O2 5G Coverage - Check coverage in your area Coverage ► Compare 5G Coverage ► Coverage Checker Main Networks ► EE O2 Three Vodafone Other Networks ► Asda Mobile BT CMLink GiffGaff iD Mobile Lebara Mobile Lyca Mobile Smarty Sky Talkmobile Tesco Mobile Virgin Mobile Voxi Phones ► Phone deals ► Compare phone deals Phone Networks ► EE iD Mobile O2 Sky Three Virgin Mobile Vodafone Popular phones ► iPhone 14 iPhone 14 Plus iPhone 14 Pro iPhone 14 Pro Max Galaxy S22 Ultra Galaxy S22 iPhone SE (2022) Brands ► Apple Google Honor Motorola Nokia OnePlus Samsung Sony Oppo Xiaomi Sim Only ► Compare SIM Only deals ► SIM Only deals Main Networks ► EE O2 Three Vodafone Other Networks ► ASDA Giffgaff iD Mobile Lebara Mobile Smarty Sky Mobile Talkmobile Tesco Mobile Virgin Mobile Voxi Broadband ► Home Broadband ► Compare deals Vodafone Three Mobile Broadband ► Compare deals EE Vodafone Popular products ► Three 5G Hub Vodafone Gigacube Unlimited Data ► Compare all networks ► Unlimited data deals Main Networks ► EE unlimited data O2 unlimited data Vodafone unlimited data Three unlimited data Other Networks ► ASDA unlimited data Giffgaff unlimited data ID unlimited data Lebara unlimited data Smarty unlimited data Tesco Mobile unlimited da Voxi unlimited data Blog ► Reviews ► View All Reviews EE Mobile Network Review Three 5G Hub review OnePlus 10 Pro review Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra review Vodafone 5G Mobile Hotspot review 5GEE Router 2021 review iPhone 13 Mini review News ► View All News 8GB SIM plan for just £7 a month EE 5G is now available in 14 new places – and improved in 14 more EE and Three offer the best 5G experience according to the latest data Three has brought 5G to Torquay ahead of any other network Guides ► View All Guides How much is 12GB of data and do I need more than that? How much is 8GB of data and do I need more than that? 5G pay as you go SIM cards Do I need a new SIM card for 5G? CMLink PAC code: keep your number when changing mobile operators Best 5G network Does 5G use more data and how much data do I need? Coverage Compare 5G Coverage Coverage Checker Main Networks EE O2 Three Vodafone Other Networks Asda Mobile BT CMLink GiffGaff iD Mobile Lebara Mobile Lyca Mobile Smarty Sky Talkmobile Tesco Mobile Virgin Mobile Voxi Phones Phone deals Compare phone deals Phone Networks EE iD Mobile O2 Sky Three Virgin Mobile Vodafone Popular phones iPhone 14 iPhone 14 Plus iPhone 14 Pro iPhone 14 Pro Max Galaxy S22 Ultra Galaxy S22 iPhone SE (2022) Brands Apple Google Honor Motorola Nokia OnePlus Samsung Sony Oppo Xiaomi Sim Only Compare SIM Only deals SIM Only deals Main Networks EE O2 Three Vodafone Other Networks ASDA Giffgaff iD Mobile Lebara Mobile Smarty Sky Mobile Talkmobile Tesco Mobile Virgin Mobile Voxi Broadband Home Broadband Compare deals Vodafone Three Mobile Broadband Compare deals EE Vodafone Popular products Three 5G Hub Vodafone Gigacube Unlimited Data Compare all networks Unlimited data deals Main Networks EE unlimited data O2 unlimited data Vodafone unlimited data Three unlimited data Other Networks ASDA unlimited data Giffgaff unlimited data ID unlimited data Lebara unlimited data Smarty unlimited data Tesco Mobile unlimited da Voxi unlimited data Blog Reviews View All Reviews EE Mobile Network Review Three 5G Hub review OnePlus 10 Pro review Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra review Vodafone 5G Mobile Hotspot review 5GEE Router 2021 review iPhone 13 Mini review News View All News 8GB SIM plan for just £7 a month EE 5G is now available in 14 new places – and improved in 14 more EE and Three offer the best 5G experience according to the latest data Three has brought 5G to Torquay ahead of any other network Guides View All Guides How much is 12GB of data and do I need more than that? How much is 8GB of data and do I need more than that? 5G pay as you go SIM cards Do I need a new SIM card for 5G? CMLink PAC code: keep your number when changing mobile operators Best 5G network Does 5G use more data and how much data do I need? Home 5G Coverage O2 O2 5G coverage checker Find out if O2 5G coverage is available in your area or when it is coming to your area Check Coverage O2 launched its 5G service on October 17th, 2019, making it the last major UK network to launch a 5G service of some kind. It launched in six major towns and cities, with an additional 14 set to get 5G coverage before the end of 2019. Beyond that, O2 has also said that it will have brought 5G to 50 towns and cities in total by summer 2020 (so 30 more beyond the end of 2019). Coverage in places with O2 5G isn’t initially comprehensive, rather the network is focusing on “busy footfall areas” such as Waterloo in London. But that’s in line with rivals and you can expect coverage to improve over time. O2 5G is available in parts of at least 750 UK cities and towns at the time of writing, up from an initial launch in six places on October 17th, 2019. Coverage