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Upgrading your broadband speed can make a huge difference day to day. Whether you're working from home, streaming in 4K, or gaming online, faster internet means fewer interruptions and less frustration.
But the “fastest” broadband isn’t the same for everyone. It all depends on what’s available where you live and how you use the internet at home.
In this guide, we’ll show you:
- What counts as fast broadband today
- The speeds you actually need for your household
- How to check the fastest options available in your area
- Ways to upgrade without overpaying
- Speed: 900Mb avg. speed
- Set-up cost: £0
- Contract: 24 months
Rewards:
£29.99 per month
£33.99 from 31st March 2027
£37.99 from 31st March 2028
- Speed: 900Mb avg. speed
- Set-up cost: £0
- Contract: 24 months
Rewards:
£28.99 per month
£38.99 from 13th November 2026
- Speed: 900Mb avg. speed
- Set-up cost: £10
- Contract: 18 months
£30.50 per month
£33.50 from 1st April 2027
What is fast broadband?
Fast broadband usually means full fibre (FTTP), which offers the fastest and most reliable speeds available today.
Broadband speeds are typically grouped like this:
- Superfast – up to around 70Mb
- Ultrafast – 100Mb to 1Gb
- Gigabit – 1Gb+
While superfast used to be enough for most homes, it can now struggle. It might not be fast enough if you’ve got multiple devices connected or people streaming, gaming and working at the same time.
Full fibre broadband is the gold standard. It can deliver speeds of 100Mbps right up to 1Gbps+, or even faster!
That said, “fast” is relative. If you’re noticing any of the following, your current connection may not be keeping up:
- Buffering when streaming TV
- Lag during online gaming
- Video calls dropping or freezing
- Slow downloads
- Pages taking too long to load
Not sure if your speed is fast enough? Run a quick speed test or check your postcode to see what faster options are available.
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Understanding what makes a good broadband speed: key terms explained
- Mbps: Determines data transfer speed
- Latency: Affects responsiveness
- Upload Speed: Time to send data out
- Download Speed: Time to receive data.
Do I need the fastest broadband?
Not everyone needs gigabit speeds and the most expensive packages. But you can now get really fast speeds at a low monthly cost.
In fact, you can often double your speed for just a couple of £ more per month.
Here’s a quick guide to the broadband speeds:
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But every online device that’s connected in the home, the more demand there is on a broadband connection.
And even if your package is coping now, having a bit of wiggle room on speeds is the best way to future-proof your home.
For help with choosing the right package, read our ultimate guide to broadband speeds.
- Speed: 500Mb avg. speed
- Set-up cost: £0
- Contract: 24 months
Rewards:
£29.99 per month
£33.99 from 31st March 2027
£37.99 from 31st March 2028
- Speed: 500Mb avg. speed
- Set-up cost: £0
- Contract: 24 months
Rewards:
£27 per month
£30.50 from 1st April 2027
£34 from 1st April 2028
What broadband speed can I get? Can I get the fastest internet in my area?
The answer will be different for every home in the UK.
The UK’s fastest broadband is around 10Gbps (10,000Mbps). However, most homes will be able to receive maximum download speeds of around 1Gbps (1,000Mbps).
| Provider | Maximum Speed | UK Availability |
|---|---|---|
| BT Full Fibre | 900Mb | 68% (growing) |
| Virgin Media | 1.1Gb+ | 57% |
| Hyperoptic | 1Gb | Limited cities and new builds |
| YouFibre | 8Gb | Select locations |
| CityFibre | 5.5Gb | 20% (growing) |
These are the fastest deals in the UK, but availability depends on where you live.
Check if you can get fast speeds at your address.
How to get a better deal:
- Double check what you’re paying for current broadband package
- Enter your postcode into Broadband Genie’s deals checker to find out the options available at your exact address
- If it’s not already set, sort by ‘Speed (high to low)’ or use the ‘Average Speed’ filters.
The results can be surprising.
Not only can faster speeds be affordable, you may find that the deals available today work out cheaper than what you’re paying now?
In the next few months, the UK is set to shut down the telephone network system that many part fibre deals rely on.
The aim is for everyone in the UK to have access to full fibre speeds by January 2027.
Because of this, broadband deals are really competitive currently.
As well as low monthly prices, you may find faster broadband packages come with more generous gifts and vouchers.
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Comparing broadband providers and plans
Once you know the providers and packages that service your area, it’s time to compare their plans.
Things to consider before signing a contract:
- Is there a set-up fee?
