This test examines the latency (milliseconds), download and upload speed of your broadband connection in Megabits per second (estimated). Please try our Availability Checker to see which major networks are available in your area.
Categories
Please take note that this test can cope with both current and next generation Gigabit broadband speeds (up to around 1,000Mbps), although the dynamic nature of Internet connectivity means that the results may not always be 100% accurate. Tests conducted via WiFi may also produce a slower result, especially if others are using your network.
These results only include independent ISPs with a wide national availability, which is primarily because smaller and often faster altnet providers (Gigaclear, B4RN, Hyperoptic etc.) aren't yet available to the majority of people and others didn't produce enough test data to be included.
NOTE: The top 10% result below represents the speeds experienced by the fastest 10% of customers at each ISP (usually those with the best connections / fastest packages).
Average Download Speeds (Mean)
| No. | Operator | 2021 H1 (Top 10%) | 2020 H2 (Top 10%) | Change % |
| 1. | Virgin Media | 141Mbps (331.2Mbps) | 118.3Mbps (236.9Mbps) | 19.19% |
| 2. | Zen Internet | 89Mbps (234.4Mbps) | 40.8Mbps (70.7Mbps) | 118.14% |
| 3. | iDNET | 80.1Mbps (221.1Mbps) | 42Mbps (71.5Mbps) | 90.71% |
| 4. | BT | 58.4Mbps (95Mbps) | 46.2Mbps (72.8Mbps) | 26.41% |
| 5. | AAISP | 58.1Mbps (74.2Mbps) | 53.6Mbps (99.8Mbps) | 8.4% |
| 6. | Vodafone | 49.9Mbps (73Mbps) | 45.1Mbps (71.6Mbps) | 10.64% |
| 7. | EE | 37Mbps (68.9Mbps) | 30.4Mbps (62.8Mbps) | 21.71% |
| 8. | TalkTalk | 33.4Mbps (65.7Mbps) | 28Mbps (56.6Mbps) | 19.29% |
| 9. | Sky Broadband | 32.4Mbps (64.4Mbps) | 27.7Mbps (58.5Mbps) | 16.97% |
| 10. | Plusnet | 28Mbps (58.5Mbps) | 25.6Mbps (53.2Mbps) | 9.38% |
Average Upload Speeds (Mean)
| No. | Operator | 2021 H1 | 2020 H2 | Change % |
| 1. | Zen Internet | 23.5Mbps | 14.3Mbps | 64.34% |
| 2. | iDNET | 19.3Mbps | 10.3Mbps | 87.38% |
| 3. | Virgin Media | 17.1Mbps | 14.9Mbps | 14.77% |
| 4. | Vodafone | 15.8Mbps | 13.3Mbps | 18.8% |
| 5. | AAISP | 13.8Mbps | 14Mbps | -1.43% |
| 6. | BT | 13.3Mbps | 11Mbps | 20.91% |
| 7. | EE | 9.3Mbps | 7.3Mbps | 27.4% |
| 8. | Sky Broadband (tied) | 8.3Mbps | 7.1Mbps | 16.9% |
| 9. | TalkTalk (tied) | 8.3Mbps | 7Mbps | 18.57% |
| 10. | Plusnet | 6.6Mbps | 6.1Mbps | 8.2% |
Overall, the average download speed of the top national providers was 60.73Mbps (up from 45.77Mbps at the end of 2020) and the average upload speed hit 13.53Mbps (up from 10.53Mbps).
These results cover "full fibre" (FTTP) alternative network (AltNet) providers that have built their own physically separate networks. Most AltNets only have small UK coverage and limited speedtest data, which means that at present we can only summarise a few. The majority of these can deliver significantly faster speeds than the major national ISPs.
As FTTP providers don't suffer from the same performance pitfalls as copper or hybrid fibre ISPs then we've decided to focus our results on only the top 10% of fastest connections, which in most cases will reflect those consumers who take the fastest package tiers available from each provider.
Average Download Speeds of Top 10%
| ISP | DL - Top 10% (2021 H1) | DL - Top 10% (2020 H2) |
| Vodafone Gigafast (FTTP) | 565.8Mbps | 427.8Mbps |
| Community Fibre (FTTP) | 545Mbps | 639.2Mbps |
| Hyperoptic (FTTP) | 529.8Mbps | 453.9Mbps |
| KCOM (FTTP) | 415.8Mbps | 194.7Mbps |
| Gigaclear (FTTP) | 272.6Mbps | 225.5Mbps |
| County Broadband (FTTP) | 363.3Mbps | No data |
These results reflect the four primary Mobile Broadband (3G and 4G) operators. Mobile services are subject to the daily movements and radically different hardware choices (Smartphones etc.) of their end-users, which makes it difficult to establish a reliable picture of performance.
