UK broadband at a glance · May 2026
~73%
of UK homes can get FTTP (Ofcom Connected Nations, autumn 2025)
~98%
can get superfast (30 Mbps+) broadband
~85 Mbps
median UK download speed in real-world use
100+
altnet FTTP networks now operating in the UK
Sources: Ofcom Connected Nations 2025; Speedtest UK index, Q1 2026.
Who serves your area? Four networks, not one
UK broadband is not one market. It is four physical networks that overlap unevenly across the country, and which one reaches your front door decides what speeds and prices you can shop for. Understanding the network underneath the brand matters more than the brand itself.
| Network | Coverage | Providers that resell it | Top speed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Openreach (FTTC + FTTP) | ~99% FTTC, ~73% FTTP | BT, EE, Sky, TalkTalk, Vodafone, Plusnet, Now, Zen, Shell, John Lewis, hundreds more | 1.8 Gbps FTTP / 80 Mbps FTTC |
| Virgin Media O2 (HFC + Nexfibre) | ~58% of UK premises | Virgin Media (only, on its own cable); some altnets ride on its new Nexfibre full-fibre joint venture | 2 Gbps |
| CityFibre (FTTP) | ~4 million premises in 80+ towns and cities | Vodafone, TalkTalk, Zen, Giganet, Brsk, Connexin, IDNet | 2.5 Gbps |
| Independent altnets | Patchwork, ~10 million premises combined | Hyperoptic, Community Fibre, Gigaclear, B4RN, YouFibre, Trooli, KCOM (Hull), Wessex Internet, Voneus, Brsk, Lit Fibre | Up to 8 Gbps |
Coverage figures: Ofcom Connected Nations 2025. "Altnets" stands for alternative network operators; many are venture-backed and only operate in specific cities or counties.
The takeaway: if you only check BT or Sky's website, you may miss a cheaper altnet running its own fibre down your street. Always check at least one Openreach-based ISP, Virgin Media and, if you live in a town or city, the local altnet too.
What broadband should I expect at my address?
Pick the option that best describes where you live. We'll show you the networks most likely to reach you and the providers worth checking first.
Network availability follows population density much more than region.
Flats in larger blocks often get Hyperoptic before the street outside has FTTP.
Most likely connection
Realistic top speed
Providers to check first
Run a postcode check on each before signing up.
Guidance, not a guarantee. Always confirm availability with the provider before you commit.
The "best" provider depends on what you can actually get
National "best broadband" lists rarely match what you can buy. Until you confirm which networks reach your address, every Trustpilot ranking is theoretical. Once you know your options, the right pick depends on three things: the headline speed you need, the price after any introductory discount expires, and how the provider handles customer service when things go wrong.
City and dense suburban areas
If you have FTTP plus Virgin Media plus one or two altnets, you have leverage. Hyperoptic (in flats) and Community Fibre (London houses) consistently undercut Openreach-based ISPs on per-megabit price. Vodafone wins on entry-level full fibre nationally; Sky offers the most generous router and the strongest TV bundle if you want to combine the two.
Towns and smaller suburbs
Openreach FTTP is the default. BT Full Fibre is the safe choice (longest contracts, best engineer support); Plusnet (owned by BT) is the cheaper option on the same network; Now Broadband targets the very lowest entry-level price. Where CityFibre is live, Vodafone, TalkTalk and Zen often beat Openreach prices for identical speeds.
Rural and village areas
If B4RN, Gigaclear, Wessex Internet or Voneus has built in your village, they are almost always the right choice: symmetrical speeds, no contract-end price hikes, and customer service from people who live nearby. If only Openreach FTTC is available, Zen Internet and John Lewis Broadband (operated by Plusnet) deliver the best rural customer-service scores. KCOM remains the only realistic option in Hull.
Remote and hard-to-reach properties
Look at 5G home broadband before signing a fixed-line contract you'll regret. Three 5G Hub and EE 5G Home work on a SIM-and-router model with no engineer visit. Starlink remains the universal fallback when no network reaches you. Some Project Gigabit subsidised builds will arrive before 2027; the gov.uk postcode checker tells you whether yours is one of them.
