EE has today launched a UK first, Fast Lane – an advanced network feature that connects consumers and small businesses across the UK to the highest performance 5G+ lane on EE's award-winning mobile network.

Fast Lane works by anticipating network congestion and seamlessly moving customer connections into a dedicated section of EE’s 5G+ network, so that – even when the network is busiest – they can continue to stream, share and socialise with uninterrupted speed, all on the UK’s best network.

Designed for use in high-footfall moments of the day like rush hour and major events, Fast Lane is the first service of its kind for both consumers and small businesses in the UK. It is the latest innovation built on EE’s rapidly expanding 5G+ network, which is now available to around 54 million people (78% of the UK population) across several hundred major UK towns and cities.

EE’s launch of Fast Lane follows multiple real-world trials of 5G+ network slicing over the last two years, supporting consumers and businesses at major events and iconic locations across the UK, including Wembley Stadium, Belfast Christmas Market, Sail GP in Portsmouth, this year’s EE BAFTAs, and, most recently, the Royal Welsh Show 2026.

As part of a £40 billion investment into the UK this decade, EE’s 5G+ network will be available to 99% of the population by the end of March 2030.

Claire Gillies, CEO of BT’s Consumer Division, said: “Powered by our advanced 5G+ network, Fast Lane gives our customers access to a dedicated 5G+ lane at the busiest times. Whether they’re live streaming a special moment from a sell-out gig or processing mobile payments and ticketing at a festival, Fast Lane helps keep customers connected even when thousands of people around them are trying to connect at the same time. This innovation builds on years of investment in EE’s 5G+ network and real-world network slicing trials, marking another milestone for the UK’s best network.”

“As the UK’s best network, we are committed to bringing our customers the very best in connectivity and innovation. Fast Lane is the latest example of how we're building on that leadership with the UK’s first commercial network slice to deliver meaningful benefits to both consumers and businesses.”

Consumers can use EE’s Fast Lane to livestream, video call, post on social media, navigate, and message even when the wider mobile network is under high demand. Whether they are booking a taxi after a gig, accessing digital tickets outside at a packed stadium or sharing their location in a busy city centre, Fast Lane means they can keep moving without stress.

For businesses, connectivity is the lifeblood of commerce. Whether they are joining video calls while travelling or taking card payments on the go, with Fast Lane businesses benefit from getting to the front of the customer queue, even when they are surrounded by hundreds of competing businesses all trying to connect to the same network.

How to get in the Fast Lane

For consumers who want Fast Lane, EE is introducing Full Works Plus, a new premium pay-monthly handset plan. Available with a compatible 5G+ device, Full Works Plus includes exclusive access to Fast Lane to help them stay connected during life's busiest moments. For just £5 more than EE's current Full Works plan, customers also benefit from unlimited data at maximum speeds, worldwide roaming, unlimited smartwatch data, family data gifting, a premium inclusive extra, Anytime Upgrade and Network Boost.

Fast Lane is also available from today to new and re-signing small business customers that take out an EE Full Works business plan on a 5G+ compatible handset.

To help more customers understand when they are connected to EE’s 5G+ network and benefitting from advanced connectivity features like Fast Lane, eligible customers will soon start seeing a 5G+ icon appearing on their smartphones. This is already available on new and select Android devices and will be rolled out more widely on other devices later this year.

More information on Fast Lane and EE’s 5G+ network is available here.

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Notes to Editors: 

Customers must have a 5G+ compatible mobile plan, device, SIM, and be within a 5G+ enabled area of the UK to access Fast Lane. Information on how to use Fast Lane on your mobile is available here.

¹ The UK’s most reliable network claim based on the RootMetrics® UK RootScore® Report: H1 2026. Tested at locations across the UK with the best commercially available smartphones on all national mobile networks across all available network types. The RootMetrics award is not an endorsement of EE. Visit ee.co.uk/claims for more details.

The results of two major studies analysing mobile and broadband network performance across the UK have been revealed, with BT and EE providing the best connectivity both in and out of the home – benefitting millions of people, communities, and businesses in every part of the country.

More than 104 million individual tests were completed across the two studies, measuring broadband and mobile performance in towns, cities and rural communities in the UK, including at peak times when all networks are under the most pressure.

The results mark a UK first, with BT’s networks being independently proven to deliver both the nation’s best performing broadband and mobile connectivity at the same time.

The findings come as research shows more than three quarters of people in the UK (77%) feel isolated from friends, family and critical online services when they don’t have effective internet connectivity. ¹ With more of daily life now dependent on reliable broadband and mobile coverage, the in-depth testing provides consumers and businesses with a clear view of which networks deliver the best real-world connectivity to meet their needs.

Backed by BT’s £40 billion investment into the UK this decade, which will see its Full Fibre and EE’s 5G+ network rolled out to millions more people, homes, and businesses, this record-breaking network performance has been achieved in the face of intense competition in both the broadband and mobile markets.

Greg McCall, Chief Security and Networks Officer at BT, said: “These landmark studies are powerful proof that our investment in improving the UK’s connectivity continues to deliver where it matters most – for families, businesses, and emergency services across the nation.

“Whether you’re at home, at work or on the move, resilient and reliable connectivity is essential to how we live our lives, powering the economy and shaping how we work, learn, keep entertained and stay safe. That’s why we’re bringing Full Fibre and 5G+ to millions more homes, communities, and businesses – so more people can benefit from accessing faster, stronger and more secure connectivity on the UK’s best networks.”

