Leicester Broadband Statistics
Leicester has the lowest fibre access out of all major cities in the East Midlands, and is among the 20 worst-off major cities in terms of fibre access across the UK as a whole. Our analysis of Ofcom coverage data shows that Gigabit fibre is available to 15% of residents. UltraFast 300+ Mbps is available to 94% of residents, while SuperFast 30+ Mbps broadband is available to 99% of Leicester's households.
Despite poor broadband infrastructure, we see high speed test averages in Leicester postcodes like LE2, LE5, LE4, LE3, and LE1. Over the past year, we’ve recorded a 37 Mbps median internet speed in Leicester, which is 0.43% above the United Kingdom national median of 36.84 Mbps.
Leicester increased access to Gigabit speeds by 13 percentage points in the past year. However, the buildout rate is slower than neighbouring major cities like Derby (gained 30 percentate points), Northampton (gained 25 percentate points), and Nottingham (gained 13 percentate points).
Local broadband speeds over time
The median broadband speed in Leicester has increased by 78% over the last five years.
Local broadband speeds in context
As of 2022, the median broadband speed in Leicester is 22% higher than the East Midlands and 0.43% higher than the UK overall.
| Leicester | 37 Mbps | |
| East Midlands | 29 Mbps | |
| United Kingdom | 37 Mbps |
Leicester 2022 Broadband Scorecard
▼ Lowest fibre access
Major Cities, East Midlands
▲ 22% above regional broadband speed
East Midlands
▲ 0.43% above national broadband speed
UK Overall
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Broadband Providers
Overall Performance
We rank each provider relative to all providers in The United Kingdom based on their median download and upload speeds, measured round trip time latencies, and the percentage of speeds tests that exceed 50 Mbps.
Customer Ratings
Customer ratings are based on local reviews matched to Leicester IP addresses. Providers can be scored on a range of 1 to 10, and ranked relative to all providers in The United Kingdom.
Median Speed Test Result
The median is the middle result in the range of tests we measured for each provider in Leicester in the past year. Median speeds provide a better comparison than raw averages because they control for the longtail of tests related to Wi-Fi issues. The charts below represent the distribution of tests associated with each provider from low to high.
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Broadband Network Infrastructure in Leicester
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Ofcom Fibre Access Analysis for Leicester
See the chart below for annual reporting on fibre build rates in the Leicester area. Availability is based on population in postcodes marked as served by Ofcom Connected Nations reports, according to the most recent census.
| 1,000+ Mbps | 300+ Mbps | 30+ Mbps | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 14.85% | 94.18% | 99.29% |
| 2020 | 1.86% | 92.16% | 99.72% |
| 2019 | 2.18% | 93.02% | 99.74% |
| 2018 | 0.49% | 85.27% | 99.23% |
| 2017 | 0.29% | 83.12% | 97.27% |
| 2016 | 0.00% | 0.00% | 96.08% |
Map of Leicester's Fibre Broadband Availability by Postcode
Gigabit Availability
14.85%
of people living in Leicester can obtain to 1,000+ Mbps broadband speeds
Ultrafast Speeds
94.18%
of Leicester residents can get 300+ Mbps internet service
Superfast 30+ Mbps Broadband
99.29%
availability in Leicester
Poor Broadband Speeds
None
of Leicester is limited to broadband speeds under 30 Mbps
Leicester Broadband Speeds Report
Average Broadband Speeds in Leicester
| Year | Leicester Average | United Kingdom Average | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 23.51 Mbps | 26.27 Mbps | 10.51% Slower |
| 2019 | 31.43 Mbps | 30.63 Mbps | 2.61% Faster |
| 2020 | 68.69 Mbps | 80.31 Mbps | 14.47% Slower |
| 2021 | 64.65 Mbps | 66.05 Mbps | 2.12% Slower |
Leicester Broadband Speed Distribution
| Percentage of Speed Tests in Speed Range | ||
|---|---|---|
| Internet Speed Range | Leicester | United Kingdom |
| Very Slow: under 10 Mbps | 20.70% | 19.92% |
| Slow: 10-30 Mbps | 22.97% | 25.74% |
| Adequate: 30-60 Mbps | 22.47% | 25.20% |
| Good: 60-80 Mbps | 10.06% | 10.20% |
| Fast: 80-300 Mbps | 20.89% | 15.33% |
| Very Fast: over 300 Mbps | 2.92% | 3.60% |
How Leicester Compares to Major Cities
| City / Town | Max Speed | Typical Speed Range | Median | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greater London | 5794.21 Mbps | 33.02—95.86 Mbps | 45.54 Mbps | Faster |
| Birmingham | 941.32 Mbps | 29.29—107 Mbps | 38.47 Mbps | Faster |
| Bristol | 943.13 Mbps | 30.35—109.9 Mbps | 42.28 Mbps | Faster |
| Edinburgh | 874.24 Mbps | 29.96—107.47 Mbps | 38.02 Mbps | Faster |
| Leicester | 935.89 Mbps | 27.45—99.24 Mbps | 37 Mbps | - |
| Liverpool | 1134.53 Mbps | 25.52—89.6 Mbps | 34.58 Mbps | Slower |
| Nottingham | 2371.49 Mbps | 16.2—40.46 Mbps | 19.1 Mbps | Slower |
| Sheffield | 932.42 Mbps | 23.73—68.81 Mbps | 32.06 Mbps | Slower |
| Glasgow | 913.93 Mbps | 20.58—71.34 Mbps | 32 Mbps | Slower |
Leicester Broadband Speeds Over Time
We class broadband speed distributions as follows: very slow under 10 Mbps; slow 10-30 Mbps; adequate 30-60 Mbps; good 60-80 Mbps; fast 80-300 Mbps; very fast over 300 Mbps.