Average Download Speeds
| No. | Operator | 2021 H1 (Top 10%) | 2020 H2 (Top 10%) | Change |
| 1. | Three UK | 40.8Mbps (113Mbps) | 27.5Mbps (56.7Mbps) | 48.36% |
| 2. | EE | 39.3Mbps (83.9Mbps) | 39Mbps (80.1Mbps) | 0.77% |
| 3. | Vodafone | 25.7Mbps (61.3Mbps) | 27.1Mbps (59.8Mbps) | -5.17% |
| 4. | O2 | 17.7Mbps (40.8Mbps) | 17.4Mbps (44.2Mbps) | 1.72% |
Average Upload Speeds
| No. | Operator | 2021 H1 (Top 10%) | 2020 H2 (Top 10%) | Change |
| 1. | EE | 9.2Mbps (20Mbps) | 8.3Mbps (18.5Mbps) | 10.84% |
| 2. | Three UK | 7.1Mbps (18.2Mbps) | 6.1Mbps (16.1Mbps) | 16.39% |
| 3. | Vodafone | 6.3Mbps (16.2Mbps) | 6.3Mbps (16.3Mbps) | 0% |
| 4. | O2 | 4.6Mbps (12.8Mbps) | 4.4Mbps (12.6Mbps) | 4.55% |
Overall, the average download speed of the four primary mobile operators was 30.87Mbps (up from 27.75Mbps at the end of 2020) and the average upload speed hit 6.8Mbps (up from 6.27Mbps).
Disclaimer: Please take average (mean) speeds with a big pinch of salt. Every home is different and performance can be affected by all sorts of issues, many of which are beyond the provider's ability to control (e.g. tests conducted via slower smartphone vs faster desktop computers, slow wifi, poor home wiring etc.), thus we do not consider the above data to be a reliable barometer for individual user connectivity, but it can help to highlight general changes in the market.
NOTE: Data for H1 (first half of the year) is collected during the end of May, while data for H2 (second half of the year) is collected during the end of November.
Latest UK ISP News
Cheapest Superfast Broadband ISPs
- Hyperoptic £20.00 (*22.00)
Speed 50Mbps, Unlimited
Gift: None - Plusnet £21.95 (*36.52)
Speed 36Mbps, Unlimited
Gift: £50 Reward Card - Vodafone £22.00 (*25.00)
Speed 35Mbps, Unlimited
Gift: None - NOW £23.00 (*32.00)
Speed 36Mbps, Unlimited
Gift: None - TalkTalk £23.00 (*29.95)
Speed 38Mbps, Unlimited
Gift: None
Large Availability | Compare More ISPs
Cheapest Ultrafast Broadband ISPs
- Community Fibre £25.00 (*29.50)
Speed: 300Mbps, Unlimited
Gift: Double Speed Boost - Hyperoptic £25.00 (*35.00)
Speed: 150Mbps, Unlimited
Gift: None - Virgin Media £26.00 (*52.00)
Speed: 108Mbps, Unlimited
Gift: None - Vodafone £26.00 (*29.00)
Speed: 100Mbps, Unlimited
Gift: None - Gigaclear £29.00 (*49.00)
Speed: 300Mbps, Unlimited
Gift: None
Large Availability | Compare More ISPs
Latest UK ISP News
»
»
»
»
»
Promotion
Cheapest Superfast ISPs
- Hyperoptic £20.00 (*22.00)
Speed 50Mbps, Unlimited
Gift: None - Plusnet £21.95 (*36.52)
Speed 36Mbps, Unlimited
Gift: £50 Reward Card - Vodafone £22.00 (*25.00)
Speed 35Mbps, Unlimited
Gift: None - NOW £23.00 (*32.00)
Speed 36Mbps, Unlimited
Gift: None - TalkTalk £23.00 (*29.95)
Speed 38Mbps, Unlimited
Gift: None
Large Availability | View All
Cheapest Ultrafast ISPs
- Community Fibre £25.00 (*29.50)
Speed: 300Mbps, Unlimited
Gift: Double Speed Boost - Hyperoptic £25.00 (*35.00)
Speed: 150Mbps, Unlimited
Gift: None - Virgin Media £26.00 (*52.00)
Speed: 108Mbps, Unlimited
Gift: None - Vodafone £26.00 (*29.00)
Speed: 100Mbps, Unlimited
Gift: None - Gigaclear £29.00 (*49.00)
Speed: 300Mbps, Unlimited
Gift: None
Large Availability | View All
Helpful ISP Guides and Tips
»
»
»
»
»
»
»
»
»
»
»
»
»
»
»
»
»
»
»
»
»
»
»
»
»
»
»
»
»
Promotion
The Top 20 Category Tags
- FTTP (3369)
- BT (2975)
- Politics (1884)
- Building Digital UK (1883)
- FTTC (1869)
- Openreach (1792)
- Business (1634)
- Mobile Broadband (1436)
- Statistics (1380)
- FTTH (1362)
- 4G (1244)
- Fibre Optic (1149)
- Wireless Internet (1135)
- Virgin Media (1132)
- Ofcom Regulation (1123)
- Vodafone (819)
- EE (810)
- TalkTalk (747)
- Sky Broadband (726)
- 5G (726)
Sponsored
Copyright © 1999 to Present - ISPreview.co.uk - All Rights Reserved - Terms , Privacy and Cookie Policy , Links , Website Rules