UK to get better mobile signal indoors and in the countryside – here’s the plan
Key Points
- Ofcom confirmed on 11 June 2026 that it will auction the 1492-1517 MHz block of 1.4 GHz spectrum for mobile use in the UK.
- The regulator expects the spectrum to improve mobile performance where coverage is patchy, particularly indoors and in rural areas.
- Lower frequency spectrum travels further and penetrates buildings better, making it ideal for fixing coverage gaps.
- A consultation on draft Auction Regulations is expected in summer 2026, with the auction itself planned for the first half of 2027.
- Consumers are unlikely to notice improvements before late 2027 at the earliest, once operators deploy the new spectrum.
Ofcom has confirmed it will auction a new block of radio spectrum for mobile use, in a move it expects to improve mobile performance for consumers in areas where coverage is patchy, including indoors and in rural parts of the UK.
The regulator published its decision statement on 11 June 2026, confirming that the 25 MHz upper block of the 1.4 GHz band, covering 1492-1517 MHz, will go under the hammer for mobile services.
The 1.4 GHz band has been harmonised internationally for mobile telecommunications use, and UK mobile network operators have already deployed 40 MHz of it, in the 1452-1492 MHz range.
The newly released block sits directly above this existing allocation and will add fresh capacity to networks once operators put it to use.
Lower frequency bands such as 1.4 GHz are particularly valuable to mobile operators because their signals travel further and penetrate buildings more effectively than higher frequencies.
This makes them well suited to plugging the coverage gaps that frustrate users in two familiar scenarios: inside homes and offices where walls block signals, and in rural areas where mast coverage is thinner.
Ofcom said it expects deployment of the new spectrum to improve the performance of mobile services for consumers, particularly in these harder-to-serve locations.
The regulator has also published coexistence measures alongside its decision, designed to reduce the risk of blocking interference for users in the adjacent 1.5 GHz band.
These include a sample licence, coordination procedures, and an interface requirement document setting out the technical conditions winning bidders must follow.
When will mobile users notice a difference?
The improvement will not arrive overnight. Ofcom expects to publish a consultation on the draft Auction Regulations in summer 2026, which will set out the detailed rules for how the auction will run.
The auction itself is expected to take place in the first half of 2027.
Operators would then need to acquire the spectrum, integrate it into their networks, and deploy it at mast sites before consumers see any benefit, a process that typically takes additional months or years depending on rollout priorities.
The decision marks the end of a long-running process. Ofcom first published its call for input on making more 1.4 GHz spectrum available for mobile services in October 2023, with the consultation closing in April 2025.
The auction will be the latest in a series of spectrum releases aimed at boosting UK mobile networks, following earlier auctions of 700 MHz and 3.6-3.8 GHz spectrum in 2021, which underpinned the expansion of 4G coverage and 5G capacity respectively.
For consumers, the practical takeaway is that help is on the way for weak indoor and rural signal, but the timeline means meaningful improvements are unlikely before late 2027 at the earliest.
In the meantime, users struggling with poor indoor coverage can ask their operator about Wi-Fi calling, which routes calls over a home broadband connection rather than the mobile network, and is supported by all major UK networks.
