Full fibre (FTTP) broadband gives you faster download speeds and a more reliable connection. Compare the UK’s full fibre broadband deals.
In the UK, full fibre (FTTP) broadband has now started to roll out at pace. Offering download speeds of up to 1,000Mbps (1Gbps), it’s up to 15 times faster than regular fibre broadband. You’ll also benefit from a more reliable service as it doesn’t rely on outdated copper technology.
At present, full fibre broadband is available in around 20% of UK homes. You can get full fibre broadband from a number of providers including BT, EE, Sky, TalkTalk and more. There are also a number of smaller providers, offering full fibre in selected postcodes and regions.
In this article, we’ll look at full fibre broadband in the UK, including how it works and the benefits compared to normal fibre broadband. We’ll also look at the UK’s best value full fibre deals and the plans that are currently available on each broadband provider.
Full Fibre Broadband Plans: | From £22/month (cheaper plans may be available in some areas) |
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Recommended Deal: | £28/month for Vodafone Full Fibre 100 (with 100Mbps average download speed) |
National Providers: (Openreach FTTP) |
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Other Regional Providers: |
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Full Fibre Broadband Deals
At present, Vodafone is our recommended provider for full fibre broadband in the UK.
Vodafone
If you’re looking for a low-cost way of getting access to full fibre (FTTP) broadband, Vodafone currently has some of the best value plans available on the market. For instance, you can get their Full Fibre 100 broadband for £28/month, giving you average download speeds of 100Mbps. If you’re looking for a little bit more, you can upgrade to a Vodafone Pro Broadband plan. On Pro Broadband, you’ll be able to get average download speeds of up to 900Mbps. You’ll also get guaranteed wi-fi in every room of your home, a 4G-based backup connection for your broadband and 12 months of inclusive Norton anti-virus. |
Compare Full Fibre Providers
There are also lots of other providers offering full fibre broadband in the UK. The following table shows the key providers:
Broadband Provider | Plans From | Network Provider | Key Features |
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BT | £29.99/month | Openreach |
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EE | £29.99/month | Openreach |
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Shell Energy | £130.99/month | Openreach | |
Sky | £22/month | Openreach |
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TalkTalk | £29/month | Openreach | |
Vodafone | £28/month | Openreach Cityfibre |
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Other Regional Providers (with limited availability) | |||
Community Fibre | £18.99/month | Community Fibre | |
Hyperoptic | £17.99/month | Hyperoptic | |
Virgin Media | £25/month | Virgin Media |
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For more information, you can read on to learn more about each individual provider.
Contents
Full Fibre Broadband: National Providers
BTBT is one of the largest providers of full fibre (FTTP) broadband in the UK. At present, you can get a BT full fibre plan from £29.99/month with an average download speed of 36Mbps. You’ll pay more for faster download speeds (up to £47.99/month for the fastest package which has an average download speed of 900Mbps). The following table shows BT’s full fibre broadband plans:
If you’re living in a home with access to full fibre technology, all of BT’s broadband plans will be delivered to you using full fibre (FTTP) technology. There’s a range of optional add-ons for your BT full fibre plan. These add-ons include Complete Wi-Fi which gives you a guaranteed Wi-Fi signal in every room of your home and Hybrid Connect which gives you a 4G-based backup connection. You can also add BT TV, which gives you access to a range of flexible television packages. The following table shows the key things to know about full fibre broadband on BT:
For more information, see our guide to BT’s full fibre broadband. Tariff Information: BT Website |
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EEEE offers full fibre broadband with the ability to “connect up to 100 devices” to the internet at the same time. At present, you’re able to choose from the following EE full fibre plans, with average download speeds ranging from 36Mbps to 900Mbps:
All of EE’s full fibre plans include Norton Security Premium anti-virus. Selected plans also include up to 12 months of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate (worth £10.99/month). If you’re an EE pay monthly mobile customer, you’ll also get up to 20GB of extra data added to EE phone plan each month. The following table shows the key things to know about full fibre broadband on EE:
For more information, see our EE full fibre broadband review. Tariff Information: EE Website |
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Shell EnergyIn the UK, Shell Energy offers full fibre broadband from £30.99/month. You’ll be able to choose from a range of download speeds, from 100Mbps to 900Mbps. As a customer of Shell Energy Broadband, you’ll be able to join the Shell Go+ loyalty programme. This gives you a 3% discount when you fill up at a Shell petrol station (up to a maximum of 60 litres of fuel per month).
