NOW scooped the Best Overall award while Best TV went to Sky and the award for Fastest broadband provider was handed to Virgin Media.
Special attention was also paid to community contributions and digital inclusion initiatives, with Community Fibre and Hyperoptic taking awards in those categories.
The Choose Broadband Awards were undertaken using a combination of detailed market research, a commissioned YouGov survey and third-party resources.
Choose Broadband Awards Winners 2022
| Choose Award | Winner | Runner-up | Third Place |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best Overall | NOW | Plusnet | |
| Best TV | Sky | Virgin Media | |
| Digital Inclusion | Hyperoptic | TalkTalk | Community Fibre |
| Innovation | YouFibre | Community Fibre | Hyperoptic |
| Most Ethical | Zen Internet | Sky | TalkTalk |
| Community Contribution | Community Fibre | Hyperoptic | Zen Internet |
| Rural Coverage | Gigaclear | B4RN | |
| Best Value | NOW | Plusnet | |
| Budget | NOW | Vodafone | |
| Fastest | Virgin Media | Hyperoptic | |
| Most Reliable | Plusnet | BT | |
| Best Customer Service | Sky | EE | |
| Best Triple Play | NOW | Virgin Media | |
| Best Bundle | Virgin Media | NOW |
Choose Broadband Awards 2022
The Choose Broadband Awards 2022 aim to showcase the best options for customers looking for broadband, TV and home phone services in the UK.
We believe it's important to highlight what providers are doing differently too, so we've focused on several key areas that might not be discussed that often in the following awards:
- Digital Inclusion
- Innovation
- Most Ethical
- Community Contribution
In fact, these elements are so important to us that we've named third place providers in those categories to spotlight more of the positive things that are going on.
Choose is focused on fairness above all else, so every award listed here has been through a rigorous selection process and we've used data from various sources to help us make our decisions such as:
- Our own in-depth research into pricing, coverage and services
- Commissioning a YouGov survey on broadband
- Third party research from sources including Ofcom, Trustpilot and Thinkbroadband
Awards of this nature can turn into a popularity contest and it's inevitable some customers will disagree with our choices.
However, we're confident that the awards listed below represent the best options in UK broadband right now - let us know what you think!
Best Overall
Winner: NOW
The winner of Best Overall 2022 is Now.
It's tough to choose between broadband providers, however we think Now offer the perfect combination of budget pricing and value for money of all the big names.
Not only are their prices low, but they also include anytime calls with their broadband deals, saving customers an average of £8 per month. It's also possible to get discounts on Now TV memberships if you take Now broadband, making them an excellent triple-play provider.
Now offers straightforward broadband, yet they still manage to fill a space in the market that other providers struggle to match - they're a budget broadband provider with free anytime calls and a TV option thrown in for good measure.
Runner-up: Plusnet
Our runner-up for Best Overall 2022 is Plusnet.
As well as having competitive pricing across their broadband deals, Plusnet also have an excellent record on reliability and they've brought their customer service metrics into line over the past few years too.
Ofcom figures show Plusnet has an 81% satisfaction rate, higher than several big names and enough to move them into second place as our runner-up for 2022.
Best TV
Winner: Sky
The winner for Best TV 2022 is Sky.
Their comprehensive TV service has more content available than any other platform, bringing more sport, cinema and entertainment into homes than any other provider.
Sky also pushes the boundaries on technology, not only offering their excellent Sky Q box as standard, but also launching their new Sky Glass in 2021 for customers looking to combine a TV subscription with an innovative UHD TV.
Since Sky TV can be taken with Sky broadband or on its own, it's a brilliant choice for customers who want the best entertainment options, no matter which broadband provider they're with.
Runner-up: Virgin Media
Our runner-up for Best TV is Virgin Media.
The TV content on offer from Virgin Media rivals Sky, with their modular packages allowing customers to add the content that's important to them or upgrade to the biggest packages available.
Virgin's TV 360 box is now available to all customers at sign-up, bringing a modern viewing experience to all households on the network.
Virgin TV must be taken in conjunction with Virgin broadband, although that does mean customers can access speeds of over 1Gb on their network, making it a great bundle option.
Digital Inclusion
Winner: Hyperoptic
The winner of our Digital Inclusion 2022 award is Hyperoptic for their Affordable Product Scheme.
Under the scheme, Hyperoptic works with over 50 councils to fund a free 50Mb broadband connection to 10% of their housing portfolio for 12 months. No financial or preliminary checks are required and the social housing providers decide who to offer the broadband product to.
Hyperoptic has also agreed a partnership with Citizens Online to support and promote digital inclusion for their clients, and they offer an affordable package called 'Fair Fibre' to any customer in receipt of Universal Credit.
Runner-up: TalkTalk
The runner-up for Digital Inclusion 2022 is TalkTalk thanks to their partnership with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).
