Broadband Speed Lifts Table of Top 60 UK Cities for Remote Working

A new study from researchers at RemotePeople, which is an international remote recruitment agency, claims to have identified some of the sixty best and worst UK locations for working from home (WFH). One of the key metrics here is broadband speed (download and upload), which helped to lift Southampton into the top spot. But London ranked last.

In order to determine which cities make the “ideal remote work destinations“, the research team evaluated several factors across key categories: internet speeds, coworking spaces, remote job listings, cost of living, safety, and access to green spaces. The data on broadband speeds was sourced from Ofcom, although we think they should have looked at network availability too, including for mobile operators.

Otherwise, the above factors cover essential aspects like connectivity, work environment, and lifestyle balance. Each factor was scored on a scale from 0 to 100, with 100 representing the best conditions for remote work.

The respective weights for each of these factors were as follows: Average download speed (15%), average upload speed (15%), coworking spaces per 100,000 people (14%), remote-friendly job postings per 100,000 people (11%), recently worked from home (10%), average data usage (GB) (10%), cost of living (10%), safety index (9%), and park and play areas per 100,000 people (6%).

Overall, Southampton came top thanks to having the fastest broadband speeds and a solid all-round performance. The city recorded average download speeds of 279.3Mbps and upload speeds of 174.9Mbps, by far the highest in the list (it’s well covered by the likes of Openreach, Virgin Media + nexfibre and toob etc.). It also offers decent coworking availability, a good safety rating, and moderate living costs.

By comparison, London was found to be the least remote-friendly city, mainly due to its high costs, poor internet speeds, and fewer coworking spaces per 100k people.