Sky Broadband Routers

Sky broadband customers can all choose from one of two routers, although the newest one comes at an extra cost.

The Sky Broadband Hub is provided to all customers, whether they're on the cheapest Superfast packages or the fastest Gigafast plan.

However, all customers can upgrade to the latest WiFi 6 router, the Sky Max Hub.

Source: Sky

Sky Broadband Hub

The Sky Broadband Hub (SR203) was released in September 2019 alongside the previous Sky Broadband Boost WiFi guarantee.

It's now provided to all Sky broadband customers, whether they bundle Sky TV or not.

The Sky Broadband Hub offers dual-band wireless with 8 internal antennae in a small, sleek-looking black shell. It's a smaller design than equivalent routers from other providers, like the BT Smart Hub 2 or Virgin Media Hub 4.

It supports WiFi 5, or 802.11ac. While this is no longer the latest protocol, few devices have yet to integrate WiFi 6 and those that have will be backwards compatible with WiFi 5 anyway.

It offers a noticeable benefit in wireless coverage compared to its predecessor the Sky Q Hub (ER115), launched in 2018, which had only 5 internal antennae. In real tests we found the Sky Broadband Hub had much better wireless coverage than the previous Sky Q Hub.

Sky Max Hub

Released in July 2023, the Sky Max Hub (SR213) is now available to all Sky broadband customers as part of the Sky WiFi Max add-on.

Sky WiFi Max is the provider's new WiFi guarantee, replacing Sky Broadband Boost and promising minimum speeds over wireless of up to 25Mbps. However, the add-on also bundles a new router, the Sky Max Hub.

The Sky Max Hub upgrades various aspects of the Sky Broadband Hub. It supports the latest WiFi 6 protocol (802.11ax), and also sees improvements to security, upgrading the WPA2 security version to WPA3.

It's worth noting both the Sky Stream box and Sky Glass TV support WiFi 6, and so customers with newer Sky TV platforms will see tangible benefits from upgrading to the Sky Max Hub.

WPA3 offers enhanced security for wireless networks, better protecting information transferred against password cracking and any possibility of decrypting traffic.

The Sky Max Hub also offers real-time device monitoring, with alerts sent and viewable on the MySky app, which has also been updated to support the new router features.

Current offers on the Sky WiFi Max add-on put the price of the Max Hub at an additional £3 per month, or £6.50 per month on Superfast 35.

It's noticeably better value for money than the initial launch price of £10 per month, but customers taking the faster Ultrafast Plus or Gigafast plans may feel the upgraded router should come as standard.

Previous Sky routers

Existing Sky broadband customers may have an older router. Prior to 2019 Sky offered two routers depending on whether the customer bundled Sky Q or not.

Sky Q Hub (ER115)

Sky standalone broadband customers were given the Sky Hub, while those who took Sky broadband with Sky Q were sent the newer Sky Q Hub.

While Sky customers can now request a router upgrade, switching out their Sky Q Hub with the Sky Broadband Hub, the Sky Q Hub is still in use as a rebranded router provided to NOW Broadband customers.

The Sky Q Hub supports dual-band WiFi 5, however as mentioned, only has 5 internal antennae which limits the wireless coverage and strength in comparison to newer models.

Likely due to the smaller size, the router saw a decrease in the number of Ethernet LAN ports available to just two.

Sky Hub (SR102)

The Sky Hub (SR102) is an even older device, first launched back in 2013, and unlikely to have many customers still using it. It supports WiFi 4 (802.11n) over single band 2.4GHz wireless.

Quite a boxy design, the Sky Hub houses four Ethernet LAN ports, and has just two internal antennae.

Any customers still using the Sky Hub would be recommended to upgrade to the Sky Broadband Hub. However, that could require taking out a new Sky broadband contract.

Find out more in our review of Sky broadband.