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Report: EE maintains status as UK’s best network

February 4, 2025

RootMetrics, an Ookla company, has revealed the findings of its bi-annual UK State of the Mobile Union report. As competition among UK mobile network operators continues to heat up, 5G availability saw continued improvement from all four operators, but the fastest 5G speed experience still remains undecided in H2 2024.

In the second half of 2024, mobile network testing firm RootMetrics found major mobile operators in the UK have continued to show improved 5G availability in RootMetrics’ testing, with EE, Three and Virgin Media O2 all demonstrating 61 per cent 5G availability during UK-wide testing. While Vodafone trailed at 48.3 per cent, all operators showed improvement in comparison to a year ago during H2 2023 testing, where no operator offered 5G availability above 60 per cent.

EE maintained its position as the UK’s leading network, winning or sharing every UK-wide RootScore Award. Notably, EE has won the UK Overall RootScore Award outright in every test period dating back to H2 2013, giving EE honours as the UK’s best network for 11.5 years running. EE also posted the fastest UK-wide median download speed at 89.9 Mbps, nearly double that of the closest competitor (Vodafone at 49.9 Mbps), and secured Best 5G Experience honours through its combination of widespread 5G availability and strong performance.

Three shared the UK Text RootScore Award and showed strong performance in metropolitan markets, recording median download speeds above 50 Mbps in 13 out of 16 markets tested, the second-highest mark of any operator. Although Three trailed EE and Vodafone for both awards and speeds, its 33 RootScore Awards nearly doubled Virgin Media O2’s total of 17.

Vodafone performed well overall, improving its rankings in several UK-wide categories while increasing its award tallies in both nation and metro testing. Vodafone’s 5G network delivered strong results, with the operator recording median 5G download speeds above 100 Mbps across all 16 markets tested. The operator increased its RootScore Award tally in major cities from 35 last time to 45 in H2 2024, but its median download speed interval results only showed modest improvement, with median download speeds above 100 Mbps in one more city than in H1 2024.

Virgin Media O2, on the other hand, was the only operator that didn’t record any median download speeds over 100 Mbps in major cities, and the operator recorded the only sub-20 Mbps median download speed during testing (14.8 Mbps in Southampton). Despite trailing in awards, the operator showed improved 5G availability in 15 out of 16 cities tested, while posting faster median 5G download speeds in a majority of the cities tested.

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