in places with O2 5G isn’t initially comprehensive, rather the network is focusing on “busy footfall areas” such as Waterloo in London. But that’s in line with rivals and you can expect coverage to improve over time. Below we’ve included a full overview of O2’s 5G network, along with a list of all the major locations that O2 5G is available in, and a comparison to the coverage of other UK networks. O2 5G Summary O2 5G summary chart O2 5G coverage Around 750 UK towns & cities Coverage checker Check O2 coverage Network speeds (average download speeds) 5G – 92.3Mbps (Opensignal tests) 4G – 18.2Mbps (Opensignal tests) O2 4G and 3G coverage 99% population coverage 5G phones 5G phones on O2 5G home broadband 5G home broadband on O2 5G SIM only 5G SIM only on O2 How does O2's 5G coverage compare to others? We track 120 major towns and cities in the UK for 5G coverage, and the networks stack up as follows: O2 has launched 5G in 88 of the 120 locations below. Three has launched 5G in 106 of the 120 locations below. EE has launched 5G in 107 of the 120 locations below. Vodafone has launched 5G in 66 of the 120 locations below. It’s worth noting that a tick on this chart just means a network has some 5G coverage in a location – not that 5G will be available town or city-wide. So it’s always worth using a network’s official coverage checker to get a more detailed picture of 5G coverage in your area. On top of that, indoor and outdoor coverage can differ. Even official coverage checkers won’t always be able to paint an accurate picture of indoor coverage, but they can give you some idea. In all cases though, 5G coverage should improve over time, so if you don’t have 5G where you are now, or if it doesn’t reach inside your home or office, it might arrive before too long. Town/City EE +BT +CMLink Vodafone +ASDA +VOXI +Virgin +Lebara +Talkmobile Three + iD Mobile +SMARTY O2 +Sky +Tesco +Giffgaff +Lyca Aberdeen ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Bath ✔ ✖ ✔ ✖ Birmingham ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Blackburn ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Blackpool ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Bolton ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Bournemouth ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Bradford ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Brighton ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Bristol ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Bromley ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Cambridge ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Canterbury ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Cardiff ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Carlisle ✔ ✖ ✔ ✖ Central London ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Chelmsford ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Chester ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Cleveland ✖ ✔ ✖ ✔ Colchester ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Coventry ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Crewe ✔ ✖ ✔ ✖ Croydon ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Darlington ✖ ✖ ✖ ✔ Dartford ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Derby ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Doncaster ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Dorchester ✖ ✖ ✖ ✖ Dudley ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Dumfries and Galloway ✖ ✖ ✖ ✖ Dundee ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Durham ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ East London ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Edinburgh ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Enfield ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Exeter ✔ ✖ ✔ ✖ Falkirk and Stirling ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Galashiels ✖ ✖ ✖ ✖ Glasgow ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Gloucester ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Guildford ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Halifax ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Harrogate ✔ ✖ ✔ ✖ Harrow ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Hemel Hempstead ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Hereford ✔ ✖ ✔ ✖ Huddersfield ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Hull ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Ilford ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Inverness ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Ipswich ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Kilmarnock ✔ ✖ ✔ ✖ Kingston upon Thames ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Kirkcaldy ✖ ✖ ✔ ✖ Kirkwall ✖ ✖ ✖ ✖ Lancaster ✔ ✔ ✖ ✔ Leeds ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Leicester ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Lerwick ✖ ✖ ✖ ✖ Lincoln ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Liverpool ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Llandrindod Wells ✖ ✖ ✖ ✖ Llandudno ✖ ✔ ✖ ✔ Luton ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Manchester ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Milton Keynes ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Motherwell ✔ ✖ ✔ ✖ Newcastle upon Tyne ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Newport ✔ ✔ ✔ ✖ North London ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ North West London ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Northampton ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Northern Ireland ✔ ✖ ✖ ✔ Norwich ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Nottingham ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Oldham ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Outer Hebrides ✖ ✖ ✖ ✖ Oxford ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Paisley ✔ ✔ ✔ ✖ Perth ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Peterborough ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Plymouth ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Portsmouth ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Preston ✔ ✖ ✔ ✖ Reading ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Redhill ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Rochester ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Romford ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Salisbury ✔ ✖ ✖ ✖ Sheffield ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Shrewsbury ✔ ✖ ✔ ✖ Slough ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ South East London ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ South West London ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Southall ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Southampton ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Southend-on-Sea ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ St Albans ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Stevenage ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Stockport ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Stoke-on-Trent ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Sunderland ✔ ✔ ✖ ✔ Sutton ✔ ✔ ✔ ✖ Swansea ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Swindon ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Taunton ✔ ✖ ✔ ✖ Telford ✖ ✖ ✔ ✖ Tonbridge ✖ ✖ ✔ ✖ Torquay ✖ ✖ ✔ ✖ Truro ✔ ✖ ✔ ✖ Twickenham ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Wakefield ✔ ✖ ✔ ✔ Walsall ✔ ✖ ✔ ✖ Warrington ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Watford ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ West London ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Wigan ✔ ✔ ✔ ✖ Wolverhampton ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Worcester ✔ ✖ ✔ ✖ York ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ Latest locations to get O2 5G The most recent places that O2 has brought 5G to (as of December 2022) include Bromley, Canterbury, Enfield, Falkirk and Stirling, Harrow, Ilford, and Perth. Check O2 5G coverage O2 coverage checker O2 has an online coverage checker where you’ll be able to see 5G coverage. Simply enter your postcode or town to see coverage in your area. This is definitely worth doing, as O2 5G isn’t initially available everywhere, even within cities that have some 5G coverage. You can also see 4G, 3G and 2G coverage on this page, with a breakdown of indoor and outdoor coverage. 4G coverage If you’re not in a 5G coverage area then you’ll get 4G or 3G speeds, just like you would have before 5G. O2 has around 99% UK population coverage with 4G, 3G and 2G, which is comparable with rivals. Check out the chart below for a 4G coverage comparison between O2 and the other main UK networks, based on the latest available data. 5G networks 4G population coverage (2022) EE (+BT +CMLink) >99% Check Coverage Three (+ iD Mobile +SMARTY) >99% Check Coverage Vodafone (+VOXI +Virgin Mobile +Asda + Lebara +Talkmobile) >99% Check Coverage O2 (+Sky +Tesco +Giffgaff +Lyca) >99% Check Coverage 5G roaming abroad O2 doesn’t allow 5G roaming at the time of writing, but on O2 you can roam at 4G or 3G speeds at no extra cost in 48 destinations – or up to 75 destinations on some plans. 