Three review: Fantastic 5G, but service disappoints

For Three, 2023 seemed like a comeback year, with the brand’s 5G network growing rapidly and delivering some of the fastest 5G speeds around. A proposed merger with Vodafone promised to make it part of the UK’s largest mobile network, displacing O2 and EE. This year, things aren’t so rosy. Speeds are still improving and the 5G network extends even further, but our 2024 Mobile Network Awards survey flags up some real issues with customer service and customer satisfaction. Tests indicate that Three is right at the top now for performance, especially for 5G, yet it still isn’t a serious contender for any of this year’s awards.

Last year, 71% of the Three users we surveyed said that they would recommend the network to a friend or family member. This year, that figure has fallen slightly to 68%, with fewer than 20% of users saying they would be very likely to recommend it. Over a quarter of the Three subscribers surveyed (26%) told us they would be unlikely to recommend it. These figures put Three behind EE and Vodafone, and just ahead of O2. Meanwhile, Voxi, Smarty, Giffgaff and Lebara have more than 90% of users saying they would be happy to recommend them. This isn’t a great result for Three.

Three review: What do you get?

Three used to be one of the cheapest networks for buying a new smartphone on a contract. It’s grown a little more expensive, while new value champs such as iD Mobile have emerged; but you can still get some decent deals. Right now, you can get an iPhone 15 with 150GB of data for £30/mth over 24 months plus £25 up front, or a Google Pixel 8 on the same terms for £19/mth plus £30 up front. These prices already compare well with what you’d spend with EE, O2 or Vodafone on a similar deal, but factor in current six-month, half-price offers and you could get the iPhone 15 for a total cost of £1,270 or the Pixel 8 for £1,005. Only iD Mobile will give you the same phones on a similar contract for less cash.

Sadly, Three’s SIM-only packages aren’t always great. Contracts start at £9 for the basic 1GB Lite package on a 24-month contract, and you really have to move to the mid-range packages before you get good value. The 25GB Value package is decent at £15/mth, as is the Lite 250GB for £20/mth. Again, 50% discounts for the first six, nine or 12 months can have a real impact on your costs.

If you want to go Unlimited, Three’s plans start at £26/mth. However, Smarty, Voxi, iD Mobile and Giffgaff now give you the same data allowances for less, and Three’s perks – 28 or 56 daily roaming passes, 12 months of Paramount+ TV, a rewards programme with vouchers – may or may not make the extra cost worthwhile.

*The monthly price shown will increase each April by the Consumer Price Index rate of inflation plus 3.9%

Three did reasonably well in our survey on value for money. A total of 81% of customers felt they were getting satisfactory value, with 26% very satisfied. EE, Vodafone and O2 all did worse, and had more dissatisfied customers to boot. Again, though, the newer no-frills networks achieved even better scores, with Giffgaff pleasing 97% of customers and Smarty and Voxi hitting an incredible 100%.

Three review: Customer service

Last year’s survey results for customer service weren’t exactly complimentary to Three. Only 19% of users told us they were very satisfied with the network’s customer service and support, and a further 37% were fairly satisfied. O2 was worse and Vodafone was in the same region, but Three still lagged behind Tesco Mobile, Sky Mobile and EE. This year’s results are better: 21% of the Three users said they were fairly satisfied with Three’s customer service, and an additional 51% were fairly satisfied. This puts Three comfortably ahead of iD Mobile and Lebara, even if it’s worrying to see that 18% of users were fairly or very dissatisfied. These results are worse than average.

Ofcom’s latest research into customer service and satisfaction noted lower than average levels of satisfaction and more customers with a reason to complain than the industry norm. That said, recent figures put Three’s number of complaints per 100,000 subscribers as bang on the industry average of four; not ideal, but better than O2’s eight.

Three review: Coverage, reliability and speed

Three has spent the past few years jostling with Vodafone as the UK’s second-fastest network, with EE in the lead. According to the latest testing from RootMetrics, Three clinched the second position for the first half of 2024. Its UK-wide 4G and 5G median download speed of 44.5Mbits/sec means it’s a long way off the pace set by EE, but still a couple of Mbits/sec ahead of Vodafone, and even further ahead of O2.

On 5G connectivity, things are a little more complex. RootMetrics’ tests indicate that Three and EE now have similar levels of 5G coverage, with both covering over 60% of the UK. What’s more, Three’s 5G median download speeds were over 100Mbits/sec in every area where RootMetrics tests, and over 200Mbits/sec in nine of 16 UK cities. In fact, they were over 300Mbits/sec in two of those. Three’s UK-wide median 5G download speeds (210Mbits/sec) and fastest 5G download speeds (879Mbits/sec) actually place it ahead of EE, although the latter’s more consistent availability and performance give it the edge as an overall 5G experience.

Impressively, Three also beats EE – and most other networks – with its results in the performance section of our survey. A total of 90% of users told us their connection was always or often fast enough to browse the web, and 74% said it was always or often good enough for audio streaming. Even with video, which frequently trips up networks, 65% of users said that Three was always or often capable. Vodafone did slightly better here, and Voxi and Smarty better still, but Three is meeting expectations on performance for most of its users, most of the time.

Three review: Roaming

Sadly, gone are the days when all Three plans included EU roaming. Now the higher-end Complete and Value packages include 28 or 56 daily roaming passes, which can be used to let you access your calls, texts and data allowances for a day while you’re abroad. Otherwise, you’re looking at a £2 per day charge.

Outside the EU you’ll need a Go Roam Around the World pass, costing between £5 and £7 per day, with data subject to a 12GB cap.

Three review: Other features, services and spending caps

Three offers Wi-Fi calling – not just in the home, but in more than 250 stations on the London Underground. It also allows for spending caps: you can pick a level between £10 and £100 over your regular contract charge and you won’t be allowed to make additional calls or use any extra data beyond that.

Three review: Verdict

Three is now a leader for 5G coverage and performance, running neck-and-neck with EE. It’s still playing catch-up on 4G speeds, but not to the extent that it could be described as slow. Pay-monthly phone contracts are as affordable as they get on the big four networks, while there are some decent SIM-only deals. Sadly, customer service remains a thorny issue for Three, and its customer recommendations aren’t as high as they should be. It’s a case of onwards and upwards for speeds and coverage, but Three still has work to do elsewhere.