How does YOUR area stack up? UK’s best and worst towns and cities for broadband are revealed – with Hull, Luton and Portsmouth topping the list
- UK’s best and worst towns and cities for broadband access have been revealed
- Hull top with 97.5% ultrafast broadband access; Luton second, Portsmouth third
- Major cities in Scotland, especially Aberdeen, and north of England among worst
- Sheffield, Sunderland, Glasgow and Newcastle were all in the bottom 10 in study
- The new research was carried out by insurance company Protect Your Bubble
When it comes to streaming movies and games — or even working from home — there’s nothing more frustrating than a slow or dodgy broadband connection.
That is not so much of a problem in Hull, Luton and Portsmouth, however, as people living in these areas enjoy access to some of the best internet speeds across the UK, according to new research.
But sadly the same cannot be said for those in major cities in Scotland — particularly Aberdeen and Glasgow — and much of the north of England.
Residents living there have the worst internet speeds in Britain, according to a study by the insurance company Protect Your Bubble, and in some cases access to ultrafast broadband is almost a third of the UK average.
People in Hull, Luton and Portsmouth enjoy access to some of the best internet speeds across the UK, according to new research. But those in Aberdeen and Sheffield have the worst access
| Rank | Area | % premises with access to ultrafast broadband |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hull | 97.5 |
| 2 | Luton | 94.5 |
| 3 | Portsmouth | 93.8 |
| 4 | Nottingham | 91.8 |
| 5 | Belfast | 90.9 |
| 6 | Wolverhampton | 90.8 |
| 7 | Leicester | 90.8 |
| 8 | Middlesbrough | 90.6 |
| 9 | Slough | 90.1 |
| 10 | Birmingham | 90 |
Unsurprisingly Hull, Britain’s first full fibre city, came out on top in the research, with 97.5 per cent of the premises in the city having access to ultrafast broadband.
That is well clear of the UK average of 82.5 per cent.
Luton placed second, with ultrafast broadband reaching 94.5 per cent of residential and business properties, thanks in part to the local council’s £180,000 investment in recent years to enable superfast broadband to the area.
Portsmouth followed in third with almost 94 per cent of its premises boasting access to ultrafast broadband.
Nottingham and Belfast complete the top five areas with the highest accessibility of ultrafast broadband with 91.8 and 90.9 per cent, respectively.
More than one million hard to reach homes and businesses will have next generation gigabit broadband built to them in the first phase of a £5 billion government infrastructure project, according to Boris Johnson’s government
| Rank | Area | % premises with access to ultrafast broadband |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aberdeen | 49 |
| 2 | Sheffield | 50.1 |
| 3 | Sunderland | 63.6 |
| 4 | Glasgow | 69.4 |
| 5 | Newcastle | 70.5 |
| 6 | Blackpool | 70.5 |
| 7 | Warrington | 71.2 |
| 8 | Manchester | 71.8 |
| 9 | Southend-on-Sea | 73.6 |
| 10 | York | 75.5 |
Surprisingly, London ranks just above the UK average, with 80.3 percent of its residents and businesses being able to access these speeds.
Aberdeen was bottom of the list with 49 per cent, while Glasgow did not fare much better on 69.4 per cent.
However, there is some good news for residents in Aberdeen, as the city is one of the areas set to benefit from an £8 million cash injection to boost broadband speeds across Scotland.
Sheffield follows closely as the second worst area for accessibility with just 50.1 per cent premises having access to ultrafast broadband.
Sunderland (63.6 per cent) and Newcastle (70.5 per cent) complete the bottom five areas in the UK.
James Brown, director at Protect your bubble, said: ‘The pandemic has proven just how vital good quality connectivity is to everyday life and this is only set to grow.
‘With portable devices playing a key part in people’s connectivity, the public must ensure their device is well-covered should it ever get lost or damaged to minimise any disruption.’
In July 2019, Prime Minister Boris Johnson pledged he would deliver full-fibre to ‘every home in the land’ by 2025.
However, the government quietly downgraded the target to reach 85 per cent of the UK, according to an infrastructure report in November.
The report said: ‘The government is working with industry to target a minimum of 85 per cent gigabit capable coverage by 2025, but will seek to accelerate roll-out further to get as close to 100 per cent as possible.
‘The government will continue to implement an ambitious programme of work to remove barriers to broadband deployment and maximise coverage in the hardest to reach areas of the country.’
The full data set can be accessed here.
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