Data Source
Ofcom
Ofcom Connected Nations Spring 2026 · Open Government Licence v3.0
How much of the UK actually has full-fibre broadband?
81% of UK premises have full-fibre broadband. Official Ofcom data, open access.
- UK Full-Fibre
- 81%
- Local Authorities
- 361
- Constituencies
- 650
- Data Year
- 2026
Gigabit-Capable Coverage
87.8%
Premises in Dataset
32,493,694
Data Vintage
Jan 2026
The national picture
According to Ofcom Connected Nations Spring 2026, full-fibre reaches 81% of UK premises nationally, but the leaders differ by metric: KINGSTON UPON HULL, CITY OF ranks #1 of 361 local authorities for full-fibre availability (99.6%) while NA H-EILEANAN SIAR ranks #1 for the fixed/FWA availability gap (2.8% without decent fixed/FWA broadband) - availability leader is not the same as the gap leader.
94% Northern Ireland - best-served nation
74% Scotland - least-served nation
99.6% #1 full-fibre - KINGSTON UPON HULL, CITY OF
2.8% #1 fixed/FWA gap - NA H-EILEANAN SIAR
182 of 361 authorities at or above the UK average
About This Data
PlainBroadband presents the Ofcom Connected Nations Spring 2026 dataset, the UK's definitive annual audit of fixed broadband infrastructure, based on a January 2026 snapshot and published in May 2026 (release r1) under the Open Government Licence v3.0. The dataset covers 361 local authority districts and 650 Westminster constituencies across England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, tracking the proportion of premises with access to superfast (≥30 Mbit/s), ultrafast (≥300 Mbit/s), full-fibre (FTTP), gigabit-capable, and USO-grade connections.
The picture across the UK is one of rapid but uneven progress. Northern Ireland leads all four nations with full-fibre coverage reaching 94.0% of premises, driven by a long-running FTTP rollout that predates the Great Britain deployments. England stands at 81.3%, Wales at 80.8%, and Scotland at 74.0%. At local authority level the spread is dramatic: Kingston upon Hull tops the table at 99.6% full-fibre, a legacy of KCOM's city-wide network, while rural and Highland authorities trail considerably. The national UK average sits at approximately 81.0% of premises, weighted by premises count.
Use PlainBroadband to look up your local authority, compare coverage against neighbouring areas, explore the top and bottom rankings, or drill into constituency-level figures for political analysis. All figures are reproduced without modification from the official Ofcom Connected Nations Spring 2026 dataset. See our methodology page for data provenance and column definitions.
Coverage by Nation
England
81.3%
full-fibre coverage
296 local authorities
Scotland
74%
full-fibre coverage
32 local authorities
Wales
80.8%
full-fibre coverage
22 local authorities
Northern Ireland
94%
full-fibre coverage
11 local authorities
The Adoption Gap, Availability vs Take-Up
Full-fibre is widely available across the UK's largest authorities, but household take-up lags far behind. Each dot is a major local authority positioned by the share of premises that can get full-fibre (horizontal) versus the share that actually use it (vertical).
Top Local Authorities by Full-Fibre Coverage
Source: Ofcom Connected Nations Spring 2026, January 2026 snapshot, published May 2026 (r1). Open Government Licence v3.0.
Top 10 by Full-Fibre Coverage
See all rankings →| # | Authority | Nation | Full-Fibre | Gigabit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | KINGSTON UPON HULL, CITY OF | England | 99.6% | 99.6% |
| 2 | SOUTHEND-ON-SEA | England | 97.6% | 98.3% |
| 3 | ANTRIM AND NEWTOWNABBEY | Northern Ireland | 96.7% | 97.1% |
| 4 | BRACKNELL FOREST | England | 96.7% | 97.2% |
| 5 | COVENTRY | England | 96.7% | 97.7% |
| 6 | CANNOCK CHASE | England | 96.6% | 96.8% |
| 7 | MILTON KEYNES | England | 96.4% | 96.4% |
| 8 | WOLVERHAMPTON | England | 95.9% | 98.2% |
| 9 | ARDS AND NORTH DOWN | Northern Ireland | 95.7% | 96% |
| 10 | HARTLEPOOL | England | 95.7% | 96.9% |
Areas with the Largest fixed/FWA Availability Gap
Full rankings →Ofcom's without decent fixed/FWA broadband measure counts premises unable to receive decent broadband from a fixed line or fixed-wireless network. These authorities show the largest shares on that availability basis. This is not the same as an individual USO eligibility decision, see our USO guide for the legal right.
