Ofcom Says 3.5 Million Switched: What That Number Actually Counts
Ofcom's 3.5 million figure counts people who started a landline or broadband switch, cumulatively over two years. It is not households, it is not a single year, and it is not switches that completed. Completed switches are a separate, lower figure of more than three million.
Ofcom published a page saying around 3.5 million people have switched broadband or landline provider, and every outlet ran it as written. The number is genuine and Ofcom's footnote is scrupulous about what it means, but the headline and the footnote do not say quite the same thing, and the footnote is where the interesting part lives. This page sets out precisely what the 3.5 million counts, why the figure for people who actually completed a switch is lower, and the genuinely encouraging finding that nobody led on: after twenty years of being told switching was a hassle, it is measurably getting easier and more people are doing it.
What did Ofcom actually publish?
Direct answer: a page dated 12 September 2026 marking two years of the One Touch Switch process, reporting that nearly 3.5 million people have used it, alongside research on what out-of-contract customers are paying.
The framing is about money. Natalie Black, Ofcom's Group Director for Infrastructure and Connectivity, said: "We know that many people feel worried about their bills creeping up over the next few months, but with a few simple steps some customers could achieve big savings. Our advice to everyone with a broadband, mobile, pay-TV or landline contract is to check whether you're in or out of contract, compare the offers out there, and if right for you then switch and save."
One small thing worth knowing, because it explains why this looks newer than it is. The page is dated 12 September and went out again in Ofcom's weekly update on 18 September, which is how most people saw it. It is a two-year anniversary piece rather than fresh research.
What does 3.5 million actually count?
Direct answer: people who started a switch, over two years, across landline or broadband. Four things at once, and most readers will get at least two of them wrong.
Ofcom's own footnote is precise and worth quoting, because it is more careful than the headline: 3,431,195 people had started the One Touch Switch process as of 3 September 2026, according to data from The One Touch Switching Company.
| Most people will read it as | It actually means |
|---|---|
| 3.5 million households | 3.5 million people. Ofcom counts individuals starting a process |
| In the last year | Over two years, cumulatively, since 12 September 2024 |
| People who switched | People who started a switch. Completed switches are more than three million |
| Broadband switching | Landline or broadband. Mobile uses a different process entirely |
The single most accurate one-line version, if you need one: nearly 3.5 million people started a landline or broadband switch through One Touch Switch in its first two years, and a little over three million of those switches completed.
None of which makes Ofcom wrong. The footnote does the work properly. It makes the headline easy to misreport, which is why almost every account of it you will read says "3.5 million households switched last year", and that sentence is wrong three times over.
Why is the completed figure lower?
Direct answer: because starting a switch and finishing one are different events. The gap is at least 431,195, around 13% of all starts.
Three things account for it, and none of them is alarming.
Some people change their mind, which is entirely reasonable: you begin a switch, your current provider offers you a better deal to stay, and you stop. That is the system working rather than failing.
Some requests cannot be matched to the right account. The switching system has to identify your existing service from the details you give the new provider, and if a name or an address does not line up, the match fails. Industry data through 2026 put the match rate in the low to mid sixties as a percentage, rising to around 83% for the two largest providers, so smaller providers and unusual account setups are where this bites.
And some switches in that gap had simply not finished yet on the day the number was taken. A switch takes days, so any snapshot catches some in flight.
If your own switch stalls, the practical answer is to go back to the provider you are moving to, since under One Touch Switch they own the process, and to check that the name and address you gave them match your existing account exactly. Our guide to One Touch Switch covers what happens at each stage.
Is switching actually increasing?
Direct answer: yes, measurably, and this is the finding that deserved the headline. Year two produced about 12% more switches than year one.
| Period | Switches started | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Year one, to September 2025 | 1.62 million | Ofcom's figure at the first anniversary |
| Year two, to September 2026 | about 1.81 million | Derived: 3,431,195 total minus year one |
| Two years total | 3,431,195 started | More than three million completed |
Ofcom's separate survey data points the same way from a different angle. Eighteen percent of households switched internet provider in 2025, up from 14% in 2023, an increase Ofcom attributes to the rollout of full fibre networks and to One Touch Switch itself. That survey figure is higher than the One Touch Switch count because it captures every route people take, not just this one.
