Millions of Virgin broadband customers to get a free speed boost

If you’re a Virgin Media broadband customer, you better paint some go-faster stripes on your web surfing board. That’s because it has just announced a speed boost for two of its most popular plans. 

Thanks to the latest DOCSIS 3.1 cable technology, Virgin Media claims 100% of its broadband network will be eligible to receive a boost if they’re on either the M500 or Gig 1 plans. New customers will be placed automatically on this upgraded system when they take out a broadband package while existing customers need to just switch their hub off, wait for 10 seconds and turn it on again.

Prior to this update, Virgin Media’s M500 plan promised an average upload speed of 36MBps for £43.99 a month (on an 18-month contract) but will now average 52 MBps. The Gig 1 plan will double in average upload speed from 52 MBps to 104 MBps for £50 a month (on a 24-month contract, the first 6 months are £30). 

Of course, this boost is for upload speed only and while it is rolling out to the entirety of the Virgin Media network, if you can’t get Virgin Media in your area then I am afraid this news doesn’t change anything. Always check which provider is best in your area before committing. These speeds are also only average speeds so if you find yourself in a blackspot, don’t expect that to change. 

These boosts come on the back of similar speed increases for the cheaper M100 and M200 plans in November 2022, with 4.5 million customers now on faster internet for no additional cost. With the likes of Netflix, Xbox Game Pass and others offering more impressive streaming services, a speed boost is always a welcome addition.