| # | Authority | Nation | No decent fixed/FWA | Full-Fibre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | NA H-EILEANAN SIAR | Scotland | 2.8% | 12% |
| 2 | ARGYLL AND BUTE | Scotland | 2.1% | 23.9% |
| 3 | ORKNEY ISLANDS | Scotland | 2% | 30% |
| 4 | POWYS | Wales | 2% | 62.1% |
| 5 | SHETLAND ISLANDS | Scotland | 1.7% | 20% |
| 6 | CEREDIGION | Wales | 1.6% | 58.7% |
| 7 | HIGHLAND | Scotland | 1.5% | 63.3% |
| 8 | ABERDEENSHIRE | Scotland | 1.3% | 48.5% |
| 9 | TORRIDGE | England | 1.3% | 60% |
| 10 | WEST DEVON | England | 1.3% | 64.2% |
Explore the Data
Local Authorities
All 361 UK local authority districts, sortable by coverage metric.
Westminster Constituencies
Broadband coverage for all 650 parliamentary constituencies.
Rankings
Best and worst local authorities ranked by each coverage metric.
Guides
Explainers on broadband technology, Ofcom metrics, and the USO.
Methodology
How Ofcom collects and measures broadband coverage data.
About
How PlainBroadband sources, verifies, and publishes Ofcom data.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is PlainBroadband?
PlainBroadband is a free, independent data portal presenting UK broadband coverage statistics from Ofcom's Connected Nations Spring 2026 report (January 2026 snapshot, published May 2026 (r1)). We organise official Ofcom data into searchable, comparable pages covering all 361 UK local authorities, 650 Westminster constituencies, and the four nations, England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. All figures reflect the percentage of premises with access to a given technology as measured by Ofcom. Data is published under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
What is full-fibre (FTTP) broadband?
Full-fibre broadband, also known as Fibre to the Premises (FTTP) - uses optical fibre cable all the way from the exchange directly into your home or business. This is distinct from part-fibre (FTTC) connections that use copper for the final stretch. Full-fibre lines can deliver gigabit speeds (1,000 Mbit/s and above) and are considered the gold standard for future-proof connectivity. As of the Ofcom Connected Nations Spring 2026 report, around 81.0% of UK premises can access a full-fibre network, up from lower levels in prior years. Northern Ireland leads all four nations at 94.0%.
What does "gigabit-capable" mean?
A premises is counted as gigabit-capable if it can access at least one fixed broadband network able to deliver download speeds of 1 Gbit/s (1,000 Mbit/s) or faster. In practice this is almost always a full-fibre (FTTP) connection, though some cable networks (DOCSIS 3.1 and above) also qualify. Ofcom reports gigabit-capable coverage as the proportion of premises with at least one such network available. PlainBroadband shows this figure for every local authority and constituency so you can compare your area against the national average.
What is the USO, Universal Service Obligation?
The Universal Service Obligation (USO) is a legal right, introduced in 2020, guaranteeing every UK home and business the ability to request a decent broadband connection of at least 10 Mbit/s download and 1 Mbit/s upload. On PlainBroadband the "fixed/FWA availability gap" column shows Ofcom's share of premises unable to receive decent broadband from a fixed line or fixed-wireless network. That availability measure is not the same as an individual USO eligibility decision, which can also consider affordable satellite services and other conditions. Nationally the gap is very low, but rural and remote areas can show materially higher shares.