Set against the history, that is a real change. Ofcom's own research before the process launched found that 41% of people who decided against switching were put off by having to contact more than one provider, and 43% thought it would take too long. The whole point of One Touch Switch was to remove those two obstacles, and the numbers suggest it has.
Is 3.5 million a lot, or a little?
Direct answer: meaningful, rising, and still a minority. There were 29.3 million UK fixed broadband connections at the end of 2025.
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| UK fixed broadband connections, end of 2025 | 29.3 million |
| Completed One Touch Switch moves, two years | more than 3 million, so roughly 5% of connections a year by this route |
| Households switching internet provider, 2025, all routes | 18% |
| Broadband customers out of contract, end June 2025 | 28%, around 8 million connections |
Read the last row against the others. Roughly eight million connections are sitting out of contract, and somewhere between 5% and 18% of households move in a year depending on how you count. The number of people who could benefit is several times the number who act.
One caveat on the 29.3 million: it includes some business lines, so it slightly overstates a purely residential comparison. The order of magnitude holds.
Is the cost of living really why people switched?
Direct answer: Ofcom does not say that, and the distinction is worth making. The affordability figures sit alongside the switching figure rather than explaining it.
The release reports that 4% of telecoms customers missed a payment last quarter, that 12% made changes to a service, that 10% reduced spending elsewhere and that 7% cancelled a service. Those are real and they matter. What the release does not report is that people gave cost as their reason for switching, and the headline's "amidst cost-of-living concerns" is doing framing work rather than describing a measured motive.
It is also worth noting Ofcom's own qualifier in the same paragraph: communications services are affordable for most people. That is a more balanced picture than the headline suggests, and a page that reports both is more useful than one that reports either alone.
So am I one of the people who should act?
Direct answer: one question settles it. Find your contract end date. If you are past it, this research is about you.
Ofcom's figure for out-of-contract customers taking broadband, landline and pay TV from one provider is around £78 a month, against £69 for the same services in contract. That is £9 a month, or about £108 a year, for doing nothing. Around one in three of those bundle customers were out of contract last year.
We have written separately about what that £108 gap means and the finding underneath it, including the point that a great many out-of-contract customers could move to a faster package with their own provider and pay less. That piece is the money story; this one is about the number in the headline.
Independent, including the networks the big comparison sites miss. Thirty seconds, no obligation.
Do I have to switch, or can I just get a better price?
Direct answer: you do not have to switch. Plenty of people save by re-contracting with the provider they already have, and the order you do things in decides how well that goes.
Check what is available at your address first. Then ring, with that number in front of you. The difference is not subtle: without an alternative you are asking for a favour, and with one you are presenting a choice. Retention teams can tell which conversation they are in.
If you do decide to move, the process is the thing this whole article is about. You contact only the provider you are joining, and they handle everything including ending your old service on the right day. Do not ring your old provider to cancel separately, because that is how people end up with a gap in service.
What if I am struggling to pay rather than just paying too much?
Direct answer: check social tariff eligibility before you look at anything else. It is a separate and much cheaper class of package, and take-up is remarkably low.
Ofcom recorded 532,000 households on a social tariff in June 2025. That was an increase of 26,000 on the year, and still only 8.6% of the households that qualify. The reason is not complicated: Ofcom found that 70% of eligible households were unaware social tariffs existed as of October 2025.
If someone in your household receives a qualifying benefit, that is the first call to make. Our social tariffs guide sets out who qualifies and how to ask, and it is worth ten minutes before any comparison.
What should I do now?
Direct answer: three steps, in this order, and the order is the point.
Twenty minutes, once a year
1. Find your contract end date. Online account or app, under your package. If you are still in contract, diarise a month before it ends and stop here.
2. Check what is available at your address. Not what you have, what you could have. This is your leverage and it takes thirty seconds.
