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A leased line provides your business with a dedicated, uncontended internet connection that delivers guaranteed symmetrical speeds and 99.9% uptime backed by financial SLAs.
Unlike shared broadband where performance fluctuates during peak hours, a leased line gives you the full bandwidth you pay for—24/7, with identical upload and download speeds ranging from 100Mbps to 10Gbps.
This means your cloud backups complete faster, video conferences stay crystal clear, and business-critical applications run without interruption—even when everyone else in your area is online.
For UK businesses relying on cloud services, VoIP phone systems, or multi-site connectivity, leased lines transform internet access from a potential bottleneck into a competitive advantage. You'll speak directly to UK-based technical experts at AMVIA on 0333 733 8050—no voicemail, no offshore call centers—who understand your infrastructure and resolve issues within hours, not days.
A leased line is a dedicated, uncontended internet connection exclusively for your business. Unlike shared broadband, it delivers guaranteed symmetrical speeds (100Mbps-10Gbps), 99.9% uptime with financial SLAs, and consistent performance regardless of peak hours or neighboring users—making it essential for cloud services, VoIP, and mission-critical operations.
A leased line—also known as dedicated internet access (DIA) or an ethernet leased line—is a private, point-to-point data connection between your business premises and your internet service provider's network. Unlike business broadband, which shares bandwidth among multiple users in your area, a leased line is exclusively yours. This dedicated connection ensures consistent performance regardless of how many neighbouring businesses are online, making it the gold standard for organizations that cannot tolerate connectivity disruptions.
The technology uses fibre optic cables to deliver symmetrical bandwidth, meaning your upload speeds match your download speeds. This means when your team uploads large design files to cloud storage at 9 AM while simultaneously downloading client data and hosting video conferences, every activity gets the full speed you need—no compromises, no slowdowns.
According to Ofcom Connection Nations 2025 data, virtually all UK households have access to broadband, but businesses requiring guaranteed performance increasingly turn to leased lines for mission-critical operations. Major financial firms, legal practices, healthcare providers, and technology companies rely on leased lines to maintain productivity and meet regulatory compliance requirements.
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Compare Now →| Feature | Leased Line | FTTP | Business Broadband |
|---|---|---|---|
| Speed Type | Symmetrical (upload = download) | Often asymmetrical | Asymmetrical (fast down, slow up) |
| Typical Speeds | 100Mbps—10Gbps | 40Mbps—300Mbps | 20Mbps—150Mbps |
| Upload Speed | Matches download | 5–50Mbps typical | 5–20Mbps typical |
| Contention Ratio | None (dedicated) | Up to 1:32 | Up to 1:50+ |
| Peak-Hour Performance | Guaranteed full speed | May slow during congestion | Common slowdowns |
| Uptime SLA | 99.9–99.995% + credits | 99.5% (no credit) | "Best effort" (no SLA) |
| Annual Downtime | 8.8 hrs (99.9%) / 26 mins (99.995%) | ~44 hours | Unlimited |
| Latency | <10ms (UK) | 10–30ms | 20–50ms+ (variable) |
| VoIP Quality | Excellent (guaranteed) | Good (typical) | Poor (variable) |
| Fix Time SLA | 4–6 hours guaranteed | Next working day | 2–5 days typical |
| Monthly Cost (100Mbps) | £175–£320 (location dependent) | £40–£100 | £30–£80 |
| Installation Time | 45–90 working days | 20–60 days | 7–14 days |
| Scalability | 100Mbps to 10Gbps+ upgrades | Limited by fibre infrastructure | Limited upgrade path |
| Best For | Cloud apps, VoIP, multi-site, mission-critical | Growing SMEs, hybrid workers, video conferencing | Small offices, basic email, web, budget constraints |
Installation Fees: Leased lines typically include £500–£2,000+ installation (waived on 36–60 month contracts). FTTP and broadband usually £0–£300.
Excess Construction Charges (ECCs): Rural leased line installations may incur £500–£10,000+ for civil engineering works (surveyed upfront, no surprises).
SLA Upgrades: Premium SLAs (99.95%–99.995%) typically cost 10–15% more than standard 99.9% tier.
Contract Terms: Standard 36 months; longer terms (60 months) may include ECC waivers and installation fee reductions.
Support: Leased lines include 24/7 UK-based support with priority engineer response. Broadband typically offers business hours support via offshore call centres.
Choose Leased Line if: You need guaranteed uptime and upload speeds for cloud applications, VoIP phone systems, video conferencing, or multi-site connectivity. Essential for businesses where downtime costs more than the service.
