Compare 4G 5G Broadband Deals

Traditional ADSL broadband is sent to your home via your fixed telephone cable. Even if you don’t use your home phone for making calls, you’ll still need to pay a monthly fee to use the landline cable for your home broadband. 4G and 5G home broadband is a simple, plug and play solution which requires no landline, and no engineer visits. So, your broadband can be up and running minutes after your router arrives. When you sign up to a 4G / 5G home broadband deal, you will be supplied with a router, similar to your traditional home broadband one. All you need to do is pop in the sim card supplied and connect the power supply, and you’re good to go!

In perfect conditions and with the correct antenna position, it's theoretically possible to achieve speeds of 300Mbps download and 50Mbps upload with (4G-LTE Advanced). In reality, this is extremely unlikely. The average customer download speed is 25Mbps with a 7.5Mbps upload. This is similar to a standard non-fibre broadband connection. Given that most 4G Internet customers are living in rural locations, this speed and reliability can be a significant improvement over a standard fixed line broadband connection. If you’re in an area with a weak 4G signal, we would recommend installing an external aerial which will make a significant difference to reliability and achievable speeds. 4G broadband specialists like ‘4G Internet’ and Broadband Shack offer external aerial solutions and are not limited to just one network provider. Ofcom's mobile broadband coverage checker is a good place to start if you want to get a general overview of service in your area. The checker compares 4G signal from O2, EE, Vodafone & Three.

According to a study by Opensignal in May 2021 the average 5G download speed in the UK is 121.4Mbps with an average peak speed of 326.4Mbps. The average 5G upload is 13.8Mbps. 5G signal in the UK is still very limited and typically only found in key cities.

Option 1: 4G Mobile tethering

Tethering is a quick and simple solution to sharing your mobile phone’s broadband connection. By using your phone to create a WiFi hotspot, other devices can share your data allowance. This solution is usually adequate for travelling, camping or ad hoc sharing. The Wi-Fi signal range will not be as powerful as a home router so it’s unlikely to penetrate to adjacent rooms.

Option 2: Mobile broadband device

Typically known as a ‘Mi-Fi’ or ‘Dongle’, these devices are usually a similar size to a small mobile phone and powered by either an internal battery or via USB. The device will create a Wi-Fi network which will generally allow up to 64 devices to connect simultaneously. The Wi-Fi range can be limited as they aren’t as powerful as a standard home broadband router.

Option 3: 4G/5G Sim enabled device

Some tablet devices, e.g. Apple iPads, have sim card slots and can connect directly to the internet, without the need for any additional hardware or Wi-Fi connection. A pre-loaded sim card is the most cost-effective solution. For more regular use, you may wish to consider a sim-only contract.

Option 4: 4G/5G Home broadband solution

With this option, a sim is placed in a 4G/5G enabled router, enabling up to 64 devices to connect to the broadband simultaneously. 4G / 5G home broadband is a growing trend driven by the increasing availability of unlimited data plans. 4G home broadband is particularly popular in rural areas where 4G broadband can be faster and more reliable than a standard broadband connection. One of the main benefits of this option is the absence of line rental fees. Sim contracts vary in data allowances and can be from 1-24 months in duration. For regular use, we would recommend an unlimited tariff. Compare 4G / 5G Home broadband

If you’re moving home or need a temporary broadband solution, 4G broadband could bridge the gap. Filter the 4G home broadband options above to compare one-month contracts.