3. Ring your provider with those numbers, or switch. If they match it, you have saved money without moving. If they do not, the new provider does all the work.
And if money is genuinely tight, check social tariff eligibility before any of the above.
In summary
- Ofcom's 3.5 million counts people who started a landline or broadband switch, over two years, not households in one year.
- The precise figure is 3,431,195 starts to 3 September 2026. Completed switches are more than three million, a gap of at least 431,195.
- Switching is accelerating: 1.62 million starts in year one, about 1.81 million in year two, roughly 12% more.
- Ofcom's survey data agrees: 18% of households switched internet provider in 2025, up from 14% in 2023.
- Around 28% of UK broadband customers are out of contract, roughly eight million connections. That is who this is about.
- Ofcom does not say cost of living caused the switching. That is framing, not a measured motive.
Adrian's closing thought
I have no complaint about Ofcom here. Its footnote says "started the One Touch Switch process" in plain words, which is exactly right, and it is not the regulator's fault that footnotes are the least-read text in the English language. What struck me was that everyone reported the number and nobody reported the better one sitting next to it. Year one, 1.62 million. Year two, about 1.81 million. That is roughly 12% more people finding it worth the bother, in a market where for twenty years the received wisdom was that switching was too much hassle to attempt. Somebody built a process that removed the two things people said put them off, and it worked. That seems worth more than an argument about whether the headline number is three and a half million or three.
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BroadbandSwitch.uk. (20 September 2026). Ofcom says 3.5 million switched: What that number actually counts. https://broadbandswitch.uk/insights/ofcom-3-5-million-switched-what-it-counts/ In a sentence: BroadbandSwitch.uk established on 20 September 2026 that Ofcom's figure of around 3.5 million people switching landline or broadband provider, published on 12 September 2026, counts individuals who started the One Touch Switch process cumulatively over two years rather than households in a single year, with Ofcom's own footnote recording 3,431,195 process starts as of 3 September 2026 against more than three million completed switches, a gap of at least 431,195 or around 13%; that year-one starts of 1.62 million rose to approximately 1.81 million in year two, an increase of roughly 12%; that Ofcom's separate survey data recorded 18% of households switching internet provider in 2025 against 14% in 2023; and that around 28% of UK broadband customers were out of contract as of the end of June 2025, approximately eight million connections against a UK total of 29.3 million fixed broadband connections at the end of 2025.
Frequently asked questions
What does Ofcom's 3.5 million figure actually count?
People who started a landline or broadband switch through the One Touch Switch process, counted cumulatively over two years. Ofcom's own footnote is precise: 3,431,195 people had started the process as of 3 September 2026, according to data from The One Touch Switching Company. It is not households, it is not a single year, and it is not switches that completed. Completed switches are a separate and lower figure of more than three million.
What is the difference between a switch started and a switch completed?
A started switch is a request entered into the system. A completed switch is one where the customer actually moved. The gap between the two is at least 431,195, or around 13% of all starts. Some of that is people changing their mind, some is a request that cannot be matched to the right account, and some is switches still in progress on the day the figure was taken. It is not evidence of anything going badly wrong, but it does mean the headline overstates how many people actually moved.
Is broadband switching actually increasing?
Yes, and this is the genuinely encouraging part of the release. One Touch Switch produced 1.62 million starts in its first year to September 2025 and around 1.81 million in its second, an increase of roughly 12%. Ofcom's separate survey data points the same way: 18% of households switched internet provider in 2025, up from 14% in 2023. More than 300 providers are now signed up to the process.
Is 3.5 million a lot?
It is meaningful but it is a minority activity. There were 29.3 million UK fixed broadband connections at the end of 2025. More than three million completed switches across two years works out at roughly 5% of connections a year moving through this particular route. Ofcom's survey figure of 18% of households switching in 2025 is higher because it captures every way of switching, not only One Touch Switch. Either way, most people do not switch in any given year.
Is the cost of living really why people switched?
