London,
21
October
2026
|
12:30
Europe/London

EE's 5G+ network reaches more than 80% of the UK as more customers embrace next-generation connectivity

EE_Mobile_7129
EE_Mobile_7129

 

  • EE’s 5G+ network now covers over 80% of the UK population with new towns across each of the home nations benefitting from the next generation network
  • Customers are embracing 5G+, with the technology now carrying more than 10% of all data traffic on EE’s network, double the level a year ago
  • BT is also preparing to trial AI-RAN on EE’s live network, with first sites planned for Birmingham next year to explore how AI can deliver faster speeds and more consistent connection

BT Group today announced that its EE 5G+ network now covers over 80% of the UK population, bringing its fastest and most advanced mobile connectivity to more communities across the country just over two years since launch. Customers are also increasingly taking advantage of the technology, with 5G+ now carrying more than 10% of all data traffic across EE's network, double the level a year ago.

As 5G+ coverage and usage grow, BT is also investing in technologies that could take the network further, including plans to bring AI-RAN out of the lab and onto EE’s live network for the first time next year.

The latest places to benefit from 5G+ include Bicester, Chester and Durham in England; Portrush and Strabane in Northern Ireland; Neath and Penarth in Wales; and Greenock, Alexandria and parts of Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park in Scotland – with EE remaining firmly on track towards its ambition for 5G+ to cover 99% of the UK population by the end of March 2030.

The milestone is part of a broader push to make EE’s network faster, smarter and more responsive as customer demand grows. Over the past year, BT has introduced a series of 5G+ innovations to improve customers’ experience, including five-carrier aggregation to boost download speeds and an expanded rollout of ARC technology to dynamically increase capacity in busy locations. Customers can also take advantage of Fast Lane, launched in August as the UK's first commercial network slice, providing consumers and small businesses with dedicated 5G+ connectivity at the busiest times on the network.

BT is also looking at how AI could make mobile networks more responsive to customers' needs, building on how the technology is already helping to optimise and protect the network for customers. Working with NVIDIA and Nokia, BT plans to bring its first AI-RAN sites online in Birmingham next year, moving the technology from laboratory testing to its live EE network. If successful, AI-RAN could help provide faster data speeds, more consistent connections and allow the network to respond more intelligently as customer demand changes.

Greg McCall, Chief Security and Networks Officer, BT Group said: “We’re seeing real momentum behind 5G+ as we progress towards our goal of 99% population coverage by 2030 – both in the pace of our rollout and in the amount of data customers are now using over the network. But reaching more people is only part of the story. We’re continuing to invest in making the network smarter and more responsive too, exploring technologies such as AI-RAN that could help us stay ahead of growing demand and deliver an even better experience for customers.”

BT is also increasing the capacity behind EE’s mobile network so that customers can continue to enjoy fast, reliable connectivity as data use grows. This includes recently setting a new benchmark for microwave capacity, successfully delivering its first 2.8Gbps microwave link, 40 per cent more capacity than its previous 2Gbps benchmark. Microwave links play an important role in connecting mobile sites into the wider network, particularly where fibre may not be the most practical option – for example in rural or semi-rural locations – helping to carry the growing volumes of data generated as customers make greater use of 5G and 5G+.

The deployment makes more effective use of EE's existing spectrum alongside BT's expanding fibre infrastructure, demonstrating how the two can work together to increase the capacity available across the mobile network. It also provides a blueprint for potential future high-capacity microwave deployments as mobile data demand continues to grow.

BT Group is one of the biggest investors into UK infrastructure and will have invested more than £40bn into the country between 2020 and 2030. The impact of BT’s continued investment is also being seen in customers’ everyday network experience. Ofcom’s latest Mobile Matters report found that EE delivered the strongest overall performance of the UK’s four mobile networks, as well as the most consistent performance across the UK nations.