TalkTalk and the DWP operate a voucher scheme that offers jobseekers six months of free broadband to help them find work and stay connected at a difficult time. There's no contract or exit fees and customers don't need to pass a credit check to be accepted.
It's a scheme targeted at customers who most need broadband connections as identified by the DWP.
Third Place: Community Fibre
Community Fibre introduced a home-schooling broadband offer during the 2021 Covid-19 lockdown to help vulnerable households with home education.
The service was provided free for 12 months, helping vulnerable children keep up with their studies on a full fibre connection.
Innovation
Winner: YouFibre
It's become common now to see 900Mb broadband packages, but YouFibre encourage customers in their active areas to call them to see if speeds of 10,000Mbps speeds are available for their property.
These packages are also available to businesses, making customers in YouFibre areas some of the best connected in the country.
Runner-up: Community Fibre
Community Fibre is our runner-up for Innovation with their AI-driven troubleshooting system.
In partnership with Lifemote, Community Fibre are working behind the scenes to detect and resolve any issues customers may have with their home wi-fi connections, often before the customer even knows there's a problem.
As well as being an innovative use of AI, it also allows Community Fibre to troubleshoot common problems without needing to send an engineer, keeping customers happier.
Third Place: Hyperoptic
An honourable mention for Innovation goes to Hyperoptic and their proof-of-concept pilot to support smart home equipment.
The provider is working with Sero, Cardiff Council and Wates Residential to connect a dedicated line for Sero's smart equipment to help take energy management to a new level.
Most Ethical
Winner: Zen Internet
Zen Internet is our winner of the Most Ethical award for 2022.
As well as offering customers a lifetime price guarantee, Zen Internet demonstrate their ethical and environmental credentials through their B Corp status where they must continue to prove they're having a positive social and environmental impact.
Zen also has Carbon Neutral Plus status and is committed to reducing carbon emissions, supporting environmental projects and promoting sustainability.
Runner-up: Sky
Our runner-up for Most Ethical provider is Sky.
In 2021, they launched Sky Glass, the first certified Carbon Neutral TV and they were a Principle Partner and Media Partner of COP26, the UN Climate Change Conference which took place in Glasgow in November 2021.
The provider has also been recognised by The Times and Stonewall for their approach to diversity and inclusion.
Third Place: TalkTalk
The third place in the Most Ethical category belongs to TalkTalk.
They have a host of ethical and sustainable initiatives such as running all eight of their offices on 100% green electricity, as well reviewing their supply chain to reduce their environmental impact and doubling the number of wi-fi routers they have refurbished over the past two years.
Community Contribution
Winner: Community Fibre
Our winner in the Community Contribution category for 2022 is Community Fibre.
To date, the provider has connected over 200 community centres to their network for free across 19 boroughs including Barnet, Lambeth and Tower Hamlets.
They also run digital and device training sessions at community centres and libraries, helping communities gain skills and confidence, and train Digital Ambassadors to help their communities become more digitally empowered.
Runner-up: Hyperoptic
The Choose runner-up in the Community Contribution category is Hyperoptic.
They have numerous initiatives to give back to local communities, including their partnership with QPR in the Community Trust where they sponsor its Schools League and Tournament.
Another example is their support of a new Primary Choices programme to provide support to every Year Six student in Leeds at no cost to the primary schools involved.
Third Place: Zen Internet
Our third place award for Community Contribution goes to Zen Internet.
The provider operates a host of community initiatives such as their code club where Zen volunteers help local primary schools offer coding training to children and their commitment to support the Rochdale Ambassadors scheme with money and resources.
Rural Coverage
Winner: Gigaclear
Gigaclear is the best for Rural Coverage for 2022.
With full fibre services available to over 250,000 premises across more than 200 small communities, Gigaclear has continued to invest in hard-to-reach locations and remain committed to bringing speeds of up 900Mb to even more customers in the future.
They intend to double their coverage across the South West, the Midlands and the South East of England to 500,000 households by the end of 2023.
Something else we like about Gigaclear is the fact that their broadband deals are so competitively priced. When they expand into areas that have been underserved by broadband providers in the past, they don't overcharge and customers can be sure they're getting a good deal.
Runner-up: B4RN
Our runner-up for Rural Coverage 2022 is B4RN.
They have coverage of over 20,000 premises, mainly across the North West, and are focused on serving communities that commercial operators have so far ignored.
B4RN doesn't just stop at rolling out broadband. They offer village primary schools on their network free service along with the Village Halls that host broadband cabinets. Places of worship also get broadband for free, ensuring that religious services could be streamed during the pandemic and bringing communities closer together.
At the time of writing, B4RN has plans to expand their services to another 38 communities.
Best Value
Winner: NOW
The winner of Best Value 2022 is Now.
