It's easy changing your broadband provider between TalkTalk and Shell Energy. Find out how in our step-by-step guide.

Whether you're changing your broadband provider from TalkTalk to Shell Energy, or from Shell Energy to TalkTalk, it's a straightforward process. Start by letting us know in which direction you'd like to change your provider:

Are you switching from TalkTalk to Shell Energy, or from Shell Energy to TalkTalk?

You can follow the instructions below if you're switching from TalkTalk to Shell Energy Broadband.

Are you switching from Shell Energy to TalkTalk instead? Tap for instructions.

Step 1: Check your TalkTalk cancellation fee

To start with, check whether a cancellation fee will apply for ending your TalkTalk broadband service.

If you’re already outside the minimum term of your contract with TalkTalk, there will be no cancellation fees for ending your TalkTalk broadband service. You’ll simply pay for your TalkTalk service until the Shell Energy Broadband go-live date which will be given to you here.

If you’re still within the minimum term of your contract with TalkTalk (i.e. the initial 12 months, 18 months or 24 months you signed up for), an early exit fee will apply for ending your TalkTalk broadband service. This is typically between £5 and £10.50 per remaining month on your contract. You can get a quote for what this exit fee will be by calling TalkTalk customer services on 0345 172 0088. Alternatively, there’s more information on how to calculate it within our guide to cancelling TalkTalk.

If you’re not sure when your TalkTalk broadband contract comes to an end, you can check your contract end date in the My Package section of your TalkTalk online account. Alternatively, your contract end date should also be listed on your bills from TalkTalk.

If you have TalkTalk TV, this will be cancelled along with your TalkTalk broadband service.

Step 2: Order your Shell Energy Broadband service

To progress with your broadband switch from TalkTalk to Shell Energy, go to Shell Energy’s website to order your new Shell Energy broadband service.

For more information, select the type of broadband service you're planning to switch to on Shell Energy:

At present, Shell Energy offers a range of home broadband plans including the following:

Service Download Speed Monthly Cost
No price plans could be found matching this criteria.

See all Shell Energy Broadband Deals →

During the online order process, Shell Energy will give you an expected download speed as well as a minimum guaranteed speed for your service. Both of these will be specific to your address. You'll also be given a go-live date for when your broadband service will transfer from TalkTalk to Shell Energy.

If you'd like to keep your current home phone or landline number, remember to provide this phone number when ordering your broadband package from Shell Energy. As long as you do this, Shell Energy will arrange for your phone number to be moved over to their service.

There's no need for you to contact TalkTalk to cancel your old home broadband service. This is because the old TalkTalk service will be cancelled for you automatically on the go-live date when your broadband service transfers to Shell Energy.

Step 3: Plug in your Technicolor router on the go-live date

In advance of your broadband service switching over, Shell Energy will send you a new Technicolor router through the post.

On the go-live date for your Shell Energy broadband service, you can expect your broadband service to stop working for a couple of minutes. When this happens, it'll be time to plug in your new Technicolor router. There'll be instructions inside the package on how you can set up the new Technicolor router.

Your new Technicolor router will initially be configured with a different Wi-Fi network name (SSID) and password. On all of the devices that were previously connected to your TalkTalk router, you'll therefore need to sign in again to the Wi-Fi network using the new details provided by Shell Energy. For instance, you may need to log in again on your laptop, tablet, smartphone, smart TV and other smart home devices.

Alternatively, if it's too much hassle setting up Wi-Fi again on all of your devices, you can log in to Technicolor router administration screen to change the Wi-Fi network details back to what you had before on TalkTalk.

If you’re using a Wi-Fi repeater or a mesh networking solution such as BT Whole Home Wi-Fi or Google Nest Wi-Fi, you’ll need to set it up again at this point to work with your new Technicolor router.

