EE ranked UK’s best mobile network in RootMetrics survey

Operator finished top or tied for first in every performance category across all UK nations, with Vodafone placed bottom in all but two categories

EE has been ranked as the best UK mobile network following comprehensive testing by RootMetrics.

The operator finished top or tied for first in every performance category, but Vodafone finished last in all except for two categories – UK network speed and network speed in Scotland.

The independent mobile analytics firm said it drove more than 23,000 miles across all four countries and collected more than 840,000 samples – the equivalent of one sample for every 100 mobile phone contracts in the UK.

It used off the shelf mobiles to test outdoors during driving, and at more than 1,000 indoor locations.

The report provides a breakdown of how each of the four networks – EE, O2, Vodafone and Three – performed across call, text and mobile internet testing, as well as a summary view of which network was the fastest and which was the most reliable.

The results are below:

Overall performance

Rank Network Score
1 EE 84.6
2 Three 73.5
3 O2 66.5
4 Vodafone 52.4

 

Calls

Rank Network Score
1 EE 86.3
2 O2 79.2
3 Three 76.3
4 Vodafone 66.6

 

Texts

Rank Network Score
1 EE 93.0
2 O2 90.8
3 Three 90.4
4 Vodafone 88.3

 

Mobile internet 

Rank Network Score
1 EE 81.0
2 Three 67.1
3 O2 48.4
4 Vodafone 30.2

 

Network reliability

Rank Network Score
1 EE 77.7
2 Three 74.2
3 O2 59.1
4 Vodafone 40.2

 

Network speed

Rank Network Score
1 EE 102.4
2 O2 75.9
3 Vodafone 72.9
4 Three 69.0

 

RootMetrics also compared network performance across all four UK countries, with EE leading the way again. Three also impressed with its level of reliability:

Overall performance

Country Winner Score
England EE 82.4
Northern Ireland EE 86.3
Scotland EE 78
Wales EE and Three 73.1 and 70.7

 

Network reliability – England

Rank Network Score
1 EE 74.1
2 Three 68.7
3 O2 51.3
4 Vodafone 27.4

 

Network reliability – Northern Ireland

Rank Network Score
1 Three 82.7
2 EE 82.3
3 O2 51.3
4 Vodafone 37.7

 

Network reliability – Scotland

Rank Network Score
1 EE 74.6
2 Three 71.3
3 O2 44.0
Vodafone *

*Below minimum performance threshold

 

Network reliability – Wales

Rank Network Score
1 Three 82.7
2 EE 82.3
O2 *
Vodafone *

*Below minimum performance threshold

 

Network speed – England

Rank Network Score
1 EE 103.7
2 O2 76.7
3 Three 72.5
4 Vodafone 68.7

 

Network speed – Northern Ireland

Rank Network Score
1 EE 94.6
2 Three 73.1
3 O2 67.0
4 Vodafone 66.5

 

Network speed – Scotland

Rank Network Score
1 EE 83.0
2 Vodafone 70.0
3 Three 68.9
4 O2 68.0

 

Network speed – Wales

Rank Network Score
1 EE 79.4
2 O2 67.1
3 Three 66.6
4 Vodafone 62.4

 

RootMetrics CEO and president Bill Moore said: “These results give UK consumers and businesses the most accurate view of mobile performance in the UK that has ever been made available. From nation to neighbourhood, people now have access to data showing them the best network in their area.

“No other study of this size and scale for mobile performance has ever been carried out before in the UK, and it has, for the first time, shown consumers the true services they are receiving from their network provider.”

EE was the first UK operator to switch on its 4G network when it launched in 2012. Its 4G network currently covers 175 towns and more than 70 per cent of the UK population.

It ended last year with two million 4G customers after growing its base by 68 per cent in Q4, with 816,000 customers added in the three month period. It is aiming to treble that base to six million customers before the end of the year.

Since 2012, the operator said it has invested more than £1 billion in its network and will spend a further £500 million further expanding its 4G coverage to cover the remainder of the country and enhance call quality. It is aiming for 98 per cent population coverage before the end of this year.

EE CEO Olaf Swantee said: “Today’s results show that the EE network gives customers everywhere in the UK the best mobile experience. This is down to our ongoing investment in introducing 4G, increasing 3G capacity and upgrading 2G, while also spending hundreds of millions on phone call quality.”

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