The cheapest first year isn’t the cheapest deal.
Every broadband deal in Ireland is advertised on its promotional price, and every one steps up to a higher standard rate when the promo ends. The size of that step-up varies enormously between providers, and the deals with the lowest promo often have the steepest step. So the cheapest first year is frequently not the cheapest over two.
How the deals are built
A low promo is paid for by a high standard rate.
A broadband offer is really two prices: the promotional rate you pay for the first 6 or 12 months, and the standard rate you pay after that. Providers compete hard on the first number, because it is the one on the advert, and make it back on the second, because most people never notice when it kicks in.
The result is counterintuitive. The provider with the lowest headline price can have the highest standard rate, and a rival that looks a few euro dearer up front can work out far cheaper once the promo ends. Comparing on the monthly figure alone ranks the deals almost backwards from what you actually pay.
The size of it
Hundreds a year, at the same speed.
The gap is not marginal. Looking at standalone 500Mb fibre plans at the time of writing, the difference between the cheapest and dearest two-year cost, for the same speed, was around €400. The provider that was cheapest in year one came fourth of six once the second year was counted. Standard rates on some plans were more than double the promo.
between the cheapest and dearest two-year cost at the same speed, on standalone 500Mb plans observed in July 2026. The exact figures move; the pattern does not.
The catch in the two-year number
It only bites if you stay put.
The two-year cost assumes you do nothing when the promo ends. If you are the kind of person who diaries the renewal date and moves or re-contracts on time, you never see the standard rate, and the steep-cliff deals are perfectly fine. Chase the best first year and ignore the step-up.
If you are honest with yourself that you probably won’t get round to it, the standard rate is the number that will actually find you, and the low-cliff deal is worth more than the low promo. Either way, the useful thing to know before you sign is not just the promo price but how big a cliff sits behind it.
What to do with this
Ask for the standard rate before you sign, and diary the date.
Two questions turn the trap off. Before signing: what is the standard rate after the promo, and when does it start? That tells you the size of the cliff. After signing: put a reminder a few weeks before the promo ends, because nothing will tell you it has. When it comes round, you don’t automatically have to switch, a call to your current provider often gets a better rate without moving at all.
This is the same trap that catches energy customers when a discount ends, and it works the same way: a fixed period, a silent roll-off, and a higher rate nobody warns you about.
The pattern described here is stable; the specific figures move. Illustrative prices reflect standalone 500Mb fibre plans observed in July 2026 and are used to show the shape of the gap, not as a current quote. Check live prices before deciding.