Choose FTTP if: You have access to fibre-to-the-premises infrastructure, your budget is moderate, and occasional peak-hour slowdowns are acceptable. Suitable for growing SMEs and hybrid workforces.
Choose Broadband if: You're a home office, micro-business, or startup with basic cloud needs (email, general browsing, lightweight collaboration). Budget is the primary constraint.
100Mbps leased lines typically cost £175–£320/month depending on location. For many businesses, that's less than the cost of one serious outage.
The only way to know your exact price is to check your postcode — pricing varies street-by-street.
If any one of the following applies, a leased line usually pays for itself:
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Standard broadband delivers asymmetrical speeds—fast downloads but limited uploads. This means when your finance team tries uploading quarterly reports to your accountant while marketing downloads campaign assets and sales runs a video demo for prospects, everything slows to a crawl. Upload speeds as low as 10-20Mbps create bottlenecks for cloud backups, file sharing, and video conferencing—activities that define modern business operations.
Leased lines provide symmetrical bandwidth where uploads match downloads. Whether you're transferring 100GB of design files to clients, backing up your entire server to the cloud, or hosting a company-wide video conference, you get consistent, predictable performance.
This means your cloud backup window shrinks from overnight to hours. Video conferences deliver HD quality without freezing or pixelation. Large file transfers to clients complete in minutes, not hours—projecting professionalism and responsiveness that wins business.
Leased line providers guarantee 99.9% to 99.995% uptime through contractual SLAs. This translates to maximum downtime of approximately 8.8 hours per year at 99.9% or just 26 minutes annually at 99.995%. If your provider fails to meet this commitment, you receive automatic service credits—financial compensation without negotiation.
Compare this to broadband's "best effort" approach where outages bring no guarantees for repair times or compensation. According to Beaming's 2023 research, UK businesses experienced 8.8 million internet failures costing £3.7 billion in lost productivity and revenue.
Your provider monitors your circuit 24/7, often detecting and resolving issues proactively before they impact your operations. When faults occur, guaranteed 4-6 hour fix times with priority engineering response minimize disruption.
At AMVIA, you speak directly to UK-based technical experts at 0333 733 8050 who understand your infrastructure, provide transparent updates, and take ownership of resolution. No voicemail. No ticket queues. No offshore support reading from scripts.
Modern business operations run in the cloud. Microsoft 365, Salesforce, cloud accounting software, backup solutions, and collaboration tools all demand consistent connectivity with low latency and minimal packet loss. VoIP phone systems require even stricter network conditions: latency below 150ms (ITU-T G.114 standard), jitter under 30ms, and packet loss under 1% to maintain call quality.
Leased lines' dedicated, low-latency connections excel at supporting these demanding applications. Symmetrical speeds ensure cloud uploads and downloads proceed simultaneously without competition. Uncontended bandwidth means your VoIP calls remain crystal clear even when multiple team members transfer large files.
This means your team collaborates seamlessly in Microsoft Teams with HD video and screen sharing. Cloud backups complete during business hours without impacting other activities. VoIP calls maintain professional audio quality—no robotic voices, awkward delays, or embarrassing call drops during client conversations.
Business broadband shares bandwidth among 20-50+ users in your area through contention ratios. This means during peak hours (9-11 AM, 2-5 PM), when neighboring businesses run video conferences, download updates, and access cloud applications, your connection slows significantly. You're competing for capacity you're supposedly paying for.
Leased lines eliminate contention entirely. Your circuit is yours alone—dedicated, private, and unaffected by others' usage. Whether it's 9 AM Monday when everyone logs in or 2 PM Friday when competitors experience peak congestion, you get 100% of your provisioned bandwidth.
This means your team's productivity remains constant regardless of external factors. Customer-facing applications—your website, client portal, or e-commerce platform—deliver consistent performance during your busiest periods when competitors struggle with slowdowns.
Your connectivity needs evolve as your business grows. Leased lines scale from 100Mbps to 10Gbps without replacing infrastructure. This means when you expand from 20 to 50 employees, open a second office, or migrate more applications to the cloud, you upgrade bandwidth rather than ripping out and replacing your entire connection.
Most providers allow incremental bandwidth increases (e.g., from 100Mbps to 200Mbps, then 500Mbps, eventually 1Gbps). This flexibility lets you right-size your connectivity as needs change, avoiding overpaying for capacity you don't need yet while maintaining a clear growth path.
This means your infrastructure investment remains relevant for years. When your competitor outgrows their broadband and faces a complete connectivity overhaul, you simply scale your existing leased line—maintaining continuity, avoiding disruption, and controlling costs.