Business WiFi Installation
WiFi that reaches the whole shop floor, keeps the card machine on a line of its own, gives customers a guest network that cannot see your till, and tells us when something is wrong before you notice. For shops, cafés, salons, offices, workshops and holiday lets across Sussex.
Business WiFi done properly means a small business-grade router, one or two ceiling access points powered over the network cable, and separate networks for staff, payment devices and guests. For a small shop or salon that is usually £600 to £1,200 installed. A larger premises with cabling, several access points and a 4G backup line is £1,500 to £3,000.
The router your broadband provider sent is built for a three-bed house. In a shop it sits in the back room, serves forty phones on the same network as the card machine, and nobody knows it has rebooted until the queue forms. We fit Ubiquiti UniFi, the same kit used in hotels and offices, and we can watch it for you.
A Network, Not a Router
Coverage Where People Stand
Ceiling access points placed from a walk-round survey, roughly one per 100 to 150 square metres of open floor and more where brick walls or a mezzanine get in the way. No dead corner by the window seats.
Tills and Card Machines on Their Own Network
Payment devices, the till and the printer live on a separate network that customers and staff phones cannot reach. If a guest's laptop has something nasty on it, your till never meets it.
Guest WiFi Customers Like
A simple password on the menu or a branded sign-in page, speed-limited so one person's download does not stall the room, and switched off at closing time if you want.
Keeps Trading When the Broadband Drops
An optional 4G or 5G backup takes over in seconds, so card payments carry on through a line fault. For a café on a Saturday, that pays for itself the first time.
Watched By Us
Optional remote monitoring: we see an access point drop or the broadband flap before you do, and often fix it without a visit. Our privacy policy says exactly what that involves.
Cameras and Phones on the Same Cable
The structured cabling that feeds the access points also powers CCTV cameras and desk phones. One tidy job instead of three.
Business WiFi Prices
Guide prices for kit, cabling and our time. The survey fixes the figure; the quote does not move after that. Prices exclude VAT where it applies to your business.
Small Shop or Salon
- UniFi gateway and one access point
- Staff, till and guest networks
- Guest password or sign-in page
- Wired drop for the till
- Half a day on site
- 12-month workmanship warranty
Café, Office or Workshop
- Two or three ceiling access points
- PoE switch and cabling
- Wired drops for till, printer, cameras
- Guest network with speed limits
- Remote monitoring set up
- 12-month workmanship warranty
Larger Premises
- Four or more access points
- 4G or 5G failover router
- Outdoor coverage for seating or yard
- Link to an outbuilding or second unit
- Written network plan and logins
- 12-month workmanship warranty
Six Ways Small Business WiFi Goes Wrong
- The WiFi password is on the counter and the till is on the same network. Every customer who has ever connected can see the payment devices. Split the networks.
- The router lives in the back office. A brick wall and a kitchen between it and the customers. The signal that reaches the window seats is a whisper.
- Extenders daisy-chained across the shop. Each hop halves the speed and adds a thing to reboot. A single ceiling access point on a cable replaces three of them.
- The card machine on 2.4 GHz with forty phones. Payments time out at the busiest moment. Wire the terminal, or put it on its own 5 GHz network.
- The printer on the guest network. It works until someone's phone on the same network decides to print, or until a guest's laptop finds it.
- A residential broadband line with no backup. A fault takes days to fix and the provider's support line opens after you do. Business broadband with a 4G fallback costs a little more and ends the problem.
Our guide to small business WiFi walks through each of these with costs, and the UniFi guide explains the kit we fit and why.
Business Network Guides
Small Business WiFi: Shop, Café, Salon or Office
What each type of premises needs and what it costs.
ExplainerUniFi Networks: Is Ubiquiti Worth It?
The kit we fit in homes and businesses, and why.
GuideHow to Improve Your WiFi Signal
Ten fixes ranked from free to £600.
ComparisonMesh WiFi vs Extenders
Why we almost never fit an extender any more.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does business WiFi installation cost?
A small shop or salon with a business-grade router, one ceiling access point and separate staff, till and guest networks is usually £600 to £1,200 installed. A café, office or workshop needing two or three access points and cabling is £1,200 to £2,000, and larger premises with a 4G backup and outdoor coverage £2,000 to £3,000 or more.
Do I need business broadband or will a home line do?
A home line will carry the traffic, but business broadband buys you a support line that answers during trading hours, a fixed repair time in the contract and usually a static address for remote access and cameras. If a day without internet costs you money, business broadband plus a 4G backup is the right answer.
Should customers and the till be on the same WiFi?
No. Payment devices, the till and the printer should sit on their own network that guests and staff phones cannot reach. Business-grade kit does this with virtual networks on the same cables and access points, so it costs nothing extra once the system is in.
How many access points does a shop need?
Roughly one per 100 to 150 square metres of open floor, more if there are brick walls, a mezzanine or a lot of metal shelving. A small shop usually needs one, a café or office two or three. A walk-round survey with a signal meter settles it before anything is bought.
WiFi Your Customers Never Notice
Book a free site survey. We will measure the signal where your customers stand, check the broadband, and quote a fixed price.