What is Sky Broadband Boost?
IS IT WORTH £5 IN 2026?
THE SHORT ANSWER
Sky Broadband Boost is essentially an insurance policy for your internet. It does not make your broadband faster. Instead, it gives you a safety net: evening engineer visits at no extra cost, daily line checks, and a modest Wi-Fi guarantee. However, in 2026, Sky WiFi Max is Sky's newer add-on and effectively replaced Boost for most customers; Boost mainly persists as a legacy add-on for some existing customers/plans.
WHAT DO YOU ACTUALLY GET?
For roughly £5 extra a month (prices vary by contract), Sky bundles four specific features into the Boost package. Here is the breakdown of what you are actually paying for:
- Flexible Engineer Visits: This is the big one for workers. Sky charges £15 for evening/weekend WiFi engineer visits unless you have an add-on like Broadband Boost / WiFi Max (which includes these at no extra cost).
- Daily Line Checks: Sky runs daily checks on your line (Sky notes these checks can cause a short daily outage of up to ~90 seconds). If they spot a fault, they might text you or book an engineer before you even notice the internet has dropped.
- Mobile Data Backup: If your broadband has a full outage lasting 30 minutes or more, Sky credits 2GB to your Sky Mobile Piggybank (Sky says it can take up to 24 hours). Credits are capped (e.g., 3 per month and 24 over 24 months) and require being a Sky Mobile customer.
- Wi-Fi Guarantee: A promise that you will get Wi-Fi in every room. We will discuss the catch with this below.
THE GUARANTEE: IS IT ENOUGH?
The "Wi-Fi in every room" slogan sounds fantastic, but you need to look at the fine print. The speed Sky guarantees with the standard Boost package is just 3Mb/s.
Is 3Mb/s enough in 2026?
Barely. 3Mb/s is enough to send a WhatsApp message or browse a text-heavy website. It is not enough for 4K streaming, modern gaming, or a stable video call. If your bedroom gets 4Mb/s, Sky considers that a "success" and you cannot claim a refund, even though that speed is frustratingly slow for modern usage.
Boost's WiFi guarantee is about minimum WiFi speed in every room (3Mb/s); if Sky can't resolve it, you get money back under the guarantee terms.
BOOST VS WIFI MAX
This is the most important part of this review. Sky has released a newer add-on called "Sky WiFi Max". Here is how they compare:
| FEATURE | SKY BOOST (Legacy) | SKY WIFI MAX (New) |
|---|---|---|
| Speed Guarantee | 3Mb/s | 10Mb/s or 25Mb/s in every room depending on your Sky broadband product (with money back/cancel options if it can't be met). |
| Router Hardware | Sky Broadband Hub or Sky Max Hub (varies / depends what you already have) | Sky Max Hub (WiFi 6) |
| Security | Standard | Advanced Security |
| Engineer Visits | Free Evenings/Weekends | Free Evenings/Weekends |
| Approx Cost | ~£5/mo | from £4/month (promo pricing varies) — and it can be included at no extra cost with Full Fibre Gigafast+ packages. |
VERDICT: IS IT WORTH IT?
In 2026, the standard Sky Broadband Boost is difficult to recommend for new customers if Sky WiFi Max is available to you. The 3Mb/s guarantee is simply too low for modern household needs.
You should only keep/get Boost if:
- You are an existing customer on an older contract who cannot upgrade to WiFi Max yet.
- You work 9-to-5 and absolutely need the flexibility of evening or weekend engineer visits without paying £15 every time.
- You have Sky Mobile and want the 2GB data safety net for outages.
For everyone else, the new WiFi Max add-on offers far better value, better hardware (WiFi 6), and a speed guarantee that is actually useful.
COMMON QUESTIONS
DOES SKY BROADBAND BOOST IMPROVE SPEED?
No. Boost does not make your actual line speed faster. It is an insurance policy that guarantees Wi-Fi signal reaches every room. If it does not, you can claim money back under the guarantee terms, but it won't physically speed up your router.
WHAT HAPPENS IF I DON'T GET WIFI IN EVERY ROOM?
If you have Boost, you can request a booster. If that doesn't fix it and you are still getting less than 3Mb/s, Sky will refund the cost of your Boost subscription. In some cases, they may also refund a month of your broadband subscription.
IS THE ENGINEER VISIT ACTUALLY FREE?
Yes, if you have Boost. Without it, Sky charges £15 for evening/weekend WiFi engineer visits unless you have an add-on like Broadband Boost or WiFi Max.
VERDICT: SHOULD YOU BUY IT?
For most people? ❌ No. Get Sky WiFi Max instead.
For flexibility? ✅ Yes, if you need weekend engineer visits.
For speed? ⚠️ No. The 3Mb/s guarantee is too slow.
