The best fibre broadband in Ireland in August 2026 is Sky — regularly the cheapest 12-month 500 Mb intro we see advertised, at €27.99, sold on Open Eir, SIRO and NBI. That is the year-one pick. It is not automatically the pick for year two, and it is worthless if the Eircode is on Virgin cable only, or still waiting on a pole.
Vodafone is the best SIRO retailer: 500 Mb and 1 Gb full fibre often cost the same €40, frequently with symmetrical upload. Pure Telecom is the fairest contract among the independents — same wholesale lines, fewer automatic April hikes. Virgin Media wins raw urban download on its own cable. None of those brands own the Irish countryside; Digiweb and Sky are the names to check when NBI has passed the house, and Eir is what you get when nothing else is there — with a thereafter bill to match.
Two things this ranking will not do. We will not invent lab Mbps. And we will not pretend “fibre” on an Irish order form always means fibre to the door. FTTH is full fibre. FTTC is fibre to the cabinet and copper the rest of the way — often capped around 100 Mb. Check the technology at the Eircode before you fall in love with a brand. See best broadband in Ireland for 5G, wireless and satellite; this page is fibre and cable only.
FTTH vs FTTC: what “fibre” actually means
Irish ads say “fibre” for two different products. Mixing them up is how a household pays for 500 Mb and gets a copper last mile.
FTTH (fibre to the home, also called FTTP) runs glass all the way to the premises. That is the product you want: Open Eir full fibre, SIRO on ESB poles, NBI rural fibre, and Virgin’s growing fibre overlay. Advertised 500 Mb / 1 Gb / 2 Gb tiers are at least plausible here, and upload is in a different league from copper or cable.
FTTC (fibre to the cabinet) is Open Eir’s older wholesale product. Fibre stops at the street cabinet; the last stretch into the house is still the phone-line copper. Retailers still sell it, and the order page may still say “fibre”. Typical last-mile copper will not match a 500 Mb FTTH headline — plan for around 100 Mb down, with upload much lower. If the checker says fibre but the speed cap looks like a 2010s cabinet, this is usually why.
| Technology | What reaches the door | Typical headline | Upload | Who sells it |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FTTH / FTTP | Glass all the way | 500 Mb–5 Gb advertised | Often 100 Mb+, symmetrical on SIRO / many NBI plans | Sky, Vodafone, Pure, Digiweb, Eir (Open Eir / SIRO / NBI) |
| FTTC | Fibre to the cabinet, copper last mile | Often marketed as “fibre”, ~100 Mb class | Low — copper last mile | Same Open Eir retailers; still common on older Eircodes |
| Virgin cable | Coax on Virgin’s own network (plus growing fibre) | 500 Mb–2 Gb down in a passed estate | Much lower than FTTH (50–100 Mb on the plans we quote) | Virgin only — closed footprint |
No landline is required on FTTH, Virgin cable, 5G home or satellite. Older Open Eir FTTC packages sometimes still bundle a phone line. If the engineer is running glass to the house, skip the landline. Full explainer: FTTH vs FTTC vs cable.
The one-line rule: if the order form says “fibre” and the advertised cap is around 100 Mb, assume FTTC until the checker says FTTH, SIRO or NBI. Do not pay a 500 Mb intro for a copper last mile.
SIRO vs Open Eir vs NBI
Those names are wholesale networks, not the brand on the bill. You buy from a retailer (Sky, Vodafone, Pure Telecom, Digiweb, Eir…). The pole and the duct belong to someone else — except Virgin, which runs its own cable. That is why the same 500 Mb “fibre” can be €28 from one brand and €50 from another: the glass did not change. Full map: Open Eir vs SIRO vs NBI vs Virgin.
