Edinburgh has good full fibre and gigabit broadband coverage, so far connecting over 83% and 95% respectively.
Most residents will have the choice between at least two fibre networks, while some will have three, with Openreach, Virgin Media and CityFibre all active in the city.
There's few alt-nets building in Edinburgh however, although Hyperoptic has good coverage in the city centre and around Leith.
Most popular broadband deals in Edinburgh
More than 65% of homes in Edinburgh will be able to get a full fibre broadband deal from an Openreach retail provider, which includes BT, Sky, TalkTalk, Plusnet, and Vodafone, as well as lesser known names such as Rebel Internet, Earth Broadband, and Your Co-op.
As many as 80% of homes will also be choose Virgin Media, with some properties newly passed by Nexfibre, connecting them to Virgin Media's network by full fibre.
Here are four of the best broadband deals available in Edinburgh:
| Package | Broadband | Monthly price | Upfront price | Contract term | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Rebel 115 | 115Mb average | £35 | Free | 24 months |
 Offer: £60 Amazon Gift Card with code WIFIREBEL + Fixed Price Guarantee + Tri-band Wi-Fi extender £5/mth each | |||||
|
Full Fibre 145 | 145Mb average | £27.99 | Free | 24 months |
| Offer: £50 Reward Card + Save over £12/mth + No setup fee + Exclusive offers and discounts for Plusnet customers (Ends 01/01/2025) | |||||
|
M125 Fibre Broadband | 132Mb average | £26.99 | Free | 18 months |
| Offer: Reduced price: £26.99 per month + No setup fee (was £35) | |||||
|
Full Fibre 80 + Super WiFi | 82Mb average | £29 | Free | 24 months |
| Offer: £2 off for Vodafone pay monthly customers | |||||
While we've listed 100 - 150Mb deals here, which according to Ofcom are the most popular full fibre broadband speed chosen by households in the UK, over 95% of homes in Edinburgh can actually get gigabit or faster broadband speeds if they want them.
CityFibre is also active in Edinburgh, with lower-cost as well as symmetrical speed deals up to 2.2Gb available from Vodafone and Lit Fibre.
There is also good Hyperoptic coverage available in Edinburgh, particularly around central areas and out towards Leith.
So, exactly what's available can vary depending on your exact address in Edinburgh, so use our free postcode tool to check availability and find the best deals for you.
Cheapest broadband in Edinburgh
We used the postcode EH17 8UP, or The Murrays in Liberton, Edinburgh, which is a residential area in the suburbs of the city, to check broadband availability and prices.
Here are four of the cheapest broadband deals available in Edinburgh:
| Package | Broadband | Monthly price | Upfront price | Contract term | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
Full Fibre 80 | 82Mb average | £22 | Free | 24 months |
| Offer: £2 off for Vodafone pay monthly customers | |||||
|
Full Fibre 75 | 75Mb average | £22 | Free | 24 months |
| Offer: Free setup | |||||
|
|
Full Fibre 150 | 150Mb average | £23 | Free | 24 months |
| Offer: £2 off for Vodafone pay monthly customers | |||||
|
Full Fibre 75 | 75Mb average | £25 | £5 | 24 months |
| Offer: WiFi Max just £4/mth + (£5 refundable setup fee for new customers if applicable) | |||||
We picked this particular postcode because it has both CityFibre and Openreach FTTP coverage, as well as Virgin Media for residents to choose from.
Vodafone's CityFibre plans are cheaper than their Openreach equivalents, while NOW Broadband also offers some of the cheapest prices on the Openreach network.
Homes in Edinburgh that can access Hyperoptic, which is mostly concentrate nearer the city centre and out towards Leigh, will also be able to access deals from as little as £17.99 per month.
While most residents in Edinburgh will also be able to get Virgin Media broadband, their prices are currently higher, starting at £26.99 per month for 132Mb with their M125 Fibre Broadband plan.
Availability at specific addresses could vary, so use our free postcode tool and order by 'Lowest price' to find the cheapest deals for your home in Edinburgh.
How fast is broadband in Edinburgh?
The average broadband speed in Edinburgh is 200.4Mb down, and 51.6Mb up, according to crowd sourced data collected by ThinkBroadband from speed tests, including our own free speed test tool.
| Average maximum download speed | Average maximum upload speed | |
|---|---|---|
| Edinburgh | 200.4Mb | 51.6Mb |
The fastest 20% of testers reported download speeds of 328.7Mb, and upload speeds of 59.6Mb, while the bottom 20% of testers had download speeds of just 36.5Mb with 7.2Mb upload speeds.
While CityFibre's symmetrical full fibre broadband is available in parts of Edinburgh, Openreach and Virgin Media's asymmetrical products are more widely available, which likely accounts for the slower upload speeds seen in Edinburgh compared to the relatively fast download speeds.