Not only are their broadband deals some of the cheapest around, but they also include anytime calls as standard in their broadband plans. Given that this would usually cost £8 per month, it adds plenty of value to Now's packages.
It's also possible to get discounts on Now TV memberships when you sign up to Now broadband, making them a great all-round option for entertainment.
Runner-up: Plusnet
As well as offering great value broadband packages, Plusnet also often sweeten the deal by giving customers special money-off reward cards when they sign up to one of their broadband plans.
With these reward cards, customers can essentially recoup several months' worth of their broadband costs and put the money towards goods and services from other retailers.
For those who like bonuses with their budget broadband, Plusnet are a great option.
Budget
Winner: NOW
Now is the winner of the Choose Budget award for 2022.
The inclusion of free anytime calls to UK landlines and mobiles really makes a difference to many household budgets, but that only matters if you start from a low price point as Now do.
Overall, the combination of budget broadband and inclusive anytime calls put Now above their rivals in this category.
Runner-up: Vodafone
Our runner-up for the best Budget provider is Vodafone.
They also offer some of the cheapest broadband deals around, making them perfect for customers on a tight budget, but we also like the fact that Vodafone has something for all customers.
Their tier system allows customers who just want budget, no-frills broadband to snap it up while other customers can upgrade if they want to - it's the best of both worlds.
Fastest
Winner: Virgin Media
The winner of the Fastest provider for 2022 is Virgin Media.
In 2021, they finished upgrading their broadband network to bring speeds of 1.13Gb to over 15.5 million households with their Gig1 service.
This makes them the fastest widely available broadband network, with double the footprint of their nearest rival.
Runner-up: Hyperoptic
Hyperoptic offer broadband speeds of up to 900Mb, making them one of the fastest broadband providers in the UK.
While some of the fastest broadband providers around focus on specific areas, Hyperoptic are active in over 40 towns and cities across the country, meaning they're more likely to be available to customers than others.
It's also notable that Hyperoptic's fastest broadband package is one of the cheapest at those speeds.
Most Reliable
Winner: Plusnet
The winner of the Most Reliable award for 2022 is Plusnet.
Ofcom data shows their daily disconnections and latency rates are low, meaning customers generally get a smooth and uninterrupted experience when browsing and streaming with Plusnet.
They also have the lowest monthly fault figures amongst providers according to Ofcom and their overall satisfaction figures are high too. It all adds up to a reliable broadband experience for customers.
Runner-up: BT
Our runner-up for this category is BT.
Like Plusnet, they have low rates of disconnections and the amount of jitter customers experience is lower than other providers.
Thanks to Ofcom data, we also know that BT's performance on the Openreach full fibre network is very reliable, helping them into second place here.
Best Customer Service
Winner: Sky
The winner of Best Customer Service for 2022 is Sky.
Ofcom's information on customer complaints and satisfaction shows us that Sky have some of the lowest complaint figures around, plus they answer the phone more quickly than the average if customers need to speak to an adviser.
If customers need to complain, 42% of complaints are resolved the first time they speak to Sky while 59% of customers are satisfied with Sky's complaint handling - both market-leading statistics.
Runner-up: EE
Our runner-up for Best Customer Service 2022 is EE.
As well as low levels of customer complaints, EE can also boast the shortest waiting times for speaking to an adviser and fewer of their customers hang up before they speak to an adviser than any other provider.
They also have a UK call centre and a free 0800 telephone number to help customers get through to an adviser easily.
Best Triple Play
Winner: NOW
The winner for Best Triple Play 2022 is Now.
Their budget broadband with inclusive calls is enticing enough, but when you throw discounted Now TV memberships into the mix, you've got a great triple-play option.
It might not be the traditional way of watching TV, but their streaming service incorporates the best of Sky TV at a bargain price point.
Runner-up: Virgin Media
Virgin Media's triple-play broadband, TV and home phone deals are still exceptional value and offer customers ultrafast broadband speeds combined with great TV.
Talk Weekends is also included in Virgin Media's triple-play deals, allowing customers some inclusive calls as part of their package.
Virgin is the runner-up for Best Triple Play 2022.
Best Bundle
Winner: Virgin Media
Virgin Media take the crown for Best Bundle 2022 thanks to their comprehensive Ultimate Volt bundle.
With broadband speeds of over 1Gb, more than 230 TV channels, unlimited anytime calls for the home phone and an unlimited 5G SIM on O2's network, Ultimate Volt is difficult to beat.
It's an all-round entertainment and communications package that combines the fastest widely available broadband with a host of other valuable services.
Runner-up: NOW
Thanks to their inclusive anytime calls, Now is our choice for runner-up in this category.
Most modern broadband deals have ditched inclusive calls, reasoning that fewer customers are using their landlines than ever before. However, there are plenty of households who still rely on the home phone and prefer it over a mobile - that's why Now's bundle is so important.
