If you want the very best broadband speeds, don’t move to these locations.
Broadband now powers our homes, lets us work remotely and keeps us entertained. It’s become a vital part of modern life but it seems some areas of the UK continue to battle with shocking downloads and streaming that stutters. Britain’s broadband is getting better with the majority of homes now able to access full fibre connections which offer speeds in excess of 500Mbps.
Sadly, some more remote areas remain isolated from this latest technology and that’s leaving many left firmly in the internet dark ages.
To show exactly who is sitting in a broadband deadspot, the team at Broadband Savvy have released a map showing the best and worst areas for getting a speedy connection.
Sadly, it appears those living in parts of Scotland and Wales are suffering the most, with some properties getting speeds of less than 10Mbps. At that rate it would almost an hour to download a blockbuster movie. See the list of worst areas below.
The Electoral Wards with the worst broadband are:
• Shetland West, Shetland Islands, Scotland (14.99% below 10 Mbps, 130/867 premises)
• Banwy, Llanfihangel and Llanwddyn, Powys, Wales (14.15% below 10 Mbps, 131/926 premises)
• Ithon Valley, Powys, Wales (12.99% below 10 Mbps, 127/978 premises)
• Wymondham, Leicestershire, England (12.77% below 10 Mbps, 94/736 premises)
• Llangeitho, Ceredigion, Wales (12.16% below 10 Mbps, 85/699 premises)
The Local Authorities with the worst broadband are:
• Orkney Islands, Scotland – 385/11,920 premises below 10 Mbps (3.23%)
• Shetland Islands, Scotland – 282/11,852 premises below 10 Mbps (2.38%)
• Powys, Wales – 1,394/64,019 premises below 10 Mbps (2.18%)
• Argyll and Bute, Scotland – 952/49,877 premises below 10 Mbps (1.91%)
• Ceredigion, Wales – 629/34,906 premises below 10 Mbps (1.80%)
According to Broadband Savvy, compared to England, you are over 4 times more likely to have unusable broadband in Wales, and 4 times more likely in Scotland.
“Many rural communities around the UK are still stuck with super slow broadband at the moment,” said Tom Paton, founder of Broadband Savvy.
“While 86% of UK homes can now get ultrafast gigabit internet, we estimate around 100,000 people have been left behind, with no idea when they will get usable broadband at their address.”
“The remote regions of Scotland and Wales are by far the worst places for broadband in the UK. If you live somewhere like the Shetland Islands, your best bet to get decent internet is to use a satellite service like Starlink.”