We can also look at the speed reports broken down by constituency in Edinburgh for more insight into broadband speeds in the city too:
| Average maximum download speed | Average maximum upload speed | |
|---|---|---|
| Edinburgh East and Musselburgh | 247.3Mb | 38.6Mb |
| Edinburgh North and Leith | 212.4Mb | 67.8Mb |
| Edinburgh South West | 197.9Mb | 44.2Mb |
| Edinburgh West | 170.5Mb | 73.7Mb |
| Edinburgh South | 165Mb | 31.2Mb |
Across the city Openreach has built out to over 65% of homes, while Virgin Media cable broadband is available to 80% of Edinburgh. Combined with alt-net availability of 48% (which includes networks like CityFibre and Hyperoptic), Edinburgh has over 95% gigabit broadband coverage and 83% full fibre coverage.
| Full fibre broadband coverage | Gigabit broadband coverage | |
|---|---|---|
| Edinburgh | 83% | 95% |
While Nexfibre has been connecting homes not yet passed by Virgin Media, there are few other independent full fibre networks building in Edinburgh, with CityFibre and Hyperoptic the main challengers.
Outside of the city, there is some coverage by Lothian Broadband in Pathhead, Pencaitland, and Longniddry, while Netomnia is available to some homes in Prestonpans, Tranent, Levenhall and Wallyford.
Fastest broadband deals in Edinburgh
Using the postcode EH17 8UP, or The Murrays in Liberton, Edinburgh, which is a residential area, we can find out the fastest broadband available in the area.
The Murrays is passed by three of the main fibre networks operating in Edinburgh, including Openreach FTTP, Virgin Media full fibre (Nexfibre) and CityFibre.
The overall fastest broadband in EH17 8UP, Edinburgh, is Virgin Media's Gig2 Fibre Broadband plan, which offers download speeds of 2Gbps, with optional symmetrical upload speeds.
Second to this, is Vodafone's Pro II Full Fibre 1.8 plan, which offers symmetrical speeds of 1.8Gb on average over CityFibre's network.
Here are four of the fastest broadband deals available in Edinburgh:
| Package | Broadband | Monthly price | Upfront price | Contract term | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
Gig2 Fibre Broadband | 2Gb average | £69.99 | Free | 18 months |
| Offer: Reduced price: £69.99 per month + No setup fee (was £35) | |||||
|
|
Pro II Full Fibre 1.8 | 1.8Gb average | £70 | Free | 24 months |
| Offer: £4 off for Vodafone pay monthly customers | |||||
|
Lit 1000 | 1Gb average | £19.99 for 3 mths, then £39.99 |
Free | 24 months |
| Offer: Half price for 3 months | |||||
|
|
Rebel 1000 | 1Gb average | £55 | Free | 24 months |
| Offer: £100 Amazon Gift Card with code WIFIREBEL + Fixed Price Guarantee + Tri-band Wi-Fi extender £5/mth each | |||||
While Hyperoptic is also available closer to the centre of Edinburgh and around Leith, it tends not to overlap with any CityFibre coverage. However, Hyperoptic also offers residents the chance to access faster symmetrical upload speeds.
Availability at specific addresses could vary, so use our free postcode tool and order by 'Broadband speed' to find the fastest deals for your home in Edinburgh.
Summary: Who is the best broadband provider in Edinburgh
Edinburgh has fairly good coverage for full fibre and gigabit broadband between Openreach, Virgin Media and CityFibre. However, there are surprisingly few smaller 'alt-nets' operating in the city, with the exception of Hyperoptic.
However, as many as 95% of homes in the city now have gigabit-capable broadband available to them, and most will have the choice between at least two fibre networks, if not three.
Virgin Media's network has also expanded to new properties in Edinburgh with their partnership with wholesale network Nexfibre, plugging gaps in their coverage and bringing up to 2Gbps symmetrical speeds to homes.
When we looked at residential areas in Edinburgh, we found:
- The cheapest broadband in Edinburgh will either be NOW Broadband from £22 per month for 75Mb full fibre, or Vodafone's Full Fibre 80 plan also from £22 per month. Some, more central, homes will also be able to access Hyperoptic's 30Mb Light plan from just £17.99 per month.
- The fastest broadband in Edinburgh is most likely to be Vodafone's Pro II Full Fibre 1.8 plan on the CityFibre network which offers symmetrical speeds of 1.8Gb or 2.2Gb to some homes. Virgin Media's Gig2 Fibre Broadband plan is also available to some homes.
- The best broadband with TV in Edinburgh is with Virgin Media who pass over 80% of homes in the city.
Households who want to keep their home phone line when moving to full fibre can choose between NOW Broadband, Vodafone or Sky who all include line rental at no extra cost, or it's possible to pay extra for a phone line with BT or Virgin Media.
Ultimately, residents should use our free postcode tool to see exactly what's available to them, and then order deals by price, special offer, broadband speed, or contract length, to find the deal that's right for them.
