Ofcom complaints
6 per 100,000
Q1 2026
In line with the fixed-broadband industry average of 6. Lower is better.
Ofcom complaints report (opens in a new tab)
Head-to-head
EE vs BT Broadband: Which Is Better for Reliability?
EE and BT are both owned by BT Group and share the same Openreach network, so the real differences are price, complaints record and a distinctive mobile-backup feature EE offers that BT does not.
The quick answer
EE and BT are both owned by BT Group and share the same Openreach network, so the real differences are price, complaints record and a distinctive mobile-backup feature EE offers that BT does not.
Updated 25 August 2026·Reviewed by BroadbandPicker editorial team
Quick Verdict
EE is the stronger choice on price and its distinctive automatic mobile-backup feature, with a complaints record that has genuinely caught up to the industry average. BT remains ahead only on raw coverage breadth.
EE vs BT: customer-review evidence
These signals are shown separately because they measure different things. Ofcom complaints record serious escalations, surveys measure experiences across a sample, and public reviews reflect self-selecting recent sentiment. We never combine them into an invented trust score.
EE
Public reviews
1.3 out of 5
Checked 2026-08-25
A self-selecting public-review signal. Provider invitations and who chooses to review can affect the headline score.
Trustpilot profile used in this review (opens in a new tab)BT
Ofcom complaints
7 per 100,000
Q1 2026
Above the fixed-broadband industry average of 6. Lower is better.
Ofcom complaints report (opens in a new tab)Public reviews
4.0 out of 5
Checked 2026-08-23
BT has two active profiles, around 4.0 for bt.com and 1.5 for the older broadband-specific profile. We do not merge them.
Trustpilot profile used in this review (opens in a new tab)Missing a metric does not mean a provider performed badly. Some providers are below Ofcom’s reporting threshold or were not named in a comparable survey. Read our evidence dashboard and review methodology.
EE
Best valueFrom
£22.99/mo
Max speed
900 Mbps
Coverage
97%
Trustpilot
1.3 (broadband-specific)
- Automatic 4G or 5G mobile backup keeps the connection running if the fixed line drops
- Named National Broadband Provider of the Year at the 2026 Uswitch Telecoms Awards for speed and reliability
- Broadband-specific Trustpilot score sits at 1.3 out of 5, well below EE's better-known 4.2 mobile-dominated headline score
BT
From
£23.99/mo
Max speed
900 Mbps
Coverage
98%
Trustpilot
4.0 / 1.5 (two pages)
- The UK's widest broadband network, reaching around 98% of homes via Openreach
- A flat £4 a month price rise every March, disclosed upfront, on every current package
- Ofcom ranked BT third for complaints in Q1 2026, an improvement on the previous quarter
At-a-Glance Comparison
| Metric | EE | BT |
|---|---|---|
| From price | £22.99/mo | £23.99/mo |
| Max speed | 900 Mbps | 900 Mbps |
| Setup fee | £0 (on most current packages) | £30 (reward card offsets) |
| Typical contract | 24 months | 24 months |
| Coverage | 97% | 98% |
| Trustpilot | 1.3 (broadband-specific) | 4.0 / 1.5 (two pages) |
Pros and Cons
EE
- Genuinely fast, consistently reliable speeds, independently recognised by Uswitch
- Automatic mobile network failover is a real feature, not offered by most rivals
- Runs on the Openreach network, so availability and line quality match most other national providers
- No setup fee on most current packages
- Broadband-specific Trustpilot score is exceptionally low, in the worst bracket alongside BT and Sky
- Only 24-month contracts are offered, with no shorter or rolling option
- A scheduled flat price rise applies every March
- A genuinely low Trustpilot score despite an improved, now-average Ofcom complaints position
BT
- Widest realistic coverage of any UK provider, useful where other options are limited
- Reward cards worth up to £140 offset the £30 upfront setup cost if claimed
- Full Fibre 900's Stay Fast Guarantee pays out automatically if speed drops below a set minimum
- Ofcom complaints data has improved year on year, from eighth to seventh per 100,000 customers
- More expensive than most budget and mid-market rivals at a comparable speed
- A scheduled £4 a month price rise every March is built into every current contract
- Only 24-month contracts are offered, with no shorter or rolling option
- Reward card value must be actively claimed, or the net cost is higher than it first appears
Key Differences
Pricing
EE starts from £22.99 a month, a pound cheaper than BT's £23.99, both on 24-month contracts.
Mobile backup
EE's Full Fibre 100 to 500 packages include automatic 4G backup, upgraded to 5G on Full Fibre 900, a genuinely distinctive feature BT does not offer.
Ofcom complaints
EE recorded 6 complaints per 100,000 customers in Ofcom's Q1 2026 report, exactly the industry average, a real improvement from a worst-three position in Q4 2025. BT recorded 7, just above average.
Coverage
BT reaches around 98% of UK premises via Openreach, marginally ahead of EE's roughly 97%.
Trustpilot
EE's broadband-specific Trustpilot score is 1.3, though its whole-brand score (mobile-dominated) is 4.2. BT has two active pages, 4.0 on bt.com and around 1.5 on the older btbroadband.com.
How We Think About This Matchup
EE and BT are both owned by BT Group and sell broadband over the same Openreach network, so line quality and top available speed at a given address are largely identical regardless of which is chosen. EE starts from £22.99 a month, a pound cheaper than BT's £23.99, and includes a genuinely distinctive feature BT does not offer: automatic 4G or 5G mobile backup if the fixed line drops.
The complaints picture has also converged. Ofcom's Q1 2026 report recorded EE at 6 per 100,000 customers, exactly the industry average, a real improvement from a worst-three position in Q4 2025, against BT's 7, just above average.
Final Verdict
Choose EE if the slightly lower price and automatic mobile-backup feature matter, and its now-average Ofcom complaints record is reassuring enough.
Choose BT if raw coverage breadth is the priority, at around 98% of UK premises against EE's roughly 97%, or if the reward-card-offset setup fee structure suits better.
Frequently Asked Questions
Editorial and Source Notes
We review provider comparisons against the same published methodology used across our provider reviews, then add source links where they help verify pricing context, methodology, and trade-offs.