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Every broadband quote comes with a four-letter word attached. FTTP, FTTC, SoGEA, ADSL. They all describe the same thing, which is how far the fibre gets before copper takes over on the way to your building.
Once you know that, the jargon stops being jargon. This guide goes through each one, says what it’s good for, and flags which ones are on the way out.
The short answer
FTTP is fibre all the way to your building and is the one to order if you can get it. SoGEA is broadband over the copper line with no phone service attached, and it’s the standard choice where FTTP hasn’t arrived.
FTTC and ADSL both sit on top of an analogue phone line, and those lines stop in January 2027. If you’re on either, you’ll be moving to one of the first two.
A leased line is a different product again: a private connection with the same speed both ways, for businesses where the internet is the business.
What the letters actually mean
Almost every broadband product is named after where the fibre stops. Fibre carries data as light, which stays fast over long distances. Copper carries it as electrical signals, and the further it travels the slower it gets.
So “fibre to the premises” means the fibre reaches you. “Fibre to the cabinet” means it stops at the green box on the street and copper does the last stretch. Old-fashioned ADSL means copper all the way from the exchange. The speed you can get follows from that.
The coverage figures are from Ofcom’s Connected Nations reporting and count premises rather than businesses. Business parks and older town-centre buildings are often behind the national figure, so check your own address before you assume.
FTTP: fibre to the premises
A fibre optic cable runs from the exchange right into your building and ends in a small white box on the wall, called an ONT. Your router plugs into that.
Because there’s no copper in the chain, speeds run from around 100Mbps up to 1Gbps and beyond, and the connection doesn’t slow with distance or suffer in wet weather the way copper can. Upload speeds are far better than the copper products too, which matters more than it used to now that so much of the working day is cloud storage and video calls.
If your address can get FTTP, this is the one to order. It’s also the only one on this list with a long future ahead of it.
SoGEA: broadband without the phone line
Single Order Generic Ethernet Access is a mouthful for a simple idea. It’s the same copper-and-cabinet technology as FTTC, sold on its own without an analogue phone line underneath.
That matters because of the switch-off. For decades a broadband line was ordered on top of a phone line. SoGEA breaks that link, so you get the broadband and nothing else. If you still want a phone number, it runs over the internet as a cloud phone system instead.
Speeds are the same as FTTC: up to 80Mbps download and 20Mbps upload, depending on how far you are from the cabinet. SoGEA carries on after January 2027, which is why it’s the default for anywhere FTTP hasn’t reached yet.
FTTC: fibre to the cabinet
Fibre runs from the exchange to the green cabinet on the street. From there, the existing copper phone line carries the connection into your building.
FTTC is what most UK businesses have had for the past decade. Top speed is around 80Mbps, but the copper leg means the further you are from the cabinet the less you get, and a long line can drop to 20Mbps or lower.
The catch is that FTTC is sold on top of an analogue phone line, and those are being withdrawn. Openreach has already stopped selling new copper products across most of the country. Existing FTTC connections will move to SoGEA or FTTP before the January 2027 date.
ADSL: the one being retired
Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line is copper all the way from the exchange, with no fibre involved. It was the standard broadband product of the 2000s.
Speeds top out around 20Mbps and are usually well under that. The asymmetric part means uploads are much slower than downloads, often under 1Mbps, which makes cloud backups and video calls a struggle for a whole office.
ADSL is tied to the analogue phone line, so it goes when the line goes. If your business is still on it, the move is overdue, and in most places there’s now a much better product available at a similar price.
Leased lines: not broadband at all
A leased line gets grouped with broadband but it’s a different product. It’s a private fibre connection for your business alone, with the same speed in both directions and a guaranteed fix time if it fails.
Broadband is shared with everyone else on the cabinet or exchange, so it slows at busy times. A leased line doesn’t. That’s what you pay the extra for. We’ve written a separate guide to leased lines against business broadband if you’re weighing the two.
Ethernet and Wi-Fi: the bit inside the building
Once the connection reaches your router, how it gets to each desk is a separate question. Ethernet means a cable from the router or a switch to the device. Wi-Fi means no cable.
A cable is always faster and steadier than Wi-Fi, so anything that stays put, like a desktop PC or a desk phone, is better on a cable. Save the Wi-Fi for laptops and mobiles. A slow office is very often a slow Wi-Fi setup sitting on a perfectly good connection.
