Half a million Scottish homes still can’t get gigabit broadband
Key Points
- More than 500,000 Scottish premises lack gigabit-capable broadband
- Only 54% of rural Scottish premises have gigabit coverage, against 89% urban
- The Western Isles has the lowest coverage in Scotland at 12%
- Scotland's rural gigabit coverage will still trail the UK by 2029
More than 500,000 premises in Scotland cannot get gigabit-capable broadband, according to a new Consumer Scotland report.
The statutory consumer body found that 82% of Scottish premises, or 2,409,146 properties, can currently access gigabit speeds.
Only 54% of rural premises in Scotland have gigabit coverage, compared with 89% of urban premises.
The 35 percentage point gap is the widest of any UK nation.
Rural gigabit coverage stands at 65% in England, 64% in Wales and 91% in Northern Ireland.
Just 12% of premises in the Western Isles can get gigabit broadband, followed by Shetland at 20%, Argyll & Bute at 24% and Orkney at 30%.
Aberdeenshire also falls below half, with 48% of premises covered.
Perth & Kinross (55%), Highland (63%), Moray (64%), Angus (67%) and Dumfries & Galloway (67%) all sit below 70%.
Renfrewshire leads the country at 97%, with Glasgow City and East Renfrewshire both on 95%.
The UK Government committed £800 million in 2024 toward full gigabit coverage across Great Britain through Project Gigabit, which targets 99% of premises by 2032.
The Scottish Government has committed £600 million to its Reaching 100% (R100) programme, which targets hard-to-reach premises across the country.
Project Gigabit has also committed to extending gigabit-capable coverage to more than 13,000 eligible premises across the Northern Isles.
Operator build plans show that 96% of urban and 81% of rural Scottish properties could have gigabit coverage by January 2029.
Both forecasts remain the lowest of any UK nation, against UK-wide figures of 97% and 86%.
Scotland is also on track to have 67% of properties covered by two or more gigabit operators, compared with 73% across the UK.
“While positive progress has been made in extending broadband and mobile coverage across Scotland, consumers in too many rural areas across Scotland continue to experience slower or more limited services than those in urban areas,” said Fraser Stewart, Head of Consumer Markets at Consumer Scotland.
Consumer Scotland called for postcode-level information showing when different broadband technologies will reach each area.
