The latest report from Ofcom reveals that 69% of UK households now have access to full-fibre broadband, connecting 20.7 million homes. Last September was 57% so the increase is a drastic improvement. When including hybrid networks such as fibre-coaxial, gigabit-capable broadband now serves 83% of homes. The government’s target of reaching 85% coverage in 2025 appears achievable.
Northern Ireland leads with 93% of households connected to full-fibre, while Wales falls behind at 68%. Urban areas perform better, with 71% coverage, compared to rural regions where only 52% of homes are connected. Extending broadband into sparsely populated areas has proven more complex.
Project Gigabit, launched in 2021, focuses on rural and remote locations. It has helped bring faster internet to areas that commercial providers have overlooked.
Who Is Using High-Speed Broadband?
While full-fibre broadband is more and more so available, only 35% of eligible homes have signed up for the service. Rural households are getting it more quickly, with 52% connected, compared to 32% in urban areas.
Superfast broadband, delivering speeds of at least 30 Mbps, has gained more users, with 75% of premises connected. Adoption grows over time— areas that have had full-fibre for four years or more report a 53% uptake, compared to just 12% in areas where it has been available for under a year.
More from News
- How The UK Government Is Helping With Employment Reform
- What Are The Data-Related Risks Of Period Tracker Apps?
- Investment in UK Businesses Up 3% This Year
- How Much Water Does ChatGPT Actually Use?
- Why Is Tesla Facing Legal Action In Australia?
- How AI Is Helping Scammers Enrol Fake Students To Get College Funding
- Syria Set to Rejoin SWIFT International Payment System
- Searches For ‘Sell Tesla’ Up 372% As Donald Trump and Elon Musk Feud Goes Viral
What’s Changing In Mobile Networks?
The rollout of 5G is making faster mobile internet available to more people. Urban areas have 90-95% 5G coverage, but rural areas have only 16% of sites connected. This gap leaves many outside cities using older networks.
5G networks, which operate independently of 4G, now represent 15% of all 5G infrastructure. These sites carry 14% of the total 5G traffic. Meanwhile, the number of users on 2G and 3G networks has dropped to 2.1 million, as more people shift to newer technology.
Mobile data use continues to grow, with 21% of all traffic now running on 5G. More people are starting to prioritise faster, more reliable connections for streaming, gaming, and other activities.
How Are Alternative Technologies Filling The Gaps?
Alternative solutions are helping connect households that traditional broadband cannot reach. Satellite broadband, such as Elon Musk’s Starlink, has doubled its UK users to 87,000 since 2023. These services are especially valuable in remote areas where fixed-line options are unavailable.
Fixed Wireless Access is another growing option, covering 95% of homes through mobile operators and 7% through smaller providers. These methods offer quicker solutions in places where installing cables is impractical.
For the 58,000 premises in the UK still lacking decent broadband, these technologies are a lifeline. Expanding such services brings better internet access to hard-to-reach places.
Are Internet Speeds Improving?
Broadband speeds are increasing as more people move to faster plans. Average download speeds have risen from 170 Mbps in 2023 to 223 Mbps in 2024. Full-fibre users consume more data, averaging 766 GB monthly compared to 531 GB for all broadband types.
Speeds during peak hours remain steady, with downloads running at 98.7% to 99.7% of the daily average. This reliability ensures users can work, stream, or game without interruptions, even during busy periods. More households are choosing packages with speeds above 300 Mbps due to the changing habits as more devices and activities require greater bandwidth.