| Network | Who owns it | Where it is | What you get | Who you actually pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Open Eir FTTH | Eir (wholesale) | Upgraded cabinets nationwide — still not every door | Full fibre to the home; Eir retail also sells leftover FTTC | Eir, Sky, Vodafone, Pure, Digiweb and others |
| SIRO | Vodafone + ESB | Towns and larger villages on electricity poles | Full fibre, often symmetrical upload | Vodafone (co-owner) plus Sky, Pure, Digiweb… |
| NBI | National Broadband Ireland | Rural intervention area — the National Broadband Plan | State-backed rural FTTH | Retailers only. You never buy from NBI. |
| Virgin cable / fibre | Virgin Media Ireland | Urban and suburban estates on Virgin’s own plant | Fast download; upload trails SIRO / Open Eir FTTH | Virgin only. It does not ride Open Eir. |
Open Eir
Eir’s wholesale arm is still the default wired network in Ireland. Full fibre (FTTH) where the cabinet is upgraded; FTTC “fibre” where it is not. Eir retail is the largest seller (ComReg Q1 2026: 28% of lines) and owns the ducts — which is why it reaches addresses Virgin and SIRO never will. You can usually buy the same Open Eir line cheaper from Sky or with a fairer contract from Pure. Owning the network is not the same as winning the bill.
SIRO
SIRO is a joint venture of Vodafone and ESB: full fibre on electricity poles, mostly in towns. Upload is the headline difference versus cable and versus many Open Eir retail plans — Vodafone’s 500 Mb and 1 Gb fibre are advertised as symmetrical. Sky also sells SIRO, but its 500 Mb and 1 Gb ads still list 100 Mb up, so “on SIRO” is not automatically a symmetrical tariff. SIRO is not a rural product. See SIRO explained.
NBI
National Broadband Ireland builds the state-backed rural network. If the map says the premises is passed, you pick a retailer — Sky, Vodafone, Digiweb, Pure — not NBI itself. Digiweb is the specialist rural searches keep hitting (NBI 500 and 1000, plus SIRO in towns). Do not default to Starlink because a TV ad said “rural”. If NBI is live at the pole, buy the fibre. Rollout dates: when is NBI coming and NBI explained.
Availability is always by Eircode. Brand advertising is national; the network is not. Start with find broadband for your Eircode before you pick a winner from this table.
How we ranked fibre retailers
This page ranks Irish fibre and cable retailers only. Three (5G home) and Starlink (satellite) are excluded. Imagine is wireless-first and only joins this list if it actually sells tagged fibre plans; in August 2026 it does not. Scores live in one file and weigh:
- Year-one vs thereafter cost. The 12-month teaser against the out-of-contract bill and any setup fee. A €28 intro that becomes €70 is not a bargain.
- Contract fairness. Built-in annual rises (including Eir’s flat €4 from April 2027), 12- vs 24-month terms, and whether a Contract Change Notification lets you leave.
- Technology at the door. FTTH vs FTTC vs cable. We do not invent lab Mbps. Advertised headlines are the provider’s figures.
- Which wholesale networks they actually sell. Open Eir, SIRO, NBI, Virgin’s own plant — coverage is an Eircode fact, not a national claim.
- Service and scale. ComReg Q1 2026 shares, Switcher.ie 2026 awards where they exist, and whether you are buying a boutique or a queue.
No retailer can pay for a better score. We may earn a commission if you buy through links; it never changes order. Methodology: how we test and the affiliate disclosure.
| Retailer | Score | Intro from | Thereafter from | Headline | Annual rise | Networks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sky | 9.2 | €27.99 | €50 | 500 Mb | Yes | Open Eir, SIRO, NBI |
| Vodafone | 9.1 | €40 | €55 | 1 Gb | Yes | Open Eir, SIRO, NBI |
| Pure Telecom | 9.0 | €30 | €40 | 500 Mb | No built-in hike | Open Eir, SIRO, NBI |
| Virgin Media | 8.9 | €30 | €70 | 1 Gb | Yes | Own cable / fibre |
| Digiweb | 8.7 | €37.95 | €50 | 1 Gb | No built-in hike | Open Eir, SIRO, NBI |
| Eir | 8.4 | €34.99 | €75.99 | 500 Mb | Yes — €4 from April 2027 | Open Eir (widest) |
Intros and thereafter figures are the cheapest quoted plan in our August 2026 dataset, not a promise that every Eircode gets that tier. Prices move — every page dates itself.