How Leicester Compares for Internet Speed in Leicester
| Position | City / Town | Max Speed | Typical Speed Range | Median | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Leicester | 935.89 Mbps | 27.45—99.24 Mbps | 37 Mbps | - |
Leicester Internet Speed Test Results
We analysed the results of people in Leicester testing broadband providers multiple times, with each test starting no more than 30 minutes after the previous speed test. On average, people in Leicester ran 4 internet speed tests per session. Looking at broadband download speeds, if the Leicester resident's final test is 10% faster than their starting download speed, we count that as a succesful and faster speed test result. We count an unsuccessful, slower result if the final result is 10% slower than the starting result; we'd hope their ISP contacts them ASAP! For broadband speed tests that don't vary by that much, we consider the final result to be the same. For Leicester's residents, of the internet speed tests we measured, 42.1% were fast, 23.75% slow, and 34.16% broadly the same.
Most Recent Tests
| Provider | Start Time | # Tests | Duration | Start Speed | End Speed | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Virgin Media | 18 Jan 2022 23:31:58 | 2 | 27 mins | 202.17 Mbps | 171.66 Mbps | Needs help |
| Sky Broadband | 18 Jan 2022 23:47:32 | 2 | 34 secs | 30.84 Mbps | 44.69 Mbps | Improved |
| Virgin Media | 18 Jan 2022 22:32:23 | 18 | 56 mins | 62.83 Mbps | 390.09 Mbps | Improved |
| Virgin Media | 18 Jan 2022 22:56:35 | 2 | 11 mins | 1.31 Mbps | 34.38 Mbps | Improved |
| Virgin Media | 18 Jan 2022 22:41:30 | 2 | 22 secs | 188.5 Mbps | 207.94 Mbps | Improved |
| Virgin Media | 18 Jan 2022 22:22:26 | 2 | 7 mins | 4.74 Mbps | 12.26 Mbps | Improved |
| Virgin Media | 18 Jan 2022 22:26:00 | 2 | 27 secs | 181.12 Mbps | 151.6 Mbps | Needs help |
| Sky Broadband | 18 Jan 2022 22:15:04 | 3 | 87 secs | 45.38 Mbps | 33.43 Mbps | Needs help |
| Sky Broadband | 18 Jan 2022 22:15:24 | 2 | 24 secs | 107.62 Mbps | 112.77 Mbps | |
| Sky Broadband | 18 Jan 2022 21:49:32 | 4 | 7 mins | 0.27 Mbps | 0.32 Mbps | Needs help, very slow |
| Glide | 18 Jan 2022 21:51:54 | 2 | 3 mins | 159.97 Mbps | 61.9 Mbps | Needs help |
| Sky Broadband | 18 Jan 2022 21:42:24 | 3 | 11 mins | 46.12 Mbps | 49.79 Mbps | |
| Sky Broadband | 18 Jan 2022 21:35:35 | 3 | 17 mins | 1.35 Mbps | 1.5 Mbps | Needs help, very slow |
| Virgin Media | 18 Jan 2022 21:05:23 | 2 | 29 mins | 114.43 Mbps | 16.6 Mbps | Needs help |
| Virgin Media | 18 Jan 2022 21:18:22 | 2 | 3 mins | 1.43 Mbps | 6.01 Mbps | Needs help, very slow |
| TalkTalk | 18 Jan 2022 21:20:07 | 2 | 21 secs | 19.43 Mbps | 18.15 Mbps | |
| Sky Broadband | 18 Jan 2022 21:19:08 | 2 | 72 secs | 35.64 Mbps | 36.64 Mbps | |
| Virgin Media | 18 Jan 2022 21:15:52 | 2 | 96 secs | 0.96 Mbps | 1.72 Mbps | Needs help, very slow |
| Virgin Media | 18 Jan 2022 21:14:26 | 2 | 16 secs | 27.22 Mbps | 16.36 Mbps | Needs help |