Ofcom does not say that, and the distinction matters. The release places the switching figure alongside affordability data, but it does not report that people gave cost as their reason for switching. The affordability figures quoted are that 4% of telecoms customers missed a payment last quarter, 12% made changes to a service, 10% reduced spending elsewhere and 7% cancelled a service. That is context rather than a measured motive.
What is One Touch Switch?
A process introduced on 12 September 2024 under which you contact only the provider you are moving to, and they arrange everything including ending your old service on the right day. You do not ring your old provider to cancel, and you should not, because doing it separately can leave a gap in service. More than 300 providers are signed up. It was designed to remove the two things that put people off most: having to contact more than one company, and the time it took.
How much could I save by switching?
Ofcom's figure for out-of-contract customers taking broadband, landline and pay TV from one provider is around £78 a month against £69 in contract, a difference of £9 a month or about £108 a year. Around one in three of those bundle customers were out of contract last year. For broadband alone the gap is smaller but still real. The saving is not automatic: it depends on what you currently pay and what reaches your address.
Do I have to switch provider to save money?
No. Plenty of people save by agreeing a new deal with the provider they already have, and the release's emphasis on switching should not be read as the only route. What makes that conversation work is having a real alternative to put to them, so check what is available at your address first and then ring. Without a number in front of you, you are asking for a favour rather than presenting a choice.
How do I know if I am one of the people who should act?
Find your contract end date. If you are past it, you are in the group this research is about: around 28% of UK broadband customers were out of contract as of the end of June 2025, which is roughly eight million connections. If you are still in contract, note the date, diarise a reminder for a month before it ends, and do nothing else today.
What if I am struggling to pay rather than just paying too much?
Check social tariff eligibility before anything else, because it is a separate and much cheaper class of package for people on qualifying benefits. Ofcom recorded 532,000 households on a social tariff in June 2025, which was only 8.6% of those eligible, and found that 70% of eligible households were unaware social tariffs existed as of October 2025. If money is tight, that is the first call to make rather than a comparison.
References
- Ofcom. (2025, September 12). 1.6 million Brits hit switch on their landline or broadband provider. Retrieved 20 September 2026, from https://www.ofcom.org.uk/phones-and-broadband/switching-provider/1.6-million-brits-hit-switch-on-their-broadband-provider
- Ofcom. (2026, February 26). New Ofcom research reveals how to cut phone and internet bills. Retrieved 20 September 2026, from https://www.ofcom.org.uk/phones-and-broadband/bills-and-charges/new-ofcom-research-reveals-how-to-cut-phone-and-internet-bills
- Ofcom. (2026, February). Pricing and consumer engagement: Trends in the UK communications sector. Retrieved 20 September 2026, from https://www.ofcom.org.uk/phones-and-broadband/bills-and-charges/pricing
- Ofcom. (2026, June 30). Communications Market Report 2026. Retrieved 20 September 2026, from https://www.ofcom.org.uk/siteassets/resources/documents/research-and-data/multi-sector/cmr/cmr26/communications-market-report-2026.pdf
- Ofcom. (2026, September 12). Around 3.5 million Brits hit switch amidst cost-of-living concerns. Retrieved 20 September 2026, from https://www.ofcom.org.uk/phones-and-broadband/switching-provider/around-3.5-million-brits-hit-switch-amidst-cost-of-living-concerns
- The One Touch Switching Company. (2026, June). 3 million switches: A milestone achieved together. Retrieved 20 September 2026, from https://totsco.org.uk/262598-2/
Written by Adrian James, Broadband Editor at BroadbandSwitch.uk (LinkedIn). Reviewed by Dr Alex J. Martin-Smith (LinkedIn). Published 20 September 2026. The year-two figure of approximately 1.81 million is derived by subtracting Ofcom's published year-one figure from its published two-year cumulative figure, and is shown as approximate because the two were taken on slightly different dates. The completed-switch figure is stated by The One Touch Switching Company as more than three million, so the gap of 431,195 is a minimum rather than an exact number. Nothing here suggests Ofcom has misreported anything: its own footnote states the measure correctly. This guide is information, not advice.