Finding a good provider can be pretty easy if you just want a standard broadband package – after all there are hundreds of different deals and packages available. Usually, just reading broadband reviews and comparing prices online is more than enough. However, if you know that one of your main activities online is going to be downloading, you’ll want to make sure you pick a provider that allows you to make the most of your phone or cable service. The tricky part for people that love downloading is that while information about the speed of your connection can be found by doing a broadband speed test, it’s much harder to find out about bandwidth limits and fair usage policies, or figure out which providers are likely to let you download more than others.

One thing you’ll notice very quickly about broadband providers is that a lot of them like to refer to their service as unlimited. That sounds great, right? All the downloads you want to for one set fee might sound like a good idea, but beware of providers that advertise as unlimited but actually do have some pretty strict limits. The last thing you want is to sign up for a year to a provider that says they are unlimited but will send you a letter if you download too much. Several consumer groups are already trying to get the word unlimited removed from providers who don’t really offer an unlimited service, but until this happens always make sure to do your research first.

Providers get away with this because of something called a Fair Usage Policy (FUP) which lays out that you can use the service as much as you want providing that it’s within that they determine as ‘fair’. The annoying part for people trying to find a good provider is that this idea of what is fair and what isn’t varies between different companies. You’ll never find an actual limit on what providers think is fair because if they set one up, they wouldn’t be able to advertise as unlimited anymore. Luckily, there are some ways to get around this problem.

Firstly, look for providers well known for being suited for heavy downloaders. Some providers have a reputation online for being generous with their fair usage policy. Common names over the last few years have been Be Broadband and O2 Broadband, and Sky Broadband. Virgin also advertises their most expensive and fastest package as being free of traffic management as well – at least for the short term.

It’s much more important to focus on these sorts of offers than one of the ones that only offer the best speeds. Speed is obviously important for downloading, but what’s the point in having a superfast connection if you can hardly download anything without going over the limits and being charged a fortune? If you have to compromise, it’s better to find a slower provider that allows you to download more – it’s worth it in the long term.