Side by side
Where each one sits, and what happens to it after the switch-off.
| Product | How it reaches you | Typical speed | After January 2027 | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FTTP | Fibre all the way to your building | 100Mbps to 1Gbps and up | Continues | Any business that can get it |
| SoGEA | Fibre to the cabinet, copper to you, no phone line | Up to 80Mbps down, 20Mbps up | Continues | Where FTTP isn’t available yet |
| FTTC | Fibre to the cabinet, copper to you, on a phone line | Up to 80Mbps down, 20Mbps up | Withdrawn, moves to SoGEA or FTTP | Existing lines only |
| ADSL | Copper all the way from the exchange | Under 20Mbps, uploads under 1Mbps | Withdrawn | Nothing. Replace it |
| Leased line | Private fibre for you alone | 100Mbps to 10Gbps, same both ways | Continues | Businesses that can’t afford downtime |
Speeds are the product maximums. What you actually get on the copper products depends on the length of the line, which is why two businesses on the same street can see very different numbers.
Which one should you order?
Check what your address can get first, because that decides most of it. If FTTP is available, order FTTP. If it isn’t, SoGEA is the standard answer and it’ll see you through until fibre arrives.
Then think about what the connection is carrying. A small office doing email and browsing is fine on SoGEA. Add cloud phones and video calls for twenty people and you’ll feel the upload limit. That’s the point at which FTTP stops being nice to have and a leased line starts to make sense.
And if you’re on FTTC or ADSL today, you’re moving whether you choose to or not. Better to pick where you’re going than to have it picked for you.
How Chrome can help
We check every address before we quote, so you’re only ever offered what your building can get. If FTTP isn’t there yet, we’ll tell you when it’s due and set you up on SoGEA in the meantime.
We also look after the connection and the phone system together, so when the copper line goes there’s one plan and one team. Our business internet page has the options in detail.
A sensible place to start
Find your last broadband bill and look for one of the four words at the top of this guide. If it says FTTC or ADSL, put the switch-off on your list now. If it says SoGEA, ask when FTTP reaches you. If it says FTTP, you’re done, and the question moves to what’s happening inside the building.
Common questions
Is SoGEA the same speed as FTTC?
Yes. Both use fibre to the cabinet and copper to you, so the maximums are the same: up to 80Mbps down and 20Mbps up. The difference is that SoGEA has no analogue phone service underneath, which is why it survives the switch-off and FTTC doesn’t.
Can I keep a phone number on SoGEA or FTTP?
Yes, but not as a traditional landline. Your number moves to a cloud phone system that runs over the broadband. The number ports across and the handset changes. You can use a desk phone or an app on a laptop or mobile, and take calls anywhere the internet reaches.
My address can't get FTTP. When will it?
Openreach and the alternative networks publish rollout plans by exchange, and most providers can look your address up and tell you a date if one exists. Ofcom’s figure of 78% full fibre coverage means roughly one premises in five is still waiting. Ask when you order SoGEA and put a note in the diary.
What's the difference between full fibre and superfast?
Superfast usually means FTTC or SoGEA, so 30Mbps and above over the copper-to-cabinet setup. Full fibre means FTTP. Ultrafast and gigabit also point at FTTP. The marketing words are looser than the four-letter ones, which is why the four-letter ones are worth learning.
Do I need a new router when I move?
Usually, yes. FTTP ends in a white box called an ONT and your router connects to that by a cable rather than to a phone socket. Your provider will normally supply one. If you have a business firewall or a router you’re attached to, check it has an Ethernet WAN port before the install date.
Will the switch-off cut off my broadband?
Not if you’re already on SoGEA or FTTP, which don’t use the analogue phone service. If you’re on FTTC or ADSL, your provider has to move you to one of those before your line is withdrawn. Don’t wait for the letter. Ask now what you’re being moved to and when.
Is a leased line worth it for a small business?
Sometimes. If your phones and your card payments both depend on the connection and an hour of downtime costs real money, the guaranteed fix time is what you’re buying. If you can carry on for a day on mobile data, business broadband with a backup is usually the better spend.
Related reading
Talk it through with someone
If you’d like to know what your address can get, send us the postcode and we’ll check it and come back with the options. Get in touch and we’ll arrange a chat.
Sources and notes
Coverage figures are from Ofcom’s Connected Nations Spring 2026 update (gigabit-capable, January 2026) and the Connected Nations 2025 report (full fibre, July 2025). Both count premises, not businesses. The 31 January 2027 date is published by Openreach. Speeds quoted are the standard product maximums for Openreach-based services.
We’re describing how these products generally work. What your address can get, and the speed you’ll see on a copper line, depends on your exchange and the length of your line. Check the availability for your own postcode before you decide anything.
