5G Standalone is the next big evolution in mobile network technology, and really it’s what we were promised with 5G.
Because this is true, standalone 5G, rather than relying in part on 4G infrastructure as all the UK’s 5G networks did at launch – and as many still do.
It’s a technology that EE, Three, Vodafone and O2 all promise to deliver, but right now only Vodafone, EE and O2 actually are delivering it, and only in select locations.
So below, we’ll take a look at 5G Standalone on EE, Vodafone and O2, as well as detailing the devices that support 5G Standalone. But if you’re still not sure what 5G Standalone is, head to our what is a 5G Standalone network guide first.
Which UK networks have launched 5G Standalone?
Vodafone
Vodafone was the first UK network to launch 5G Standalone, but it doesn’t call its network upgrade that. Instead, Vodafone markets this as 5G Ultra.
The network hasn’t given a recent update about how widespread its 5G Ultra network is, but it has said that it will reach 99% population coverage by 2030 and 99.96% by 2034.
It claims that with 5G Ultra, your phone’s battery will last up to 25% longer – or for up to three additional hours.
It also touts higher 5G speeds, which should be up to 10 times faster than 4G. It doesn’t give a specific figure but does claim that its 4G network offers average speeds of 23-35Mbps, so if we take the middle figure there (29Mbps) then 10 times that is 290Mbps.
Vodafone claims its standard (non-standalone) 5G offers average speeds of 150-200Mbps, so that would make its 5G Ultra network substantially speedier.
Finally, Vodafone claims that 5G Ultra will ensure you can make calls and use data even in busy places, such as station platforms, stadiums, and festivals, whereas previous network technologies could sometimes struggle with the congestion in those sorts of places.
These are all among the standard benefits of 5G Standalone regardless of what network you’re using it on, but they’re definitely beneficial.
If you want 5G Ultra on Vodafone you’ll currently need to be a Pay Monthly customer, as it’s not yet available on Pay As You Go. It also doesn’t come with all Pay Monthly plans, so check the details of a plan to make sure you’re getting this if it matters to you.
Plus, currently 5G Ultra isn’t available across Vodafone’s whole 5G network. Rather, you can get it in parts of London, Manchester, Glasgow, Birmingham, and Cardiff, among many other places. Check your postcode on Vodafone’s coverage checker to see if there’s coverage near you. If there’s not currently, there likely will be eventually, because Vodafone is working to expand its 5G Ultra coverage.
You’ll also need a compatible phone – head to the devices section further down for details of these.
O2
O2 launched 5G Standalone (which it calls 5G+) after Vodafone but before EE or Three (the latter of which at the time of writing doesn’t yet offer 5G Standalone).
The network makes similar claims about its 5G Standalone service as Vodafone, saying that it offers higher bandwidth and lower latency connections, allowing for greater reliability, a massive increase in the number of connected devices, and wider 5G coverage.
O2 also highlights new use cases that 5G Standalone can unlock, such as remote healthcare, fully robotic factories, autonomous transport, network slicing, and advanced robotics.
5G Standalone is available to all O2 customers with a compatible device and SIM card at no extra cost, and the initial roll out covered parts of Manchester, Liverpool, London, Lincoln, Birmingham, Sheffield, Glasgow, Newcastle, Leeds, York, Belfast, Cardiff, Nottingham, and Slough.
The network has come a long way since that initial launch, since as of September 2025 it claims that 5G Standalone is available in 500 towns and cities, accounting for over 70% of the UK population, or around 49 million people.
And the actual figure will be even higher, because since making that announcement, O2 has also brought 5G Standalone to Brighton & Hove, Cannock, Coventry, Dorking, Dudley, Eastbourne, Epsom, Gloucester, Greater Manchester, Guildford, Haslemere, Hastings, Lewes, Peacehaven, Redhill, Reigate, Royal Leamington Spa, Rugby, Rye, Seaford, Solihull, Staines, Stoke-on-Trent, Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwick, Wolverhampton, West Bromwich, and Weybridge, among many others.
The technology is also now quite widely available in Scotland, across places like Aberdeenshire, Angus, Argyll & Bute, Ayrshire, Clackmannanshire, Dumfries & Galloway, Dunbartonshire, East Lothian, Edinburgh City, Fife, Glasgow City, The Highlands, Lanarkshire, Midlothian, Moray, Perth & Kinross, Renfrewshire, Scottish Borders, Stirlingshire, West Lothian, Oban, Rothesay, North Berwick, Thurso, Fort William, Aviemore, Strathaven, Lossiemouth, Kinross, Pitlochry and Dunblane.
And O2 doesn’t announce a place as having 5G Standalone until it has at least 90% outdoor 5G+ coverage.
In any case, your phone will seamlessly switch between 5G Standalone, 5G Non-Standalone, and 4G coverage according to what’s available where you are.
EE
EE was third to launch a 5G Standalone service (dubbed 5G+), and it claims that this offers speeds that are up to ten times faster than 4G. It also echoes the other networks in saying that it delivers lower latency, improved reliability (even in busy areas), better gaming and video streaming performance, greater indoor coverage, and better battery life.
To get EE 5G Standalone you initially needed a Full Works or All Rounder plan purchased on or after August 29, 2024, but now the network is making it available to all new and upgrading customers taking any EE handset plan.
EE’s 5G Standalone coverage has improved rapidly since launch, with the network now boasting that it’s available to over 50 million people, across over 610 towns and cities.
