EE Mobile Phones

EE mobile is the UK's biggest mobile network offering the fastest 4G speeds along with fast 5G. They have better coverage across the UK's landmass than other networks, although 5G coverage is still patchy. They have more customers than any other mobile network including 4 million on 5G-capable plans.

Smartphones from EE mobile are only available on 24-month contracts, with all popular devices including Apple iPhone and Samsung Galaxy handsets available on contract. Customers can take an Essential Plan for a basic mobile experience or upgrade to Smart Plans or Fully Loaded Plans to take advantage of swappable benefits and other perks.

Customers buying a smartphone from EE on contract will receive a Data Boost if they also take broadband from the company.

Independent speed test results situate EE as the fastest mobile network in the UK. September 2021 data from Opensignal found EE customers received average speeds of 44.0 Mbps, more than double those offered by some of their rivals. 5G customers experienced speeds of 109.5 Mbps. Meanwhile, research from RootMetrics for the first half of 2021 showed EE had UK-wide average speeds of 58.8 Mbps including both 4G and 5G networks.

EE has doubled their 4G networks speeds in over 20 towns and cities across the UK as part of their Double Speed enhancements. This means the top 4G speeds customers can expect are up to 60 Mbps.

EE has greater 4G geographic coverage than their mobile rivals, with 85% of the UK's landmass having access to a 4G signal from EE. This covers 99% of outdoor premises such as gardens, 85% of major roads and 81% of A and B roads across the UK. 93% of indoor premises are covered by EE's 4G network.

There are no official Ofcom figures yet for 5G coverage, but EE has switched on some coverage in 160 towns and cities across the UK. They have set a target to reach 90% of the UK's landmass with 5G by 2028 and expect half the UK's population to be able to access an EE 5G signal by 2023.

EE mobile phone contracts last for 24 months. Although EE used to offer shorter contract options, they no longer do this, so all customers looking to take a pay monthly mobile deal from EE must sign up to a 24-month contract. Unlike some rivals, EE do not separate their handset costs and airtime costs, so there is no option to pay more upfront for the device or take the contract over a longer period.

EE offers pay monthly mobile deals featuring the biggest mobile brands such as Apple, Samsung, Oppo and Google. This includes the latest premium smartphones alongside more budget friendly devices from manufacturers too.

All EE pay monthly mobiles are available with different amounts of data to help customers choose the right data plan for them. Upfronts costs for mobile phones can vary and, while many are available with no upfront fees, some handsets may require customers to pay £30, £70 or sometimes more upfront.

All EE mobile plans are 5G-ready and so there is no price difference between 4G and 5G services on their Essential Plans, Smart Plans or Fully Loaded Plans. Customers do not need to select a 5G plan on EE mobile as all their plans offer 5G as standard.

However, customers should remember that they will need a 5G-capable mobile phone to access EE 5G services. They will also need to be in an area where EE have switched on their 5G network.

All EE pay monthly mobile plans come with unlimited calls and texts within the UK. This allows customers to make as many calls and send texts in the UK as they want but they will need to pay at least £2 per day for making calls and sending texts while abroad. They can also choose the Roam Abroad Pass as a Smart Benefit if they have a Smart Plan or pay £10 per month for the Pass separately.

Smart Plans from EE allow customers to access Smart Benefits and other perks. Customers can choose a Smart Plan with up to three Smart Benefits on certain mobile plans. Smart Benefit options can include BT Sport Ultimate, Netflix, Video Data Pass, Roam Abroad Pass, Apple Music, Apple Arcade and Apple TV+. Customers can swap Smart Benefits from one month to the next, allowing customers flexibility during their mobile contract.

EE Smart Plans also include other features such as Reserve Data to allow customers on limited plans to access slow data speeds even after their data has run out for the month. Customers can also upgrade anytime and swap their current phone for a new model from day 15 of their mobile plan.

Smart Plans are more expensive than the basic Essential plans EE also offer to mobile customers.

EE Data Boost is a perk that allows customers who sign up to an EE mobile contract to receive extra data if they also sign up to broadband from the provider.

To be eligible, EE mobile customers must have a pay monthly plan. The Data Boost is applied to the broadband account holder's mobile number and can be up to 20GB per month depending on which broadband plan a customer chooses. The Data Boost will only be active as long as a customer has an eligible EE mobile or SIM only deal alongside a broadband plan.

EE mobile has one of the best complaints records in the UK mobile industry, registering only 1 complaint per 100,000 customers in Q1 2021. During 2020, they had 6 complaints per 100,000 customers, making them one of the top three mobile providers for low complaint levels.

Data from Ofcom's Comparing Service Quality report for 2020 showed EE customers had above average levels of customer satisfaction with 92% compared to the industry average of 90%. EE managed to resolve 50% of complaints the first time a customer contacted them. For other metrics, EE are in the middle of the pack.

EE is the largest mobile operator in the UK with 25.8 million customers according to their quarterly results covering Q2 2021 published in November 2021. They have 18 million customers on pay monthly contracts and 7.8 million on prepay mobile contracts. Over 4 million of their customers are 5G-ready, meaning they are capable of receiving a 5G mobile network connection and have a 5G compatible device.