Step 4: Return or recycle your old TalkTalk router

Once your new Shell Energy broadband service goes live, your old TalkTalk broadband service will be cancelled automatically. You’ll receive a final bill from TalkTalk following the cancellation, which will reflect your usage of their service up until cancellation.

Once the transfer is complete, you’ll still have your old TalkTalk broadband router. If they ask for the old router back, you’ll be sent a pre-paid postage bag for thr return. You’ll then have 42 days to return your router to TalkTalk.

If you’re using a TalkTalk e-mail address, this will be cancelled along with your TalkTalk broadband service. You’ll need to pay £5/month or £50/year for TalkTalk’s Mail Plus service if you’d like to keep it. This allows you to keep up to five TalkTalk email addresses (normally ending in @talktalk.net, @tiscali.co.uk, @lineone.net or a number of other domain names).

We'd typically recommend signing up for a free email provider instead (such as Gmail or Outlook.com). These free email services aren’t linked to your broadband provider so you can easily change your broadband service again in the future with a lot less hassle.

Start your switch from TalkTalk to Shell Energy →

More Information

Please see the Shell Energy website for more information about switching to their broadband service.

You can follow the instructions below if you're switching from Shell Energy to TalkTalk Broadband.

Are you switching from TalkTalk to Shell Energy instead? Tap for instructions.

Step 1: Check your Shell Energy cancellation fee

To start with, check whether a cancellation fee will apply for ending your Shell Energy broadband service.

If you’re already outside the minimum term of your contract with Shell Energy, there will be no cancellation fees for ending your Shell Energy broadband service. You’ll simply pay for your Shell Energy service until the TalkTalk Broadband go-live date which will be given to you here.

If you’re still within the minimum term of your contract with Shell Energy (i.e. the initial 12 months, 18 months or 24 months you signed up for), an early exit fee will apply for ending your Shell Energy broadband service. This cancellation fee is plan-dependent and is between £6.50 and £18.50 per month. You may also need to pay a £15 cease charge when you end your Shell Energy Broadband service. You can get a quote for what this exit fee will be by calling Shell Energy customer services on 0330 094 5801. Alternatively, there’s more information on how to calculate it within our guide to cancelling Shell Energy.

If you have other services from Shell Energy like electricity and gas, these are separate from your Shell Energy broadband service. You’ll need to contact Shell Energy separately if you’d like to cancel these services at the same time.

Step 2: Order your TalkTalk Broadband service

To progress with your broadband switch from Shell Energy to TalkTalk, go to TalkTalk’s website to order your new TalkTalk broadband service.

For more information, select the type of broadband service you're planning to switch to on TalkTalk:

At present, TalkTalk offers a range of home broadband plans including the following:

Service Download Speed Monthly Cost
(will rise each April by £3)
TalkTalk
Fibre 35
38Mbps
average download
£26.00
per month
No upfront fee
18 month contract
See deal  
TalkTalk
Fast Broadband
11Mbps
average download
£26.95
per month
plus £15.00 upfront
18 month contract
See deal  
TalkTalk
Fibre 65
67Mbps
average download
£28.00
per month
plus £4.95 upfront
18 month contract
See deal  
TalkTalk
Full Fibre 150
152Mbps
average download
£29.00
per month
No upfront fee
18 month contract
See deal  
TalkTalk
Fibre 150
145Mbps
average download
£35.00
per month
plus £9.95 upfront
18 month contract
See deal  
TalkTalk
Full Fibre 500
525Mbps
average download
£39.00
per month
No upfront fee
18 month contract
See deal  
TalkTalk
Fibre 250
290Mbps
average download
£39.00
per month
plus £9.95 upfront
18 month contract
See deal  
TalkTalk
Full Fibre 900
944Mbps
average download
£49.00
per month
No upfront fee
18 month contract
See deal  

See all TalkTalk Broadband Deals →

During the online order process, TalkTalk will give you an expected download speed as well as a minimum guaranteed speed for your service. Both of these will be specific to your address. You'll also be given a go-live date for when your broadband service will transfer from Shell Energy to TalkTalk.