Backing Britain with the UK’s best broadband

The first study by Ookla evaluated the performance of UK broadband networks to understand which major providers are delivering exceptional connectivity to their customers. Using crowdsourced data direct from users across the UK, Ookla generated an overall connectivity score for each operator, which consists of real-world network performance in several important areas, including speed, latency, web browsing, video streaming and gaming – including at peak times.

The results found that BT’s Full Fibre network, which powers the broadband experiences for both EE and BT customers, delivers:

• The UK’s best broadband, winning the award for the first time and proving EE and BT customers are getting the highest-quality broadband performance.

• The UK’s fastest broadband, recording the highest peak download speeds of any major provider and highest average upload speeds.

• The UK’s best broadband gaming experience. EE and BT customers in Cardiff, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Leeds, Sheffield and Nottingham are among those getting the most responsive gaming performance with the lowest jitter. ²

BT’s network division has long been a pioneer in fixed connectivity, consistently improving performance for both BT and EE broadband customers. From launching the UK’s first nationwide Wi-Fi 7 service to bringing 8Gbps speeds to market on next-generation XGSPON broadband, in recent months its fixed network has been optimised for smarter in-home coverage and more reliable streaming, working and gaming, with new tools such as Wi-Fi Intelligence, Wi-Fi Optimiser and Cyber Threat Protect made available to give customers faster, stronger and safer connections.

The total number of customer connections to BT’s Full Fibre network has increased by 16% since the start of 2026, as more households and businesses rely on it to power their lives, workforces and critical operations. ³

Connecting communities with the UK’s best mobile network

A second separate study by RootMetrics® – one of the longest running in the UK which takes six months to complete – saw a team of independent analysts travel around the country examining mobile performance in real-life situations, completing 609,000 tests in a variety of locations and scenarios using shop-brought smartphones and SIMs.

Designed to reflect real customer behaviour, the testing covered the UK’s largest 16 cities, rural communities in each of the four nations, as well as 21,800 miles of roads, 722 indoor locations, and areas of high and low network congestion.

The results found that:

• Overall, EE provides the most reliable mobile connectivity in more places than anyone else, naming it the UK’s best mobile network for a record-extending 13 years in a row.

• EE has improved its performance in the last six months, now providing the best and fastest mobile connectivity in all 16 of the UK’s largest cities, including Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Coventry, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham, Sheffield, and Southampton.

• EE continues to deliver the UK’s best 5G experience with the most 5G availability and the highest average 5G download speeds (230.8 Mbps), which are nearly twice as fast as Virgin Media O2 and more than 32% faster than Vodafone.

• EE provides the UK’s best mobile connectivity for video streaming, having improved its overall video performance in the last six months.

• EE customers also benefit from the best and most reliable gaming experience on any UK mobile network, with its low latency making gaming on the move smooth and more responsive. ⁴

Recent months have seen several major improvements made to the EE mobile network, so consumers, businesses, and critical national services continue to benefit from greater reliability, faster speeds, and a more secure mobile experience wherever they are.

These upgrades include expanding 5G+ coverage to a further six million people since January, upgrading the spectrum on 9,000 mobile sites to boost 5G and 5G+ performance, being the first to deliver reliable mobile signal to rural communities like those in Penmachno, Clocaenog, and Islay, as well as rolling out pioneering innovations such as Advanced RAN Coordination (ARC), which is improving EE’s mobile performance by up to 20% on average in the UK's busiest cities, including London, Glasgow, Liverpool, Manchester, Cardiff and Newcastle.

To see how all UK networks compared in both the mobile and broadband studies, you can access the full reports below:

RootMetrics® - United Kingdom: State of the Mobile Union Report H1 2026

Ookla® - United Kingdom: Broadband Network Performance Report H1 2026

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Notes to editors:

BT uses its different brands in the UK market to play distinct roles and appeal to different customers. EE, BT and Plusnet use our broadband and mobile networks to serve consumers and businesses while supporting our ambition to be the UK’s most trusted connector.

¹ Nationally representative survey of 2,000 UK adults was conducted by Sapio Research with interviews carried out online, March 2026.

² All ranking based on Ookla® Speedtest Intelligence® data, 1H 2026. All rights reserved. The UK’s Best Fixed Network Award from Ookla recognises fixed network providers delivering exceptional overall connectivity. This award is based on the Overall Connectivity Score, which is an aggregate of three key performance metrics: Speed Score, Web Browsing Score, and Video Streaming Score. These components are weighted to reflect their impact on user experience and provide a comprehensive evaluation of fixed network quality (Speed Score: 50%, Web Browsing Score: 25%, and Video Streaming Score: 25%).

³ Refers to the volume of end-user FTTP connections within BT's 21C Broadband Network, January - July 2026.

⁴ All rankings based on the RootMetrics® UK RootScore® Report: H1 2026. Tested at locations across the UK with the best commercially available smartphones on four national mobile networks across all available network types. Your experiences may vary. The RootMetrics award is not an endorsement of EE. Visit ee.co.uk/claims for more details.

Here is a snapshot of the UK-wide network awards EE has won following the independent testing conducted by RootMetrics® throughout the UK in 2026:

1. The UKʼs #1/Best Network (Across the UK, individually in the four nations – England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland – and in all 16 major metropolitan markets)
2. The UKʼs #1/Best Network 13 years and counting
3. The UKʼs #1/Best Network twenty-six times in a row
4. The UKʼs Best 5G Experience
5. The UKʼs Fastest Network
6. The UKʼs Most Reliable Network
7. The UKʼs Best Network for Video
8. The UKʼs Best Network for Gaming
9. The UKʼs Most Reliable Network for Mobile Gaming
10. The UKʼs Best Network for Data Performance
11. The UKʼs Best Network for Calls