Community Fibre Broadband Review (Updated March 2026)
London's Best Kept Secret?
Community Fibre has genuinely shaken up the London broadband market. By building its own dedicated full fibre network, it offers speeds up to 5Gbps for homes, symmetrical uploads and downloads, and better kit than most mainstream rivals. It is still mostly a London story though, with parts of Surrey and Sussex also covered, so postcode checks are still the big deciding factor.
Pros and Cons
What It Nails
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Symmetrical Speeds Unlike most ISPs, your upload speed matches your download speed. This is a big deal for cloud backups, video calls, remote work and anyone shifting large files around.
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Strong Hardware Every package includes a router, and Community Fibre’s higher tiers now come with current Linksys kit, including WiFi 7 hardware on the faster packages. Premium WiFi is available on selected top tiers if you want broader in-home coverage.
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Fair Pricing They still tend to undercut the big legacy providers, especially once you compare like-for-like full fibre speeds rather than headline deals built around slower upload performance.
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Solid Support Setup They offer phone, chat and online support, plus a public service status page, and customer feedback remains stronger than many of the national giants.
The Drawbacks
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Limited Availability It is still mainly a London provider, though Community Fibre now also serves parts of Surrey and Sussex. You absolutely need to check by postcode before getting too excited.
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TV Offerings Community Fibre TV is powered by Netgem, with a 4K box, 240+ live channels and 30+ apps. It does the job, but it still does not feel as slick or as fully loaded as Sky Q or Virgin TV 360.
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Static IP Cost Static IPs are still reserved for Business Fibre Broadband customers. On the residential side, you are looking at Public IP on the higher premium packages rather than a true static IP option.
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CGNAT Community Fibre still uses CGNAT on packages up to and including 2.5Gbps, except 2.5Gbps Premium. Port forwarding is only available on the packages that come with a Public IP.
The Infrastructure
True Full Fibre (FTTP)
Community Fibre operates its own dedicated network. It does not use Openreach access lines, whether that is older copper-based broadband or Openreach FTTP. Community Fibre runs its own FTTP network end to end.
This XGS-PON setup is what lets it offer symmetrical speeds. While more traditional connections often crawl on uploads, Community Fibre can send data up to the cloud just as quickly as it pulls it down.
The Hardware Advantage
Better Kit Than the Usual Free Router
One of Community Fibre’s strongest selling points is the hardware. Plenty of providers still send out a basic router that falls apart as soon as you walk into the back room. Community Fibre continues to use Linksys, which is a much better starting point.
Community Fibre currently supplies Linksys routers based on speed tier:
- Under 100Mbps: Linksys WHW01 (WiFi 5)
- 100Mbps to 500Mbps: Linksys MX20 (WiFi 6)
- 1Gbps to 2.5Gbps Premium: Linksys M60 (WiFi 7)
- 5Gbps Premium: Linksys M62 (WiFi 7 tri-band)
That is a genuine value add, not just marketing fluff. It means you have a much better chance of seeing strong real-world wireless performance on modern WiFi 6 and WiFi 7 devices, rather than only getting the advertised speed through Ethernet.
The Packages
Community Fibre still keeps things fairly simple, with speed tiers ranging from everyday full fibre right up to properly over-the-top home broadband.
100Mbps to 5Gbps
Community Fibre’s main residential tiers are still built around 100Mbps, 300Mbps, 1Gbps, 2.5Gbps Premium and 5Gbps Premium, though older or legacy tiers can still exist for some customers.
1Gbps: This is the sweet spot for most power users. Big downloads are quick, uploads stop being a pain, and the supplied hardware is finally good enough that your WiFi setup does not feel like the bottleneck straight away.
5Gbps: Still the halo package. It is overkill for most homes, but for serious home offices, creators moving giant files, or anyone who simply wants the fastest residential broadband they can get, it is hard to beat.
Symmetrical Uploads
This is still the standout feature. On a typical mainstream fibre package, downloads look fine on paper but uploads are far weaker. On Community Fibre’s top-end full fibre tiers, upload speed can match download speed, which makes cloud backups, live streaming, remote work and large file sharing far smoother.
Performance & Specs
By The Numbers
Community Fibre still pitches itself as London’s fastest broadband, and that is the core of the appeal. It combines very high top-end speeds, symmetrical performance and a network that does not feel weighed down by legacy infrastructure in the way older broadband products often do.
Top Alternatives
If you cannot get Community Fibre on your street, these are the names worth looking at next.
The Full List of Extras
They still do not have the giant ecosystem of Virgin or Sky, but there are a few genuinely useful extras worth noting.
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Netgem TV: The TV add-on is built around a 4K Netgem box with 240+ live channels, 30+ apps and a sizeable on-demand library. It is more than just a token extra, even if it is not a full Sky replacement.
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30-Day Satisfaction Guarantee: Current sales pages still push a 30 day guarantee. Older legal wording references some legacy 60 day offers, but for live deals the 30 day wording is the one people are most likely to see.
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One Touch Switching: This is the fresh practical detail worth adding. If you opt in, Community Fibre handles the switching process with your old provider and aims to keep your old service live until the new one is up and running.
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Refer a Friend: The referral scheme is still active, but the exact reward can change. Check the live terms before quoting any specific gift card amount in the body copy.
The Trade-Offs
It is not flawless. Here are the bits that still deserve a reality check.
Moving Home: This is still the big one. If you move somewhere outside the footprint, which is still most of the UK, you cannot just take the service with you. Depending on your timing, you could face early termination charges and equipment return requirements.
Wayleave Agreements: If you live in a flat, rented building or managed block, Community Fibre may still need a wayleave agreement before installation. If the landlord or building management drags its feet, your order can go nowhere.
Ownership & Structure
Independent & Focused
Community Fibre remains an independent ISP focused on its own network footprint rather than reselling a national wholesale product. That narrower focus is part of why the service feels more tailored than the usual one-size-fits-all broadband pitch.
FAQs
Do I need a BT phone line for Community Fibre?
No. Community Fibre uses its own dedicated fibre optic cables. It is completely independent of the Openreach and BT phone network, so you do not need a traditional phone line rental just to get broadband.
Can I get Community Fibre outside London?
Mostly London, but Community Fibre is also available in parts of Surrey and Sussex. Always check by postcode rather than assuming coverage.
What router do they supply?
Community Fibre supplies Linksys routers, and the exact model depends on your speed tier. The faster packages now include WiFi 7 hardware.
How We Rated Community Fibre
To keep things fair, we use a standardised weighting system across all our ISP reviews. Here is exactly how the 8.3/10 score for Community Fibre was calculated:
This approach lets us judge the best deal for each customer without bias. Commission, CPA and margins are not used in the scoring model.
HASNAAT MAHMOOD
Broadband & Technology Expert
"Community Fibre is still one of the easiest recommendations in London if raw broadband performance is what you care about most. The symmetrical speeds are properly useful, the supplied hardware is better than average, and One Touch Switching makes the move less painful than it used to be. The obvious catch is still availability."