The following table shows key information about full fibre broadband on Shell Energy:
Tariff Information: Shell Energy Website |
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SkyIn the UK, Sky offers ultrafast broadband with average download speeds of up to 500Mbps using full fibre (FTTP) technology. This is currently available in more than 6.5 million UK homes with access to full fibre on the Openreach network. Alongside their Ultrafast (145Mbps) and Ultrafast Plus (500Mbps) plan, you can also get Sky’s Superfast plans on a FTTP connection:
If you take Sky TV together with Ultrafast Broadband, you can save on the combination of the two. For instance, you can get Sky TV and Ultrafast Broadband from £39 per month:
The following table shows the key things to know about full fibre broadband from Sky:
For more information, see our guide to Sky’s full fibre broadband. We’ve also got in-depth reviews of Sky’s Superfast Broadband and Ultrafast Broadband. Tariff Information: Sky Website |
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TalkTalkTalkTalk currently offers full fibre broadband from £29/month on their Future Fibre (FTTP) service. On TalkTalk, you can choose from a range of full fibre plans, with download speeds of up to 900Mbps. You’ll also get an inclusive Amazon eero router. The following table shows TalkTalk’s full fibre plans:
You’ll receive a different Amazon eero router, depending on the plan you choose. Customers with Future Fibre 150 will receive the Amazon eero 6, covering up to 140m² with dual-band Wi-Fi 6 connectivity. You’ll get an upgrade to the Amazon eero 6 Pro on Future Fibre 500, covering up to 190m² of space with tri-band Wi-Fi 6. Customers on the Future Fibre 900 plan will receive two Amazon eero 6 Pro routers, covering up to 380m² in total. The following table shows the key things to know about TalkTalk’s Future Fibre broadband:
For more information, see our TalkTalk full fibre review. In selected parts of York and Dewsbury, you might be offered TalkTalk’s Ultra Fibre Optic (UFO) broadband instead of Future Fibre plans. Tariff Information: TalkTalk Website |
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VodafoneIf you’re looking for full fibre (FTTP) broadband at a highly competitive price, Vodafone currently offers full fibre plans from £28/month. Our current recommendation is the Full Fibre 100 plan with average download speeds of 100Mbps.
If you choose a Vodafone Pro Broadband plan (available from £37/month), you’ll benefit from Vodafone’s Super WiFi (giving you a guaranteed wi-fi signal in every room of your home). You’ll also get 4G broadband backup included, along with 12 months of Norton Security Premium. There’s also a Vodafone Together discount of up to £3/month if you’re a Vodafone Pay Monthly mobile customer.
Tariff Information: Vodafone Website |
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Other Openreach ProvidersOther major broadband providers on the Openreach network are still yet to confirm the exact launch date for their full fibre service:
There may be other full fibre providers available for your home or business. A full list of Openreach FTTP providers can be found on the Openreach website. |
Full Fibre Broadband: Other Providers
Alongside the major national full fibre providers, there are a number of smaller providers that have built their own full fibre network.
On these alternative network providers (also known as ‘altnet providers’), you’re relying on an entirely separate network of fibre optic cables. As such, they tend to be available in much fewer homes. Whereas Openreach-based full fibre services cover 6.5 million homes, altnet full fibre providers typically cover less than 500,000 homes.
If you’re living in the coverage area for an altnet provider, you might be able to get faster speeds than otherwise available on Openreach-based providers. You might also qualify for a slightly cheaper deal.
Some of the largest ‘altnet’ full fibre providers are Community Fibre, Hyperoptic and Virgin Media:
Community FibreIn parts of Central London, Community Fibre is a provider of full fibre (FTTP) broadband. They make use of their own full fibre network to deliver the service into homes. Community Fibre currently offers full fibre broadband to around 300,000 homes in London, with the ambition to increase this to 2.2 million homes by the end of 2024. You can check the availability where you live by entering your postcode on the Community Fibre website. If you’re able to get a Community Fibre service, you can choose from the following full fibre plans, starting at £18.99/month:
All Community Fibre plans are available on a choice of either a 12-month contract or 24-month contract. The following table shows some key information about Community Fibre:
Tariff Information: Community Fibre Website |
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HyperopticHyperoptic offers full fibre (FTTP) broadband in more than 500,000 homes across 57 UK towns and cities. Their full fibre network is mainly available in blocks of flats and some newer-build developments. If you’re living at an address with Hyperoptic’s plans, you can get full fibre broadband on the following plans from £17.99/month:
You’ll get symmetrical speeds on Hyperoptic. This means you’ll be able to upload at the same speed you download.
For more information, see our Hyperoptic broadband review. Tariff Information: Hyperoptic Website |
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Virgin MediaIn the UK, Virgin Media currently offers full fibre (FTTP) broadband in around 1.2 million homes. This represents approximately 8% of their total UK footprint which covers 14 million homes. The rest of their network uses older cable broadband technology (DOCSIS 3.1), with a co-axial cable running from their cabinet to your home. With cable broadband, it’s still possible to get comparable download speeds to a full fibre connection. However, the upload speeds will be slower and the service won’t be as quite as reliable. On Virgin Media, you’re currently able to choose from the following broadband plans, starting from £25/month:
On Virgin Media, it’s also possible to choose from a range of packages that include both TV and home broadband. Virgin Media have announced plans to upgrade their entire network to use full fibre (FTTP) technology by the end of 2028.
