Guide help deepen the comparison from different angles.

FAQs

For broader queries, readers can also visit Broadband Freedom’s FAQ page.

Do I still need a landline?

Not always. Many homes now rely almost entirely on mobile phones, so a landline is no longer essential. But some households still value it for regular home calling, familiarity, or simpler communication. Whether you need one depends less on the market and more on how your household actually uses it.

Is line rental still included?

Sometimes it is included, but often not shown in the same old-fashioned way. In many modern packages, the cost is wrapped into the overall monthly price rather than listed separately. That is why total package cost matters more than whether the phrase “line rental” appears clearly.

Can I keep my home number?

In many cases, yes. Providers often allow number transfers when switching services, but the process can vary. If keeping your number matters, check this before ordering. It is especially important for households that still rely on a familiar home number as part of daily life.

Is broadband-only cheaper for most people?

For many modern households, yes. Especially if the landline is rarely used. Broadband-only is often better value for mobile-first homes, streamers, and users who mainly want internet rather than home calling. But for households that still make regular home-phone calls, a bundle can still make financial sense.

Final takeaway

So, is broadband and phone cheaper than broadband only?

Sometimes. But only when the phone part of the package is doing real work for the household.

If someone still uses the home phone often, wants inclusive calls, or values one simple bill, a bundle can still be worth it. But if the landline barely gets touched, broadband-only is usually the smarter and cheaper option.

That is the real test.

Before choosing, compare:

• actual call usage
• monthly cost
• setup fees
• contract length
• future price changes

Then decide based on how your home actually lives, not how broadband used to be sold.

For next steps, start with Compare Broadband Deals, review Broadband Without Landline Phone, and use Compare Broadband Prices to judge whether the phone bundle is genuinely adding value.