What is the best broadband for gaming in the UK?
Attention, gamers! Do you want a reliable broadband you can trust during the most crucial moments of your gaming time? Here are our recommendations.
What is your game of choice? Could it be shooting and scoring in EA Sports FC 24 on your PS5? Playing Dune Spice Wars on Xbox Series X? Or perhaps you’re delving into the world of virtual reality with one of the many VR headsets which are compatible with your gaming PC, such as HTC Vive Pro Eye, Oculus Rift, and Meta Quest. Regardless of how you like to dual, score, save, or explore, there’s one thing all gamers need: fast internet.
In an official RadioTimes.com survey with over 500 of our readers, 75 per cent of you indicated that it's important to have the fastest connection speed possible. However, selecting the right broadband to enhance your gaming experience can be a mean feat. After all, there are three types of broadband to choose from.
The various broadbands are: ADSL (asymmetric digital subscriber line) which uses copper cables to connect to a street-level cabinet or junction box, then copper cables to connect to your home, too; FTTC (fibre to the cabinet) which connects with fibre optic cables to the cabinet, then relies on a copper cable from the cabinet to your home, and FTTP (fibre to the premises) which uses a fibre optic cable to the cabinet and to the house. But how do you know which is best for gaming?
The broadband the RadioTimes.com Technology team are interested in is the third one: FTTC, also known as Full Fibre broadband. This ultrafast broadband provides better connectivity as it has fibre optic cables to the cabinet and to your home, in comparison to the other two broadband variations, which have at least one copper cable route. Full Fibre broadband has download speeds of up to 1,600Mb/s, and to put that into perspective, Fibre broadband has download speeds which only go up to 67Mb/s.
We’ve had a look at the UK’s most trusted broadband providers, such as EE, Virgin Media, Sky, Vodafone, and more, and one came out on top. Let’s take a look at what you need to consider when choosing a gaming broadband, and which one we’d recommend.
For more gaming guides, be sure to check out our PS5 vs PS5 Slim piece and what is Amazon Luna? explainer.
Jump to:
- Best UK broadband providers for gaming at a glance
- What is the best UK broadband for gaming?
- How to choose a broadband provider for gaming
Best UK broadband providers for gaming at a glance:
- EE Full Fibre | average 1,600Mb/s download speeds
- Virgin Media Gigabit broadband | average 1,130Mb/s download speeds
- Sky Gigafast Fibre | average 900MB/s download speeds from £58 per month
- BT Full Fibre | up to 900Mb/s download speeds
- TalkTalk Full Fibre 900 | average 900Mb/s download speeds from £49 per month
- Plusnet Full Fibre | average 900Mb/s download speeds from £24.99 per month
What is the best UK broadband for gaming?
When it comes to both gaming and broadband, the RadioTimes.com Technology team are well versed in both. We have our dedicated Gaming section, where we keep you up to date with the latest releases, reviews, and news, particularly with our new Gaming podcast One More Life.
We also write explainers, such as what is a gaming PC? and share with you the latest deals on consoles like Nintendo Switch offers. With broadband, we’ve put together handy guides such as what broadband speed do I need?, and we keep a finger on the pulse when it comes to fantastic broadband deals, too, just like this Sky broadband deal and Virgin Media broadband deal.
With this in mind, we feel confident in recommending EE Full Fibre broadband for gamers. EE Full Fibre broadband is built for gaming: the 1,600Mb/s download speed has the capacity to connect 190 devices at the same time, and offers speeds up to 44 times faster than standard fibre. In a nutshell – it’s reliable.
At EE, you can also get incredible features, such as Game Mode which will supercharge your gaming experience. Game Mode automatically boosts your Wi-Fi when you begin gaming to make sure your playtime is uninterrupted. On the EE website, there’s also a range of useful articles, such as ones on safety online and inclusivity in games.
At the time of writing, EE Full Fibre broadband will set you back from £32 per month.
Get EE Full Fibre broadband from £32 per month at EE
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How to choose a broadband provider for gaming
There are a few things to consider when shopping for broadband, and here are the main ones.
Check the broadband provider offers Full Fibre. As we’ve mentioned above, Full Fibre is currently the fastest broadband service on the market; Full Fibre delivers ultrafast broadband to your home with the usage of fibre optic cables instead of copper, which provides quicker internet connectivity. To give an example of this, EE’s fastest broadband speed can download content in just two seconds.
Does the broadband service come with any deals? The RadioTimes.com team are in the business of getting you something extra for your money, for example, free Disney Plus in our Disney Plus offers piece, and broadband is no different. When you switch to EE broadband, you can unlock unlimited data on your existing EE mobile plan, plus you can save £20 per month on upgrades and new SIMs. There’s also the chance to win an incredible gaming bundle at EE, which is made up of an Xbox Series S console, Samsung 55-inch Smart TV, Samsung Chromebook Go, and Beats Studio Pro Black.
Is it available in your area? Although Full Fibre is getting rolled out to the entire country, so that customers have more options for their broadband package, not all Full Fibre deals are available to everyone. Each UK broadband site should have a postcode checker on its sites, so you can see if Full Fibre is available on your street.
Cost. While we’ve recommended EE as the top broadband for gaming, we’re aware it’s not the most affordable option of all the broadband providers. Sky, BT, TalkTalk and Plusnet all offer download speeds of 900Mb/s, with Sky’s monthly cost starting from £58 and TalkTalk’s monthly price starting at £49. For the same download speed, Plusnet is considerably cheaper, starting at just £24.99 per month.
For top tech reviews, read our is the Meta Quest 3 worth it? article.