If you'd like to keep your current home phone or landline number, remember to provide this phone number when ordering your broadband package from TalkTalk. As long as you do this, TalkTalk will arrange for your phone number to be moved over to their service.

There's no need for you to contact Shell Energy to cancel your old home broadband service. This is because the old Shell Energy service will be cancelled for you automatically on the go-live date when your broadband service transfers to TalkTalk.

Step 3: Plug in your TalkTalk Hub on the go-live date

In advance of your broadband service switching over, TalkTalk will send you a new TalkTalk Hub through the post.

On the go-live date for your TalkTalk broadband service, you can expect your broadband service to stop working for a couple of minutes. When this happens, it'll be time to plug in your new TalkTalk Hub. There'll be instructions inside the package on how you can set up the new TalkTalk Hub.

Your new TalkTalk Hub will initially be configured with a different Wi-Fi network name (SSID) and password. On all of the devices that were previously connected to your Shell Energy router, you'll therefore need to sign in again to the Wi-Fi network using the new details provided by TalkTalk. For instance, you may need to log in again on your laptop, tablet, smartphone, smart TV and other smart home devices.

Alternatively, if it's too much hassle setting up Wi-Fi again on all of your devices, you can log in to TalkTalk Hub administration screen to change the Wi-Fi network details back to what you had before on Shell Energy.

If you’re using a Wi-Fi repeater or a mesh networking solution such as BT Whole Home Wi-Fi or Google Nest Wi-Fi, you’ll need to set it up again at this point to work with your new TalkTalk Hub.

Step 4: Return or recycle your old Shell Energy router

Once your new TalkTalk broadband service goes live, your old Shell Energy broadband service will be cancelled automatically. You’ll receive a final bill from Shell Energy following the cancellation, which will reflect your usage of their service up until cancellation.

After the cancellation of your Shell Energy Broadband service, you’ll need to return your old router to Shell. If you don’t return your router at the end of your contract, an additional charge of £35 will be added to your final bill.

Start your switch from Shell Energy to TalkTalk →

More Information

Please see the TalkTalk website for more information about switching to their broadband service.

Alternatively, for further information, read our in-depth guides to switching broadband provider or cancelling your home broadband service in the UK.

Your Comments 39 so far

We'd love to hear your thoughts and any questions you may have. So far, we've received 39 comments from readers. You can add your own comment here.

  • VM to Plusnet: “Step 3: Plug in your Plusnet router on the go-live date”

    Plug the Plusnet router into what? Don’t they need to install the thing it gets plugged into, first?

    • Hi Andy,
      Thanks for your comment. Do you have an Openreach master socket (for fibre), or an Openreach modem/ONT (for full fibre)? If not, this will be installed by an engineer during their visit to your home. You’ll then be able to plug in your Plusnet Hub router into that.
      Ken

  • Peter Stanley said:

    Does Sky use underground fibre cable or fibre via the Openreach poles? I am currently with Virgin Media.

    • Hi Peter,
      Thanks for your comment. Sky uses the Openreach network. This can be delivered either via an underground duct or an overhead pole, depending on what is normally used in your area (e.g. if your neighbours have their telephone line delivered on a pole, the fibre optic cable will also come from that pole).
      Hope this helps,
      Ken

  • The easy switching wasn’t so easy for me. I was out of contract and switched from TalkTalk to Vodafone, I selected keep my old number and it said they would contact TalkTalk so I didn’t have to do anything. It to the date when Vodafone installed, that went fine. I hadn’t heard anything from TalkTalk about leaving so I rang them, Vodafone hadn’t informed them but oddly now my landline number is same for Vodafone as it is for TalkTalk so how that happens who knows. Anyway, now I have to pay an extra month to TalkTalk for a notice period. So if doing a switch I would always ring your current providor and tell them you are leaving.

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