Places with access to EE 5G SA include (but are not limited to):
Aberdeen, Aberystwyth, Antrim, Ashton-Under-Lyne, Altrincham, Ballymena, Bangor (North Wales), Barnsley, Barrow-in-Furness, Barry, Basildon, Bath, Belfast, Beverley, Birkenhead, Birmingham, Blackburn, Blyth, Bolton, Boston, Bradford, Bridgend, Brighton and Hove, Bristol, Burton-on-Trent, Bury, Caerphilly, Canterbury, Cardiff, Carlisle, Chelmsford, Cheltenham, Chesterfield, Chichester, Chippenham, Cirencester, Cleethorpes, Colchester, Corby, Coventry, Crawley, Cwmbran, Derby, Dewsbury, Doncaster, Dorchester, Dudley, Dundee, Edinburgh, Ellesmere Port, Erskine, Exeter, Exmouth, Gateshead, Glasgow, Gloucester, Gosport, Great Malvern, Greenock, Grimsby, Halifax, Hamilton, Harlow, Hartlepool, Hatfield, Havant, Hemel Hempstead, Hereford, Huddersfield, Hull, Hyde, Inverness, Ipswich, Leeds, Leicester, Leyland, Lichfield, Lincoln, Liverpool, London, Londonderry/Derry, Loughborough, Maidstone, Manchester, Melton Mowbray, Merthyr Tydfil, Middlesbrough, Milton Keynes, Newark, Newbury, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Newport, Northampton, Norwich, Nottingham, Oldham, Oxford, Paignton, Peterborough, Plymouth, Poole, Portsmouth, Port Talbot, Preston, Reading, Rochdale, Rotherham, Royal Leamington Spa, Sale, Salford, Salisbury, Sheffield, Shrewsbury, Slough, Solihull, Southampton, Southend-on-Sea, Stafford, St Albans, St Austell, Stevenage, St Helens, St Neots, Stoke-on-Trent, Stockport, Sunderland, Sutton Coldfield, Sutton in Ashfield, Swansea, Tamworth, Telford, Trowbridge, Wakefield, Walkden, Warwick, Wellingborough, Weston Super Mare, Whitley Bay, Wigan, Wilmslow, Windsor, Winsford, Wishaw, Wokingham, Wolverhampton, Wrexham, Yeovil, and York.
Looking ahead, EE plans to bring 5G Standalone to 99% of the UK population by the end of March 2030.
And EE claims that this network is “the first of its kind in the UK to offer near uninterrupted outdoor coverage in every city where it launches.” This claim stems from the fact that EE doesn’t announce 5G Standalone availability for a location until it has at least 95% outdoor coverage.
What about Three?
Three doesn’t offer 5G Standalone at the time of writing, but now that it has merged with Vodafone, we know it’s only a matter of time before it will be offered. Indeed, the combined VodafoneThree company has said that its 5G Standalone service will reach 99% population coverage by 2030 and 99.96% by 2034.
Which devices support 5G Standalone?
Different networks support different devices with 5G Standalone. Vodafone for its part lets you access 5G Standalone when using any of the following phones:
The iPhone 17 series, iPhone 16 series, Samsung Galaxy S26 series, Samsung Galaxy S25 series, Samsung Galaxy S24, Galaxy S24 Plus, Galaxy S24 Ultra, Galaxy S23, S23 Plus, S23 Ultra, Galaxy S22, S22 Plus, S22 Ultra, Galaxy S21, S21 Plus, S21 Ultra, Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7, Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6, Galaxy Z Flip 5, Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7, Galaxy Z Fold 6, Galaxy Z Fold 5, Galaxy A57 5G, A56 5G, A37 5G, A36 5G, A27, A17 5G, Google Pixel 10 series, Google Pixel 9 series, Google Pixel 8, Pixel 8 Pro, Pixel 8a, Motorola Razr 60 Ultra, Motorola Edge 50 Neo, Oppo Find X5 Pro, and Oppo Find X3 Pro.
On O2, you can currently get 5G Standalone working with:
The iPhone 17 series, the iPhone 16 series, the iPhone 15 series, the Samsung Galaxy S26 series, the Samsung Galaxy S25 series, the Samsung Galaxy S24, Galaxy S24 Plus, Galaxy S24 Ultra, S24 FE, Galaxy S23, S23 Plus, S23 Ultra, S23 FE, Galaxy S22, S22 Plus, S22 Ultra, Galaxy S21, S21 Plus, S21 Ultra, Galaxy Z Flip 6, Galaxy Z Fold 6, Galaxy Z Flip 5, Galaxy Z Fold 5, Z Flip 4, Z Fold 4, Z Flip 3, Z Fold 3, Galaxy A34 5G, A54 5G, A25, A15 5G, A35, A55, A52 5G, A52s 5G, A23 5G, A53 5G, A33 5G, A14 5G, A13 5G, XCover 7, Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 Plus, Galaxy Tab S10 Ultra, Google Pixel 10 series, Google Pixel 9 series, Sony Xperia 1 V, Sony Xperia 5 V, Sony Xperia 1 VI 5G, Sony Xperia 10 VI 5G, Xiaomi Mi 12T Pro, Honor Magic V3, Moto G53 5G, Moto G34 5G, and Netgear Nighthawk M6.
EE meanwhile offers it on the iPhone 17 series, the iPhone Air, the iPhone 16 series, the iPhone 15 series, the Google Pixel 10 series, the Pixel 9 series, the Samsung Galaxy S25 series, the Galaxy S24 series, the Galaxy S23 series, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7, 6, and 5, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7, 6, and 5, many Galaxy A models, and some phones from Sony, TCL, Oppo, Nothing, Motorola, Honor, and HMD. Plus some tablets.
These are the most up to date lists we’re aware of at the time of writing, but in theory most recent 5G phones should work with 5G Standalone, they just might require a software update to do so – so hopefully EE, O2 and Vodafone will start supporting it on even more phones soon.