FTTP vs FTTC vs cable: what your area determines
The connection type that reaches your home sets a hard ceiling on speed. No amount of router-buying or provider-switching breaks past it. Here's what each one means in practice in 2026.
| Connection | What it is | Download / upload | UK availability |
|---|---|---|---|
| FTTP (full fibre) | Glass cable all the way to your home | 100 Mbps-8 Gbps / typically symmetrical | ~73% of premises |
| Virgin Media cable | Fibre to street, coaxial cable to home | 100 Mbps-2 Gbps / much slower upload | ~58% of premises |
| FTTC ("fibre" broadband) | Fibre to street cabinet, copper to home | Up to 80 Mbps / 20 Mbps, less the further you are | ~99% of premises |
| ADSL (copper only) | Copper phone line, no fibre | Up to 17 Mbps / 1 Mbps | Being retired in 2027 (PSTN switch-off) |
| 5G / 4G home | Mobile network through a fixed router | 50-500 Mbps / variable | Where mobile coverage allows |
| Starlink (satellite) | Low-earth-orbit satellite, anywhere with sky | ~100-200 Mbps / ~20 Mbps | UK-wide |
PSTN switch-off: Openreach plans to retire the analogue copper phone network by January 2027, accelerating FTTP rollout in remaining ADSL-only areas.
Don't guess, ask
Want a human to check what's live at your address?
Our broadband team will run all four network checkers for your postcode and walk you through every deal that fits, in one phone call.
Rural broadband in 2026: no longer a second-class service
For years, "rural broadband" was code for "slow and expensive". That has changed faster than most people realise. The Project Gigabit programme, paired with private altnet investment, has pushed FTTP into thousands of villages that did not have superfast broadband in 2020.
- ✓B4RN (Broadway for the Rural North), a community-owned not-for-profit running its own pure-fibre network across Lancashire, Cumbria and parts of Yorkshire. £33/month for symmetrical 1 Gbps, one-off £150 connection. Speeds up to 10 Gbps available.
- ✓Gigaclear, the largest dedicated rural FTTP operator, present in 19 English counties. Symmetrical packages from 200 Mbps to 900 Mbps, typically £29-£59/month.
- ✓Wessex Internet, covers Dorset, Wiltshire, Somerset and Hampshire with symmetrical fibre and is one of the main Project Gigabit contractors for the south-west.
- ✓Voneus and Quickline, building in the East Midlands and Yorkshire respectively, often using a hybrid of fixed wireless and FTTP.
- ✓Starlink, the satellite catch-all for properties no fibre or wireless network has reached. ~£75/month for unlimited use.
If you are in a rural area and have not checked your address against these networks in the last 12 months, do it again. Coverage maps move fast.
Selectra's broadband expert answers your questions
The most common questions UK households ask before signing up for a new broadband deal.
The most reliable check is the Ofcom broadband checker, which shows every fixed-line service registered at your postcode plus their advertised speeds. For FTTP, also run the Openreach fibre checker (covers BT, Sky, EE, TalkTalk, Vodafone, Plusnet and most others) and Virgin Media's postcode checker for their separate cable network. If you live in a city, search "FTTP postcode" plus your area: CityFibre, Hyperoptic and Community Fibre each have their own checkers and do not appear in the Ofgem map.
Two reasons. First, FTTP is rolled out cabinet by cabinet, not street by street, so houses on the same road can be on different exchanges. Second, Virgin Media's cable network is house-by-house: it stops at the kerb of properties that were not part of the original 1990s build. New-build housing nearly always gets FTTP from day one; older Victorian terraces are often the last to be upgraded.
Full fibre (FTTP, fibre-to-the-premises) is glass cable all the way to your router. It delivers symmetrical or near-symmetrical speeds from 100 Mbps to 2 Gbps. "Fibre broadband" sold by most ISPs is actually FTTC (fibre-to-the-cabinet): fibre runs to a green street cabinet, then copper carries the signal to your house, capping you at 80 Mbps download / 20 Mbps upload, less the further you are from the cabinet. Ofcom forced providers to label these clearly from 2024.
Increasingly yes. The government's Project Gigabit programme is targeting hard-to-reach premises with subsidised builds run by independent operators like Gigaclear, Wessex Internet, Voneus and B4RN (Broadband for the Rural North). B4RN, a community-owned not-for-profit, runs the UK's densest rural full-fibre network across Lancashire, Cumbria and parts of Yorkshire, offering symmetrical 1 Gbps for £33/month plus a one-off £150 connection. If Openreach hasn't reached you, check whether one of these altnets has.
You have two solid alternatives in 2026: 4G/5G home broadband (Three 5G Hub, EE 5G Home, Vodafone 5G GigaCube, Smarty Mobile Wi-Fi) which uses the mobile network and works anywhere with good signal, or fixed wireless access from regional WISPs like Quickline (north-east England) or Broadway Broadband (West Country). Starlink satellite is the catch-all option where nothing else reaches: ~£75/month for unlimited 100-200 Mbps.
Not always. Entry-level FTTP packages (100-150 Mbps) from BT, Sky, Vodafone and Plusnet are typically £28-£32/month, which is in line with what you would pay for a 67 Mbps FTTC deal. The price gap only opens up at 500 Mbps and above. Independent FTTP providers like Hyperoptic, Community Fibre and YouFibre routinely undercut Openreach-based ISPs at every speed tier where they operate.