5G Network Speeds Average O2 5G download speed Median O2 5G download speed Max O2 5G download speed 92.3/115.7Mbps (Opensignal/Point Topic) 169.2/103/155Mbps (RootMetrics/Point Topic/Ookla) 302.1Mbps (RootMetrics) Based on September 2020 data from Point Topic, O2 has an average 5G download speed in UK-wide tests of 115.7Mbps. The same tests found that its median 5G download speed was 103Mbps, and that its maximum 5G download speed was 247Mbps. That maximum speed was recorded just outside Glasgow. However, there are signs of improvement, because in RootMetrics data covering the first half of 2021, the highest median speed recorded by O2 was 193Mbps. The company also found during this period that O2’s fastest ‘everyday 5G’ median download speed was 179.3Mbps. This result uses a mix of pure 5G and switching between 5G and 4G for the same data activity, since that’s something that will often happen. That said, in a follow-up report in the second half of 2021, O2’s highest median was a lower 169.2Mbps, so the network might not always be improving. In earlier data from the second half of 2020 meanwhile, RootMetrics found that O2’s highest overall speed was 302.1Mbps. Indeed, an Opensignal report from September 2022 found that O2’s average 5G download speed was just 92.3Mbps, which is lower than EE or Three, and also lower than the Point Topic average above from 2020. In earlier data from the second half of 2020 meanwhile, RootMetrics found that O2’s highest overall speed was 302.1Mbps. Elsewhere, Ookla recorded in the first half of 2021 that O2’s median 5G download speed was 155Mbps, which is rather higher than Point Topic found it to be, but a little lower than RootMetrics. Of course as O2’s coverage improves, its performance may well continue to do so too, but how much by remains to be seen. Even now though, O2’s 5G speeds should be far higher than its 4G ones, as for example O2’s 4G download speeds average just 18.2Mbps according to an October 2020 report from Opensignal. Latency Latency - measured in milliseconds (ms) - is how long a mobile network takes to respond to a request before it even starts properly transferring data. On 4G networks latency is often around 30-50ms, but on 5G it could get as low as 1ms – though don’t expect that initially. We don’t have much information on O2’s 5G latency, but 2021 data from Ookla suggests that it’s 31ms, so likely lower than 4G latency but not by as much as we’d hope to eventually see. Still, even this improvement will benefit all sorts of things, including online gaming, loading streamed videos, and excitingly could also help allow for new use cases. O2’s 5G frequency allocation Frequency Network type 3.6GHz (3600MHz) 5G 3.4GHz (3400MHz) 5G 2.3GHz (2300MHz) 4G 2.1GHz (2100MHz) 3G and 4G 1.8GHz (1800MHz) 2G and 4G 900MHz 2G and 3G 800MHz 4G 700MHz 4G and 5G O2 currently uses the 3.6GHz and 3.4GHz frequencies to transmit its 5G signals. That’s higher than the frequencies it uses for other network types, as the chart above shows. Being higher frequency tends to mean there’s greater capacity available, which can help with reliability, allowing the network to maintain high and consistent speeds even with loads of simultaneous users. That’s important, as ever more devices are becoming connected, and – in particular with 5G - data demands are growing. However, these high frequency bands can’t travel as far as lower frequency ones, and they aren’t as good at penetrating walls and other obstacles – which is why you might sometimes find you have 5G outside but not indoors. These are problems that mobile networks should be able to overcome though. One way of overcoming this is to leverage low frequency spectrum to make up for these weaknesses. The 700MHz band – some of which was auctioned as part of the UK’s second 5G spectrum auction – has been identified as a candidate for this, though it could also work well for boosting 4G coverage in rural areas. At the time of writing it’s not clear whether O2 will use this for 4G, 5G, or both. In terms of its 5G spectrum holdings, O2 currently has access to 40MHz of 3.4GHz spectrum and 40MHz of 3.6GHz spectrum, for 80MHz in total. That’s the same as EE but slightly less than Vodafone’s 90MHz and well below the 140MHz of 5G spectrum that Three has access to. These totals don’t include the 700MHz spectrum, which isn’t generally considered ‘5G spectrum’ but which could still be used for 5G. If we factor that in then O2 has 100MHz of 5G spectrum (as it has access to 20MHz in the 700MHz band), while EE has 120MHz, Three has 160MHz, and Vodafone still has 90MHz. While O2 has less 5G spectrum than some networks, it has arranged to trade some of its holdings with Vodafone, so that its full 80MHz can be contiguous, which can allow for higher speeds and lower latency. So that might give it an edge (though Three has a 100MHz contiguous block). It’s worth also noting that there may yet be further 5G spectrum auctions in future, so these totals could change over time. Networks that have launched 5G in the UK As seen on: 5G Coverage EE 5G Coverage O2 5G Coverage Three 5G Coverage Vodafone 5G Coverage More Networks Compare deals 5G Phones 5G SIM Only 5G Home Broadband Data Only SIM Reviews Guides Our Site About / Contact us Our team Privacy Policy Cookie Policy 5G Newsletter Stay up-to-date with 5G and sign up to our newsletter. 5G.co.uk is supported by its audience. When you purchase through our site, we may earn a small commission. Find out more. 2023 Copyright 5G.co.uk. All rights reserved. This website uses cookies to give you the best experience. By continuing you agree to our cookie policy. Okay