UK broadband in numbers

Four in five homes can now order full fibre. The headline figure is 82% (+4 pts vs Jul 2025). 24.9 million homes can order full fibre, 1.2 million more than six months earlier. Rural homes trail at 66%, against 84% in towns and cities. What it means: If you have not checked your address since last year, check again: 1.2 million more homes were added between July 2025 and January 2026, and most towns and cities are now covered. Source: Ofcom Connected Nations, Jan 2026 data, published 13 May 2026.

Nine in ten homes can get gigabit speeds. The headline figure is 89% (+2 pts vs Jul 2025). 27.1 million homes, up from 87% in July 2025: 82% can order full fibre, and gigabit cable adds another 7% where there is no fibre yet. In July 2025, 57% had a choice of two or more gigabit networks. The target is 99% by 2032. What it means: Nine in ten homes could order a gigabit line by January 2026, so for most people speed is no longer the limit; price and what you actually need are, and gigabit deals on our site started from £15 a month in the October 2026 snapshot. Source: Ofcom Connected Nations, Jan 2026 data, published 13 May 2026.

Nearly half of homes that can get full fibre now have it. The headline figure is 47% (+5 pts vs Jul 2025). Ofcom counts 12.4 million live full fibre connections, 47% of the premises that can get it; applied to the 24.9 million homes covered, that is about 11.7 million homes. From 78% in Hull to 19% in Kensington and Chelsea. What it means: More than half of the homes that could have full fibre had not ordered it by January 2026; if you are on copper where fibre is available, the price gap on our site was just £2.50 a month in October 2026 (see Typical deal price), so check full fibre at your address. Source: Ofcom, BT Group, INCA, Jan 2026 data, published 13 May 2026.

Half the deals on our site cost £24 to £34 a month. The headline figure is £28 median (-£1 vs September). Median advertised price across 324 deals from 29 providers. The middle half sit between £24 and £34. Full fibre's median is now just £2.50 a month above FTTC's. What it means: Around £28 a month bought a typical deal on our site on 1 October 2026; if your bill is above £34, you are paying more than three quarters of the deals on offer, so compare deals at your postcode. Source: BroadbandSwitch.uk deals snapshot, Snapshot 1 Oct 2026.

The cheapest deal on our site is £13.50 a month. The headline figure is £13.50 a month (Same as September). For 12 months, then £18 (4th Utility, 150 Mbps on CityFibre). The cheapest flat price is £14 (Community Fibre). What it means: Broadband can cost less than £15 a month (deals on our site, 1 October 2026); if your bill is well above that for a basic connection, there is room to save: see the cheapest deals at your postcode. Source: BroadbandSwitch.uk deals snapshot, Snapshot 1 Oct 2026.

Gigabit deals on our site start at £15 a month. The headline figure is £15 a month (-£4 vs September). For 12 months, then £24 (Rise Fibre, 1 Gbps on CityFibre). The cheapest flat price is £19 (toob 900). 98 deals of 900 Mbps or more are live, at a typical £3.05 per 100 Mbps against £7.80 across all deals. What it means: Gigabit is no longer a luxury: from £15 a month on our site in October 2026, it can cost less than many slower deals, so compare gigabit deals before settling for less. Source: BroadbandSwitch.uk deals snapshot, Snapshot 1 Oct 2026.

Three in four deals that state their price terms carry a built-in rise. The headline figure is 77%, the of deals with known terms (From 63% in September, same basis). Of the 248 deals on our site that spell out what happens to the price during the contract, 192 carry a fixed rise, averaging £3.37 a month and most often £4; the other 56 are fixed for the term. A further 92 deals do not state a step in our feed. Rises must be set out in pounds and pence under Ofcom's rule in force since 17 January 2025. What it means: Three in four deals with stated terms (1 October 2026 snapshot) cost more in year two, typically £3 to £4 a month extra, so compare the follow-on price, not just the headline; our price rise tracker lists each provider's rise. Source: BroadbandSwitch.uk deals snapshot, Snapshot 1 Oct 2026.

Internet prices are rising three and a half times faster than inflation. The headline figure is 12.1%, the rise in a year (vs 3.5% for all prices). The ONS price index for internet access services rose 12.1% in the year to September 2026, against 3.5% for all prices. Bundled telecoms rose 5.3% and the wider communication group 5.8%. What it means: Broadband prices, as the ONS measures them, rose 12.1% in the year to September 2026 while prices overall rose 3.5%; that gap is why the saving sits in switching rather than staying put. Source: ONS consumer price inflation, September 2026, published 21 Oct 2026.