- Is there good customer service (read our customer reviews, home broadband awards or check Trustpilot to get a sense of this)
- Will there be an annual price rise? What’s the minimum term? Can you get out of a contract and leave early if you don’t get the speeds you were promised? (look for phrases like ‘Speed Guarantee’)
- How fast is the average upload speed? (Check our ‘Full Details’ for more information)
When will my area get faster broadband?
If full fibre isn’t yet available in your area, it might be coming soon. Openreach and CityFibre are rolling out FTTP across the UK.
Check their websites for updates, and keep an eye out for local providers advertising in your area.
Get more help in our guide: ‘Can I get full fibre?’
- Speed: 900Mb avg. speed
- Set-up cost: £0
- Contract: 24 months
Rewards:
£31.99 per month
£35.99 from 31st March 2027
£39.99 from 31st March 2028
- Speed: 1.6Gb avg. speed
- Set-up cost: £0
- Contract: 24 months
Rewards:
£33.99 per month
£37.99 from 31st March 2027
£41.99 from 31st March 2028
- Speed: 900Mb avg. speed
- Set-up cost: £0
- Contract: 24 months
Rewards:
£25.99 per month
£29.99 from 31st March 2027
£33.99 from 31st March 2028
Widen your fast broadband choice with a smaller provider
Is our deals checker showing you can only get fast internet speeds from a provider you’ve never heard of?
Don’t feel that you should switch to a big name. There are some really fantastic and fast smaller providers out there.
These ‘alternative network providers are also known as ‘AltNets’.
Not only might they offer the fastest internet speeds in your area, they often come with other perks such as:
- UK-based customer support
- A choice of shorter contract lengths
- Upload speeds as fast as downloads (symmetrical speeds)
- Cheaper prices
Some of these providers do a great job of serving smaller areas that would otherwise be stuck with slow broadband.
For example, Hyperoptic delivers gigabit internet speeds in London and some other major cities. It’s also been focussing on offering high-speed internet to high-rise new builds.
Read more about the smaller providers in our guide to alternative network providers.
FAQs about fast broadband
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Will I get speeds as fast as advertised?
Advertised download speeds are an average based on the performance of the provider's broadband users.
You can reasonably expect to get something very similar to what they’re claiming. However, it’s not guaranteed. You may find that the connection is slower than advertised. In some lucky cases, you might even get faster speeds.
But this shouldn’t come as a surprise. You should always be given an accurate speed estimate for your address before you sign a contract. If the connection is slower than the estimate, speak to the provider about possible solutions.
There are a few providers signed up to Ofcom's Broadband Speeds Code of Practice. These include BT, EE, NOW Broadband, Plusnet, Sky, TalkTalk, Utility Warehouse, Virgin Media and Zen Internet.
If you have problems with your broadband connection that can't be fixed within 30 days, you may be entitled to leave for free.
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What is a good, fast broadband speed?
We recommend that if you can, you should consider opting for a full fibre package. 100Mb-150Mb is a good speed for an average house and should be plenty for day to day tasks like streaming video and gaming.
If you’re a light user and only browse the internet or write emails, you can opt for a slower speed.
But opt for a faster speed if you live in a busier home, or if you carry out data-intensive tasks.
Get more help with our guide to broadband speeds.
Work from home? Get more tips on picking the right package in our guide: ‘What broadband speed do I need to work from home?’
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Is 300Mbps fast enough for Netflix?
Absolutely! Unless you’re in a really busy home where everyone is online at the same time, this is plenty.
The minimum broadband speed requirement for Netflix is only 3Mbps.
Get more tips in our guide to stop TV buffering.
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Where is gigabit broadband available?
You can get gigabit broadband from either Virgin Media or a full fibre provider. Use our postcode checker to see what’s in your area.
If you’d like to learn more about fibre, we have a dedicated full fibre broadband guide that will explain everything you need to know.
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Will a different router improve my broadband speeds?
Your sluggish broadband speed may be a result of poor Wi-Fi router performance or signal strength, rather than a problem with your broadband provider.
You may want to experiment with repositioning your device, changing frequencies, or trying Wi-Fi boosters or mesh Wi-Fi kits.You can check our guide on troubleshooting your broadband speeds for more information.
If you’re experiencing slow broadband at peak times, this may be down to traffic management from your service provider rather than any issue with your equipment.
You can find out more in our guide: ‘what is broadband traffic management and traffic throttling?’
Switch to a fast fibre broadband service
Ready to get speedier internet? You can instantly find out the maximum speed available for your home broadband using our broadband deals checker.
We’ve already set the filters for you on this search to show the fastest speeds first. Try it now!