Guide
What is full-fibre broadband?
Rankings
Coverage rankings by local authority
Guide
The broadband USO explained
About this data
How PlainBroadband works, and why you can trust these figures
What this site is
PlainBroadband is a free, independent data portal presenting UK broadband coverage statistics from Ofcom's Connected Nations report. We organise official Ofcom data into searchable, comparable pages covering all 361 UK local authorities, 650 Westminster constituencies, and the four nations, England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
Editorial process
- Source. Download the published local authority and constituency-level data tables directly from Ofcom’s Connected Nations publication.
- Verify. No underlying Ofcom figures are fabricated, interpolated, or editorially modified; percentage values are reproduced directly from the source tables.
- Publish. Transform the raw tables into searchable local authority, constituency, and nation pages, each citing the originating Ofcom release.
Editorial independence & corrections
PlainBroadband is independent; data is published under the Open Government Licence v3.0 and figures represent coverage availability, not actual take-up or service quality. Found an error? Get in touch via the contact page. See our methodology for full source attribution and known limitations.
Frequently asked
What is PlainBroadband?
PlainBroadband is a free, independent data portal presenting UK broadband coverage statistics from Ofcom's Connected Nations Spring 2026 report (January 2026 snapshot, published May 2026 (r1)). We organise official Ofcom data into searchable, comparable pages covering all 361 UK local authorities, 650 Westminster constituencies, and the four nations, England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. All figures reflect the percentage of premises with access to a given technology as measured by Ofcom. Data is published under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
What is full-fibre (FTTP) broadband?
Full-fibre broadband, also known as Fibre to the Premises (FTTP) - uses optical fibre cable all the way from the exchange directly into your home or business. This is distinct from part-fibre (FTTC) connections that use copper for the final stretch. Full-fibre lines can deliver gigabit speeds (1,000 Mbit/s and above) and are considered the gold standard for future-proof connectivity. As of the Ofcom Connected Nations Spring 2026 report, around 81.0% of UK premises can access a full-fibre network, up from lower levels in prior years. Northern Ireland leads all four nations at 94.0%.
What does "gigabit-capable" mean?
A premises is counted as gigabit-capable if it can access at least one fixed broadband network able to deliver download speeds of 1 Gbit/s (1,000 Mbit/s) or faster. In practice this is almost always a full-fibre (FTTP) connection, though some cable networks (DOCSIS 3.1 and above) also qualify. Ofcom reports gigabit-capable coverage as the proportion of premises with at least one such network available. PlainBroadband shows this figure for every local authority and constituency so you can compare your area against the national average.
What is the USO, Universal Service Obligation?
The Universal Service Obligation (USO) is a legal right, introduced in 2020, guaranteeing every UK home and business the ability to request a decent broadband connection of at least 10 Mbit/s download and 1 Mbit/s upload. On PlainBroadband the "fixed/FWA availability gap" column shows Ofcom's share of premises unable to receive decent broadband from a fixed line or fixed-wireless network. That availability measure is not the same as an individual USO eligibility decision, which can also consider affordable satellite services and other conditions. Nationally the gap is very low, but rural and remote areas can show materially higher shares.
Download the Ofcom Connected Nations local-authority snapshot cited on this page: ofcom-connected-nations-statistics.csv (CC BY 4.0 for this derived file; Ofcom source tables remain OGL).
81% full-fibre nationally, but it varies by street
Kingston Upon Hull, City of leads the UK at 99.6% full-fibre; the national average is 81%, and your own address may sit well above or below either figure.
- Check what is actually available at your own address, an area average can hide big street-by-street gaps. Check your postcode
- See every UK local authority and constituency ranked by full-fibre coverage, not just the national leaders. Full UK rankings
- Learn what full-fibre, gigabit and FWA actually mean before you compare providers. What is full-fibre broadband?
Coverage figures are Ofcom Connected Nations availability data, not a guarantee of service at any single address; always check before switching.