Energy and water bills have soared since 2020; the price of fast broadband has nearly halved in real terms. The headline figure is -46%, the real-terms price of 300 to 999 Mbps broadband, 2020 to 2025 (Ofcom: -6% real terms in 2025). Electricity is up 56%, water 69% and gas 76% since January 2020 (ONS, to September 2026), against 33% for all prices. Between 2020 and 2025 Ofcom finds a 300 to 999 Mbps connection fell from £68 to £37 a month at July 2025 prices, and every speed tier fell in real terms. The ONS index of internet access prices is up 54% since January 2020, with its steps each April, which is why switching, not staying put, captures the saving. What it means: Unlike energy and water, broadband is a bill you can bring down: the price of a fast connection nearly halved in real terms between 2020 and 2025 for anyone who takes a new deal. Source: ONS CPI and Ofcom Pricing and consumer engagement 2025, ONS to Sep 2026; Ofcom report of Feb 2026.

More than a quarter of broadband customers are out of contract. The headline figure is 28%, the of customers (Unchanged on 2024). Around 6.4 million of 23 million fixed broadband customers were out of contract on at least one service in their bundle at the end of June 2025, unchanged on the year. The share is highest, 39%, for homes with broadband and a landline only. What it means: If you cannot remember when your contract ended, you may be one of the 6.4 million who were paying list price in June 2025: see what out-of-contract customers pay. Source: Ofcom Pricing and consumer engagement 2025, June 2025 data, published 26 Feb 2026.

Fewer than one in ten eligible homes use a social tariff. The headline figure is 532,000 customers (+26,000 year on year). On a fixed or mobile broadband social tariff in June 2025, fewer than 9% of those eligible. Seven in ten eligible households had not heard of them. 37 tariffs are on Ofcom's list (34 broadband, 3 mobile), from £12 a month for broadband. What it means: If anyone in your household gets Universal Credit or certain other benefits, a social tariff from £12 a month is available, and in June 2025 nine in ten eligible homes were not using one. Source: Ofcom, Jun 2025 data; Ofcom's list of 2 Oct 2026, read 26 Oct 2026.

Fewer than 40,000 premises still lack a decent line. The headline figure is 39,000 premises (-5,000 vs Jul 2025). Without 10 Mbps from a fixed or fixed-wireless line, down from 1.1 million in 2017. About 4,000 once low-cost satellite is counted. What it means: Fewer than 40,000 premises were left without a decent line in January 2026, down from 1.1 million in 2017; if yours is one, the broadband Universal Service Obligation gives you the right to request a connection, subject to eligibility and a cost cap. Source: Ofcom Connected Nations, Jan 2026 data, published 13 May 2026.

Broadband complaints are holding at a record low. The headline figure is 6 per 100k (Unchanged from 6 in Q1 2026). Fixed broadband industry average for Q2 2026, unchanged from Q1 and level with the lowest since the series began at 35 in late 2010. Ofcom puts BT, EE, TalkTalk and Vodafone together at the top (7 each) and Virgin Media (4), Sky and Plusnet (5) together at the bottom; differences inside each group are under one complaint per 100,000, so Ofcom says they should be read as comparable. Landline averaged 3, pay TV 2 and pay-monthly mobile 2. What it means: Service is improving across the industry (complaints held at a record low in the second quarter of 2026), but the provider you pick still matters: the four providers Ofcom groups at the top (BT, EE, TalkTalk and Vodafone, 7 each) drew close to twice the complaints of the three it groups at the bottom (Virgin Media 4, Sky and Plusnet 5). Source: Ofcom telecoms and pay-TV complaints, Q2 2026, published 26 Oct 2026.

3.5 million switches through One Touch Switch. The headline figure is 3.48m switches (+15% year on year). Since launch on 12 September 2024. 1.86 million in the past year, against 1.62 million in the first. What it means: Switching now takes one contact with your new provider and 3.5 million switches had gone through by September 2026; the old excuse that switching is a hassle no longer holds (how One Touch Switch works). Source: TOTSCo via ISPreview, Published 11 Sep 2026.

Fibre has reached two in five of the homes and businesses under contract. The headline figure is 340,880 premises reached (+22,880 in a month). Of 861,890 under contract (40%) across 38 contracts in the £5bn programme, up 22,880 in a month. The target is 99% gigabit coverage by 2032. What it means: This is the taxpayer-funded build for homes the market would not reach: by 17 October 2026, two in five of the premises under contract had a gigabit-capable connection and three in five had not yet been recorded as built. Source: BDUK Project Gigabit monthly data, 17 Oct 2026 data, published 23 Oct 2026.

The typical deal on our site advertises 306 Mbps. The headline figure is 306 Mbps advertised (From 362 Mbps in September). Median advertised download speed across the 340 residential broadband-only deals on our site (305.5 Mbps, rounded). Nearly three in ten of them are gigabit deals. Most households need far less than this: our speed calculator works out how much. What it means: Deals now advertise about 300 Mbps as standard (1 October 2026 snapshot), far more than most households use; paying for the speed you actually need is the easiest saving, and our speed calculator works it out in a minute. Source: BroadbandSwitch.uk deals snapshot, Snapshot 1 Oct 2026.