For more information, see our Virgin Media review. Tariff Information: Virgin Media Website |
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Other Alternative ProvidersSome other alternative providers that offer full fibre broadband on their own network & cables include:
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What is Full Fibre Broadband?
In the UK, full fibre is the next generation of broadband technology. Also known as fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP) broadband or fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) broadband, it makes use of a fibre optic connection all the way into your home.
There are four main benefits to choosing full fibre broadband:
- You’ll be able to use more devices at the same time in your home. With full fibre, you’ll be able to use a lot more devices at the same time in your home without things slowing down. Some full fibre providers say you can use “up to 100 devices at the same time”.
- You’ll get faster download speeds (up to 900Mbps). On full fibre, your download speeds can be up to 10-15 times faster than on normal fibre broadband. That means a lot less waiting around for movies to download and for games to update.
- You’ll get faster upload speeds. You’ll also get faster upload speeds on full fibre which is great for sharing files and for using cloud storage services. You’ll get upload speeds of up to 110Mbps on Openreach-based providers (asymmetric speeds) and up to 900Mbps on some other providers (symmetrical speeds).
- You’ll get a more reliable connection with less lag. As full fibre broadband doesn’t rely on old copper components, you’ll get a more reliable connection. It isn’t affected by noise and interference in the same way as old copper-based lines. You’ll also experience less lag on your connection, making things more responsive, especially for online gaming.
What we traditionally know as “fibre broadband” in the UK should more accurately be described as fibre-to-the-cabinet (FTTC) broadband. Here, the fibre optic connection only runs between the telephone exchange and a street cabinet near your home. The final part of the connection (known as the ‘last mile’) still uses a traditional copper connection.
What is an Openreach Modem (ONT)?
In homes with a FTTP broadband connection from Openreach, you’ll have an Openreach modem inside your home. This is also known as the ONT (Optical Network Termination unit) and it’ll connect to the Openreach full fibre network.
For more information about how the ONT works, Openreach has published a homeowners guide on their website. Once you’ve signed up for an Openreach FTTP broadband service, your new provider will give you instructions on how to set up the broadband service (e.g. see the instructions from BT).
If your home doesn’t currently have an Openreach modem or ONT, you’ll need to get one installed when you sign up to an Openreach FTTP service.
If you’re signing up to full fibre broadband on an alternative network (such as Cityfibre, Community Fibre or Hyperoptic), you’ll get an ONT installed by that provider instead.
More Information
For more information, you can compare all fibre broadband providers and you can read our in-depth broadband provider reviews.
H said:
Ken, you have a great website!!
What’s saddening is the price difference between Openreach FTTP versus Cityfibre and other fibre networks like Hyperoptic, B4RN, TalkTalk UFO etc (though these are not necessarily all over the UK).
Interestingly, compared to BT, there is a provider called “Cuckoo” offering Openreach FTTP 900Mbps at £54.99 a month on a 12 months contract with prices fixed for 12 months.
If you sign up before end of January, it’s also 3 months free. So an effective price of around £41 a month for 900Mbps!
They do rolling contracts as well albeit with a setup cost of £60 for those who don’t want any contract. As far as Openreach FTTP goes, that seems to be the best price for the 900Mbps packages as far as I can see on Openreach with the shortest contract.
Otherwise it’s Shell for £49.99 for 18 months, or TalkTalk at £49 for 18 months, or BT at £54.99 for 24 months for 900 Mbps (all subject to price increases in March/April).
Or for 500Mbps, Sky at £45 for 18 months (with possible price increase).
Seadog said:
NickP, I’m also with Zen and have had FTTP on order for almost three months but the physical work (fibre from road to premises) is subcontracted to Openreach who simply keep pushing work and thus provision of service further and further into the future. Zen appears powerless to demand that Openreach deliver the service. (This is why I shall never, ever be a direct customer of BT or BT Openreach again)
Tim Edwards said:
Hello Ken,
I’m hoping you can give me some advice.
I’ve recently moved into a new build with FTTP.
(Open reach) My ONT has been showing a solid green PON since the 18th December.
However I’m not having any joy contracting either;
– Vodafone – who say the site is ‘blocked by BT’
– TalkTalk – who say that my address wasn’t on the last flat file from Openreach (on Jan 10th)
Am I really locked in with BT?
Is it waiting game for things to update?
Or how do I need to get this ‘BT block removed’?
Thanks for your help,
I’m happy to share address details via email with you.
Ken replied:
Hi Tim,
Thanks for your comment. Unfortunately, I’m not really an expert in this area, so I wouldn’t be able to tell you why you’re seeing this error. You could try the ISPReview or ThinkBroadband forums to see if anyone there knows better. Alternatively, it might also be worth checking at EE and Sky to see whether one of them might give you a different answer to those two providers.
Ken