5G locations across the UK: towns and cities with coverage and how the technology works

Just as 3G was replaced with 4G mobile technology, so too will 5G replace 4G as the primary technology used for mobile internet.
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It stands for ‘fifth generation’, and boasts much higher upload and download speeds than its predecessors, as well as better latency, which is the time it takes for a network to respond to a request.

How does 5G work?

The technology works in a similar way to previous iterations, in that mobile masts transmit radio frequencies carrying data to your smartphone, but 5G operates at a higher frequency spectrum, which means it can travel much faster, though not as far.

5G locations UK: towns and cities with coverage and how the technology works (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)5G locations UK: towns and cities with coverage and how the technology works (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
5G locations UK: towns and cities with coverage and how the technology works (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)
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This means that for 5G to be fully operational, it needs a lot more infrastructure, though a lot of it will be discreet and some will involve updating existing masts and infrastructure.

Which mobile phone networks use 5G?

Most of the major mobile operators in the UK have launched their 5G services, including EE, Vodafone, Three, O2, BT, Sky, Tesco Mobile and VOXI.

However, that doesn’t mean that if you’re on one of those networks you can definitely utilise 5G internet - it also depends on where in the country you are.

Full list of UK 5G locations

At present, just fewer than 100 of the UK’s major towns and cities have 5G coverage with at one mobile network. According to 5g.co.uk, these areas are:

- Aberdeen - EE, BT, Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Bath - EE and Three

- Basildon - O2, Sky and Tesco

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- Belfast - EE, BT, Vodafone, VOXI, Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Birkenhead - EE, BT, Vodafone, VOXI, Three

- Birmingham - EE, BT, Vodafone, VOXI, Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Blackpool - EE, BT, Three

- Bradford - Three

- Brighton - Three

- Bristol - EE, BT, Vodafone, VOXI, Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Bury - EE and BT

- Cardiff - EE, BT, Vodafone, VOXI, Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Chatham - EE, BT, Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Chelmsford - EE and BT

- Cheltenham - Vodafone and VOXI

- Chesterfield - EE, BT, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Clevedon - EE and BT

- Clydebank - EE and BT

- Coventry - EE, BT, Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Dartford - EE, BT, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Derby - Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Doncaster - EE, BT and Three

- Dudley - EE and BT

- Dundee - Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Edinburgh - EE, BT, Vodafone, VOXI, O2, Sky and Tesco

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- Gillingham - EE, BT, O2, Sky and Tesco- Glasgow - EE, BT, Vodafone, VOXI, Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Guildford - EE, BT, Vodafone, VOXI, Three

- Harlow - EE and BT

- Hemel Hempstead - Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Huddersfield - EE, BT, Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Hull - EE, BT, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Kingston upon Thames - EE and BT

- Ipswich - Three

- Lancaster - Vodafone and VOXI

- Leeds - EE, BT, Vodafone, VOXI, Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Leicester - EE, BT, Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Lichfield - EE and BT

- Liverpool - EE, BT, Vodafone, VOXI, Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Llandudno - Vodafone and VOXI

- Loughborough - EE and BT

- London - EE, BT, Vodafone, VOXI, Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Luton - Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Maidstone - EE, BT, Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Manchester - EE, BT, Vodafone, VOXI, Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Middlesbrough - O2, Sky and Tesco

- Motherwell - EE, BT and Three

- Newbury - Vodafone and VOXI

- Newcastle - EE, BT, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Northampton - EE, BT, O2, Sky and Tesco

- North Shields - EE, BT, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Norwich - O2, Sky and Tesco

- Nottingham - EE, BT, Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Oldham - EE and BT

- Oxford - EE, BT, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Paisley - EE, BT, Vodafone and VOXI

- Peterborough - Three, O”, Sky and Tesco

- Plymouth - EE, BT, Vodafone, VOXI, Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Portsmouth - Vodafone and VOXI

- Preston - Three

- Reading - Vodafone, VOXI, Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Redhill - O2, Sky and Tesco

- Rochdale - EE, BT, Vodafone and VOXI

- Rochester - EE and BT

- Romford - EE and BT

- Rotherham - EE, BT, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Salford - EE, BT, Vodafone and VOXI

- Sheffield EE, BT, Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Slough - Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Solihull - EE, BT, Vodafone and VOXI

- Southampton - Vodafone and VOXI

- Southend on Sea - EE and BT

- South Shields - EE, BT, O2, Sky and Tesco

- St Albans - Three

- Staines - EE, BT, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Stevenage - EE, BT and Three

- Stirling - EE and BT

- Stockport - Vodafone and VOXI

- Stoke-on-Trent - Vodafone and VOXI

- Sunderland - EE, BT, Three, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Sutton Coalfield - EE and BT

- Swansea - Vodafone, VOXI and Three

- Swindon - Three

- Wakefield - EE and BT

- Walsall - EE and BT

- Warrington - Vodafone, VOXI, O2, Sky and Tesco

- Watford - EE and BT

- West Bromwich - EE and BT

- Wigan - Three

- Wolverhampton - EE, BT, Vodafone and VOXI

- Worthing - O2, Sky and Tesco

- York - O2, Sky and Tesco

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