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Business Fibre for Small Businesses in SA | SME South Africa

Top Fibre Service Providers for Small Businesses

Updated on May 21, 2024

Vox Business Fibre - Best for variety of package options

    Uncapped and unshaped

    Symmetrical data

    Router included

    Free uncapped voice

    Dedicated voice link included

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Telkom - Best for affordability

    Stable Fibre Connectivity

    Uncapped Data

    Free Router

    Free Installation

    Unshaped Data

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Afrihost - Best for customer service

    Free .co.za, .online and .site domain registration

    Unlimited traffic

    Anti-spam and anti-virus

    Website backups

    Access to site stats

Read Review Compare Quotes

Webafrica - Best ISP provider

    Free installtion

    Free router

    High Internet speeds

    Uncapped Internet

Introduction

Fibre is the fastest and most reliable connection we have in South Africa. It has the capacity to work at the speed of light and can achieve speeds of up to 200 Mbps. This review looks at top fibre service providers in South Africa. 

What Is Fibre To The Business?

There are two types of fibre in South Africa, Fibre To The Home (FTTH) and Fibre To The Business (FTTB). FTTH is normally used in households and is cheaper than FTTB which is more expensive as it takes into consideration a business’s needs.

According to fibre Internet service provider Accelerit, “FTTB has several advantages over FTTH, including wider coverage, better contention ratios, complex security, and clearly-defined service level agreements (SLA).”

The Benefits Of Fibre For SMEs

In an interview with SME South Africa, titled ‘Rise in Fibre Adoption Among SMEs’ Arthur Goldstuck, principal researcher for SME Survey and MD of World Wide Worx, notes that a key benefit of fibre for SMEs is that it enables SMEs to operate online without any of the performance and quality constraints they may have faced before.

This means that communications are significantly improved, enabling businesses to utilise solutions like video-conferencing and social media platforms to further their business. It also enables businesses to use the Internet for transactional purposes, thanks to the quality and speed of the connectivity.

How to Get Fibre?

To get FTTB you need to have fibre infrastructure in the area that you operate in. Infrastructure providers do not offer any retail services to end users. Some of the biggest fibre infrastructures providers in South Africa are Vumatel and Openserve, however there are many more out there.

Check with the fibre infrastructure provider to find out if there is fibre available in your area. After which you would then choose an Internet service provider (ISP) operating within that fibre infrastructure that fits your needs. 

Unlike infrastructure providers, fibre service providers  provide retail services for the end user. Well known examples include Telkom and Afrihost. Once you have signed up with an ISP, the fibre infrastructure provider will send someone to install fibre to your business. When the process is complete the ISP will send you a router and activate your account. This should take 3-5 operating days, depending on your area.

Main Features

  • Uncapped broadband – Afrihost has no usage thresholds and offers unshaped and unthrottled fibre meaning that customers can use their Internet all times, with the same speed. 
  • State of the art fibre network – This provides customers with better products, better support and connectivity throughout. 
  • Fast and reliable fibre – The fibre speed is up to 50x times faster than any ADSL line in South Africa and has a have stable connection with lower latency. 
  • Connect multiple devices – Connect more devices at faster speeds.

Pricing

Device costs – Some service providers will provide a fiber-ready router device for free, however some service providers will charge you for a wifi router. The cost of a wifi router ranges between R349 and R399. 

Monthly subscription – In order to receive Internet connection, you pay a monthly fee to your service provider. There are some service providers who offer prepaid fibre packages without any contracts. 

Speed – Different packages have different speeds which will affect what you pay. Packages range from 10 Mbps to 500 Mbps. The package that you choose will be largely affected by the number of people that will need to be connected to the Internet. Connections can be asymmetrical or symmetrical. 

Buyer's Guide

When looking to buy fibre, there are certain features that you need to consider.

Consider the following:

  • Costs 

Fibre can be more cost effective than ADSL and LTE in the long run. You can also save costs because fibre allows connections of up to 20-50 people on the same network at a fixed cost every month. What you pay will largely depend on the fibre structure. The bigger the fibre infrastructure, the more expensive it is. 

  • Speed 

The speed of your Internet connection is important to ensure your team’s sustained productivity. To ascertain what speed you will require, consider what your team’s needs and the company’s data storage needs. 

  • Fibre availability in area

There are certain areas in South Africa that do not have fibre. Check if there is fibre availability in the area in which your business operates and which fibre infrastructures are available as it will affect which ISP you choose. 

  • Support 

There will be instances where you will need fibre support. Ensure that the ISP you choose offers great support and is available 24/7 in case of the emergency. 

Compare our best picks

Vox Business Fibre

Pros

Their service centre is operational 24/7/365

Offer fast and flexible connectivity

Fibre packages are customisable and scalable for small businesses.

Cons

Offer 12 Months/ 24 Months contracts, while other ISPs have no contact obligations

R6 325 once-off set-up fee when signing up for a 12-month or 24-month contract.

Vox Business Fibre provides high-speed, reliable internet specifically designed for small and medium businesses. They provide high-speed, reliable internet specifically designed for small and medium businesses.

Telkom

Pros

Experience – Telkom has been in business for more than 140 years

Openserve – They are one of the first infrastructures to provide fibre

Low latency

Cons

Have asymmetrical data speeds

Installation Cost

Potential for Disruption

Telkom fibre offers a significant advantage in terms of speed, stability, reliability, and security. However, consider availability, installation costs, and contract terms before making a decision.

Afrihost

Pros

Great customer support. 

Affordability

Capped or Uncapped Data

Cons

Installation Costs

Contract Length

Data Caps

Afrihost Fibre offers high-speed, reliable internet access for homes and businesses in South Africa. It utilizes fiber-optic cables for transmission, delivering blazing-fast speeds and consistent connectivity.

Webafrica

Pros

No installation fees.

Uncapped data offers.

Wide range of Internet speeds.

No contractual obligations.

Cons

Potential downtime.

Cancellation fees.

Not enough coverage in certain areas.

Webafrica is an Internet service provider based in South Africa. The company specialises in fibre, ADSL and LTE services and features various products such as routers, and load-shedding kits.

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