| Virgin Media | 18 Jan 2022 21:02:59 | 2 | 4 mins | 18.23 Mbps | 20.51 Mbps | Improved |
Summary of Internet Service Providers in Leicester
| # | Provider Name | Max Speed | Typical Speed Range |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hyperoptic | 891.84 Mbps | 85.7—331.26 Mbps |
| 2 | Contingency Networks | 893.92 Mbps | 18.8—38.06 Mbps |
| 3 | Independent Fibre Networks | 357.56 Mbps | 67.1—162.44 Mbps |
| 4 | Virgin Media | 935.89 Mbps | 45.4—167.2 Mbps |
| 5 | Spitfire | 480.31 Mbps | 40.28—58.61 Mbps |
| 6 | Cerberus Networks | 92.03 Mbps | 27.64—82.83 Mbps |
| 7 | Glide | 866.03 Mbps | 22.84—85.08 Mbps |
| 8 | Vodafone | 924.36 Mbps | 32.4—64.66 Mbps |
| 9 | KCOM | 464.52 Mbps | 17.22—59.37 Mbps |
| 10 | BT | 933.42 Mbps | 25.35—60.04 Mbps |
| 11 | TalkTalk | 515.86 Mbps | 24.1—72.25 Mbps |
| 12 | EE | 765.26 Mbps | 22.56—58.83 Mbps |
| 13 | Sky Broadband | 496.21 Mbps | 15.85—54.05 Mbps |
| 14 | Zen Internet | 291.92 Mbps | 10.22—30.32 Mbps |
| 15 | Andrews & Arnold | 67.97 Mbps | 7.66—41.69 Mbps |
| 16 | Shell Energy | 73.15 Mbps | 28.88—36.87 Mbps |
| 17 | Origin Broadband | 41.15 Mbps | 10.02—37.61 Mbps |
| 18 | CloudScape Connect | 73.21 Mbps | 15.58—34.82 Mbps |
| 19 | Plusnet | 74.15 Mbps | 12.63—36.78 Mbps |
| 20 | O2 Broadband | 32.34 Mbps | 5.46—12.1 Mbps |
| 21 | CIX | 26.38 Mbps | 0.92—4.72 Mbps |
| 22 | BazTel | 1.09 Mbps | 0.28—0.58 Mbps |
Frequently Asked Questions about Internet Providers in Leicester
How many broadband providers in Leicester are there?
Leicester has 22 ISPs tested by its 355,218 residents.
Who is the fastest broadband provider in Leicester?
Hyperoptic is the fastest broadband provider in Leicester with 891.84 Mbps, and an average internet speed range of 85.7—331.26 Mbps.
Who is the best internet provider in Leicester?
The best internet provider in Leicester is Hyperoptic, and their users typically see broadband speeds in the range of 85.7 to 331.26 Mbps.
What is the average internet speed in Leicester?
Users in Leicester see an average internet speed of 27.45 up to 531 Mbps, and the fastest speed we've seen is 935.89 Mbps.
Is Virgin Media available in Leicester?
Broadband service from Virgin Media is available in Leicester, and the fastest speed we've seen from them is 935.89 Mbps.
Is Sky Broadband available in Leicester?
Broadband service from Sky Broadband is available in Leicester, and the fastest speed we've seen from them is 496.21 Mbps.
Is BT available in Leicester?
Broadband service from BT is available in Leicester, and the fastest speed we've seen from them is 933.42 Mbps.
Is BT full fibre available in Leicester?
Yes, BT offers full fibre to the home (also called FTTH or FTTP) to 135 of Leicester's postcodes.
Who is the most popular broadband provider in Leicester?
The broadband provider with the most users in Leicester is Virgin Media.
Author: Thomas Buck
Last Reviewed By: Tyler Cooper
Published: 10 Nov 2019
Last Updated: 18 Jan 2022