Bandwidth Usage

I'm on the Unlimited Infinity package and with BT removing the bandwidth usage from their website, is there a way for me to know how much I use a month?

My contract with BT expires next month so I am exploring options of other ISPs but I need to know how much we use.

Is there a way?

Thanks,

To be honest, the best deals are usually on the unlimited packages, and if you are doing any online TV beyond the say 2 or minutes of news clips each day sticking with unlimited is the way to go.

In reply to a post by hypertony:

I'm on the Unlimited Infinity package and with BT removing the bandwidth usage from their website, is there a way for me to know how much I use a month?

My contract with BT expires next month so I am exploring options of other ISPs but I need to know how much we use.

Is there a way?

Thanks,

No, We've battled with BT for years over this - There is a hidden usage portal for all BT customers but it just says " You are on unlimited" and is blank.

Like Andrew says if it's unlimited you don't need to really worry about your usage. You will have an idea based on what you do on your connection.

In reply to a post by hypertony:

I'm on the Unlimited Infinity package and with BT removing the bandwidth usage from their website, is there a way for me to know how much I use a month?

My contract with BT expires next month so I am exploring options of other ISPs but I need to know how much we use.

Is there a way?

Thanks,

Simply put do not bother with non-unlimited packages. BT charge 1.80 per GB that you go over, to put that into perspective 1 hour of Netflix streaming can be up to 3Gb, so you would be charged up to 5.40 for one extra hour of netfix.

If you find BT too expensive, other ISPs have very cheap deals e.g. TalkTalk is 27 quid, plusnet is around 23 quid today etc and switching is easy enough.

Edited by ukhardy07 (Fri 25-Nov-16 17:56:01)

In reply to a post by 23Prince:

Like Andrew says if it's unlimited you don't need to really worry about your usage

You do if you can see that you save money by moving to a limited package. BT are denying their users the information needed to make an informed decision.

At present BT Infinity unlimited is cheaper than the unlimited with the offers

In reply to a post by 23Prince:

Like Andrew says if it's unlimited you don't need to really worry about your usage. You will have an idea based on what you do on your connection.

Well, yes. But I'd like to see if we can move to a cheaper package as we need to manage our budget. No point paying for something higher if you only use 15-20GB a month.

In reply to a post by hypertony:

I'd like to see if we can move to a cheaper package as we need to manage our budget.

If I understand you right, you are only considering metered package from BT (25 GB I think)? Are you not considering other suppliers?
Because, as several people have already said, there are offers from other suppliers for unlimited broadband that are cheaper than BT's metered one.
If you are worried about upfront/set-up costs, I suggest you look at TalkTalk and Plusnet, as they are both offering free setup at present. Sky are asking for £20 setup, but this is offset by their current offer of broadband at £15/month which is unbeatable, frankly - such price wasn't around since 2011.

Having a quick look it looks like BT, PlusNet and TalkTalk no longer have reference to their usage broadband products to new customers i.e they now only sell unlimited broadband packages. Sky seems to have a 25GB package but seems to be only a few pence cheaper than BT Unlimited Infinity 1.

If you want to negotiate with BT Consumer to see if you can get yourself a deal then you could try calling the Options team (0800 800 030).

In reply to a post by cymru123:

Sky seems to have a 25GB package but seems to be only a few pence cheaper than BT Unlimited Infinity 1.

Sky's 25GB fibre product is over £17 a month cheaper than BT Unlimited Infinity 1 after the offers end so represents a very good deal for people with lower usage.

Edited by Oliver341 (Fri 25-Nov-16 23:19:24)

In reply to a post by hypertony:

In reply to a post by 23Prince:

Like Andrew says if it's unlimited you don't need to really worry about your usage. You will have an idea based on what you do on your connection.

Well, yes. But I'd like to see if we can move to a cheaper package as we need to manage our budget. No point paying for something higher if you only use 15-20GB a month.

So go with something like SSE - the fibre is free with them - if you use that much then seems fair to go for a very low cost provider.

In reply to a post by Mml:

If I understand you right, you are only considering metered package from BT (25 GB I think)? Are you not considering other suppliers?

But the point is, it is not possible to make an informed decision as whether one needs an unlimited deal or can get away with a limited deal if they find one that is cheaper without the information on current data usage. With one desktop, two laptops, two tablets, two phones, several internet radios etc to monitor that is not easy to do locally. Even more so when you also have a Youview box which uses the internet a lot, but that usage is not counted towards the cap.

By comparison I am currently considering moving from an unlimited 3G mobile data package to a 4G deal limited to 3GB per month. This I can do as I have been able to see my monthly usage over the past couple of years swing between 500MB to a max of around 1.3GB (bearing in mind that faster 4G speed may cause adaptive video streaming to use a higher quality and that I often make use of free wi-fi hotspots instead when out on the road).

In reply to a post by gomezz:

... it is not possible to make an informed decision as whether one needs an unlimited deal or can get away with a limited deal if they find one that is cheaper without the information on current data usage. With one desktop, two laptops, two tablets, two phones, several internet radios etc to monitor that is not easy to do locally.

I think the answer on that setup is fairly obvious . And without expensive non-mass market kit, impossible.

There are many open source tools available to achieve this but obviously you need a method of capturing the data from the router. My router supplies this as standard https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RRDtool

Do any of them identify multicast protocol data usage (as some of the Youview box usage is) separately? Or rather split it down by local IP address so all the Youview box usage can be identified separately?

probably easier to start off with what graphs do you want to display?

Don't need a graph. Just need a per month value of usage split by device.

Whereas all the OP wants is a simple monthly figure.

But if they are using a Youview box a third-party single, simple monthly figure won't tell them what they need to know. I repeat, Youview box usage is not counted towards any usage cap.

SO go with a free offering like SSE and then usage high or low makes no odds

Nothing onerous in your requirements, my free router has several ways to achieve your requirements https://doc.pfsense.org/index.php/How_can_I_monitor_...

Your big problem is getting the right router to enable the data collection.

I am not in a JAM so not something I need to worry about

My comments apply to the OP as well

If you call the customer options team or even billing, they can all see your usage even if unlimited. As well as give a rough monthly estimate.