A new nationwide analysis of Britain’s broadband has measured more than 348,000 internet connections across 1,302 locations to find out where the country’s best and worst speeds are.
Research conducted by Broadband Genie found the Cornish town of Lostwithiel has the slowest broadband speeds in the UK with an average download speed of just 2MB and upload speed of 1MB.
That’s compared to the fastest location of South Hetton in County Durham, which recorded download speeds of 526MB and upload speeds of 448MB.
“These speeds are only achievable through full fibre broadband or some Virgin Media products,” said Alex Tofts, strategist at Broadband Genie. “This places it right at the top of our index, and wins the crown for the UK’s fastest broadband.”
Rutland was the fastest country on average with 390MB download speeds and 250MB upload, with the Scottish county of Peebleshire ranking slowest with 2MB download and 1MB upload speeds.
Broadband Genie said a minimum number of speed tests in a certain location were required to be included in its analysis, hence why the full results online show faster speeds recorded. The village of Wheatley Hill brought up the very fastest speed result with download speeds of 933MB and upload of 715MB, but only one test from that location was logged.
You can view Broadband Genie’s collated index of the best and worst broadband speeds here.
Alternatively, you can drill down into the raw data and find your specific city, town or village’s results on this webpage.
London placed 587th out of 1,302 for broadband speed with download speeds of 82MB on average.
“While it may be surprising, complaints of slow internet in London aren’t something new,” said Tofts. “Many connections will still be using copper wires between the exchange to their home. The landscape of London causes many challenges for installing fast, full fibre broadband. The highly densely populated area and the disruption and costs to install new infrastructure are all barriers to deployment.”
The fastest home nation overall is Northern Ireland with 132MB download speeds, followed by Scotland with 111MB, England with 103MB and Wales with 93MB.
The North West of England came out on top when measuring broadband speed by UK region with 118MB.
“Penge in London proved to be a broadband not-spot. It’s the 11th-worst location for broadband in the UK,” Broadband Genie said. Stratfod and Stoke Newington also placed badly with download speeds below 30MB, which is slower than the slowest fibre broadband packages.
“Our research shows residents in the slowest areas may also be suffering unnecessarily, with faster speeds available in their area if they switch,” Tofts said. “If you are out of contract and looking to upgrade your broadband, do a quick comparison online to see the best deals on offer. You may even end up paying less for a better and faster service.
“It’s worth bearing in mind that poor broadband speeds can also be influenced by factors outside your provider’s control, so make sure you check these first. Poor home wiring or a poorly positioned or a faulty router could be dragging your Wi-Fi down.”