FTTP vs Leased Line: Which Does Your Business Really Need?

As soon as businesses move away from old FTTC, the next big question appears:

Do we stop at FTTP, or do we go all the way to a leased line?

Both are fibre.
Both can be seriously fast.
Both look similar on the surface.

But under the hood, FTTP and leased lines are very different — especially when it comes to guarantees, uptime and performance under pressure.

This guide breaks down FTTP vs leased line in plain English, so you can decide what your business actually needs (not just what the biggest package on the price list says).

Quick Definitions: FTTP vs Leased Line

What is FTTP?

FTTP (Fibre to the Premises) is full-fibre broadband.

• Fibre runs all the way into your building

• No copper, no phone line, no shared last-mile wiring

• High speeds, strong uploads, low latency

• Still sold as best-effort broadband

It’s a huge upgrade from FTTC or SoGEA and is usually more than enough for many small and mid-sized sites.

If you’re still weighing up FTTP against cabinet-based services, it’s worth reading your FTTP vs FTTC for business guide alongside this one.

What is a leased line?

A leased line is dedicated fibre just for your business.

• No sharing with neighbours

• Symmetrical speeds (e.g. 100Mb/100Mb, 1Gb/1Gb)

• Guaranteed uptime SLAs

• Guaranteed fix times (often 4 hours)

• Designed for mission-critical connectivity

If FTTP is “premium broadband”, a leased line is dedicated, guaranteed connectivity.

FTTP vs Leased Line: The Core Difference

Some providers bury this in jargon, but it’s simple.

FTTP is shared best-effort full fibre – a leased line is dedicated fibre with guaranteed performance.

That’s the decision in one line.

Everything else — price, uptime, speed behaviour, support — flows from that difference.

FTTP vs Leased Line: Side-by-Side Comparison

Performance & Reliability: “Good Enough” vs “Guaranteed”

How FTTP behaves

FTTP gives you:

• High downstream speeds

• Much better uploads than FTTC/SoGEA

• Low latency and smooth real-time performance

For most offices, FTTP feels fast and stable — and for many, that’s absolutely enough.

But FTTP is still:

• Shared with other users on the same network

• Best-effort (no formal uptime SLA)

• Subject to standard broadband fix times if there’s a fault

How a leased line behaves

A leased line is built for predictability, not just speed.

• Symmetrical bandwidth (upload = download)

• No contention with other customers

• Priority fault handling

• Contractually agreed uptime and fix times

If FTTP is “this works well almost all the time”, a leased line is “this must work, full stop”.

Uptime, SLAs and Risk

Here’s the crucial mindset difference:

• FTTP is fine if downtime is annoying.

• A leased line is essential if downtime is expensive.

If your internet going down means:

• Staff can’t work

• Orders can’t be processed

• Card machines stop working

• Customer support can’t function

• Remote teams are cut off

…then the risk profile points strongly towards a leased line.

When FTTP Is the Right Choice

FTTP is usually the right answer if:

• FTTP is available at your address

• You’re upgrading from FTTC or SoGEA

• You want a big step up in speed and stability

• Your business can tolerate the occasional outage

• You’re cloud-heavy but not truly 24/7 critical

• You want strong uploads without leased-line pricing

Typical examples:

• Small to mid-sized offices

• Professional services firms

• Retail with online systems but low risk if offline briefly

• Hybrid/remote-friendly teams that can work around short outages

When a Leased Line Is the Right Choice

A leased line is usually the correct choice if:

• Internet downtime stops the business

• You need guaranteed fix times and SLAs

• You run critical systems from your site or data centre

• You have multiple offices connected via VPN

• You host services, apps or platforms for customers

• You need guaranteed symmetrical speeds all day, every day

Typical examples:

• Larger offices with 20+ staff dependent on cloud or VoIP

• Contact centres and 24/7 support operations

• Managed service providers and hosting businesses

• Logistics, healthcare, financial services and manufacturing with live data flows

In these environments, the cost of a leased line is often lower than the cost of a serious outage.

Can You Use Both Together?

Yes — and many businesses do.

Common setups:

• Primary leased line + FTTP backup

  • Leased line carries the main traffic

  • FTTP or SoGEA acts as automatic failover

• Primary FTTP + SoGEA/4G/5G backup

  • For businesses not yet ready for leased line costs

  • Still adds resilience compared with a single FTTC circuit

If budget allows, leased line + FTTP backup is the gold standard for resilience.

Pricing: What Should You Expect?

Very roughly:

• FTTP sits in the business broadband price band

• Leased lines sit in the business-critical connectivity price band

So:

• FTTP is ideal if you want maximum performance for the lowest cost

• A leased line is ideal if you want certainty, SLAs and no surprises

The right answer depends less on raw speed and more on how expensive disruption is for you.

Final Verdict: FTTP or Leased Line?

Here’s the honest summary:

• FTTP is excellent full-fibre broadband for businesses that want fast, stable connectivity without enterprise-grade pricing.

• Leased lines are dedicated, guaranteed fibre for businesses that simply cannot afford their connection to be unreliable.

If FTTP is available and your business can handle occasional broadband-style risks, FTTP is often the best value.

If downtime is genuinely painful or you need guaranteed performance, a leased line isn’t a luxury — it’s the correct tool for the job.

Check Real FTTP Pricing for Your Address

Enter your postcode and see live FTTP pricing instantly:

https://www.leasedlineandmpls.co.uk/fttp/

You’ll see:

• Exact FTTP prices and speeds

• Whether full fibre is live at your address

• When a leased line is likely to be recommended instead

• The best-fit option for your usage and risk level

Fast, accurate and personalised to your location.