The fibre picks explained
Sky — best value intro
Our number one fibre retailer because the 500 Mb Ultrafast Plus intro is so often the cheapest 12-month deal on the board — €27.99, no setup fee — and because it sells on three wholesale networks, not one. Open Eir, SIRO and NBI means the same brand can follow you from a Dublin estate to a rural NBI pole. ComReg Q1 2026: 15.8% of lines. Switcher.ie 2026 awards covered provider, value and customer service.
The catch is commercial, not technical. Thereafter on 500 Mb is typically €50; 1 Gb is €40 then €60; 5 Gb is €55 then €70. Sky has used annual price increases. Sky’s SIRO 500 Mb and 1 Gb ads still list 100 Mb upload — take Vodafone if symmetrical SIRO is the point. Sky broadband review.
Vodafone — best SIRO pick
Co-owns SIRO with ESB. 500 Mb and 1 Gb full fibre often sit at the same €40 intro (thereafter typically €55), advertised as symmetrical. If both speeds are at the Eircode, take the gig. Also sells NBI and 5G home, so the same retailer covers addresses the ESB poles never reached. Second-largest fixed retailer (ComReg Q1 2026: 20.7%). Switcher.ie 2026 Best Technical Support. Not the cheapest 500 Mb intro, and not available on Virgin’s cable. Vodafone broadband review.
Pure Telecom — fairest contract
Irish-owned independent on the same Open Eir / SIRO / NBI glass as the big four. The difference is the contract: Pure is one of the retailers ComReg Compare flags for plans without a built-in annual increase — confirm on the order summary. Cheapest quoted intro in our set is €30 (100 Mb), with 500 Mb from €35 (phone bundle) or €50 (Pure Fibre 500, symmetrical). Headline 500 Mb / 1 Gb can look dearer than Sky’s teaser; year two is the point. Pure Telecom review.
Virgin Media — fastest urban download
Own cable (and growing fibre). In a Virgin-passed estate it is often the quickest download in the house; 1 Gb intro can match 500 Mb at €30. Outside that footprint it cannot use Open Eir — rural Ireland is usually a no. Cable upload on the plans we quote is 50–100 Mb, not SIRO. Thereafter jumps hard (€70 / €72 / €80). Peak-time contention is the classic cable complaint. Virgin Media broadband review.
Digiweb — best for NBI rural
The retailer rural searches keep hitting: SIRO gigabit from €37.95, HyperPulse NBI 1000 at €44.95, NBI Fibre 500 at €49.95 (August 2026 intros). Switcher.ie 2026 Best Alternative Network. You are still a retailer — NBI’s engineer does the install. Wireless and satellite leftovers exist if the fibre date is still “coming”; treat those as temporary. Digiweb review.
Eir — widest coverage, dearest thereafter
Owns Open Eir, so it reaches addresses the cable network never will. That is the case for Eir. The case against is the bill: 500 Mb intro €34.99, thereafter typically €75.99; 1 Gb is €39.99 intro on 24 months, same thereafter neighbourhood. From April 2027 broadband rises by a flat €4 each April. FTTC “fibre” is still common. You can often buy the same Open Eir line cheaper from Sky or Pure. Eir broadband review.
Intro vs thereafter — model year two
Irish fibre marketing is a 12-month teaser. The ranking above is useless if you only read the intro tile. Thereafter, out-of-contract and any April hike are the real bill. The cheapest year-one fibre is often the dearest 24-month stay.
- Sky 500 Mb: €27.99 intro → typically €50 thereafter.
- Virgin 500 Mb / 1 Gb: €30 intro → typically €70 / €72 thereafter.
- Eir 500 Mb: €34.99 intro → typically €75.99 thereafter, plus €4 each April from 2027.
- Vodafone 500 Mb / 1 Gb: €40 intro → typically €55 thereafter; the upgrade to 1 Gb is often a wash.
- Pure / Digiweb: intros look dearer; the gap to thereafter is smaller, and several plans have no built-in annual hike.
ComReg switching is provider-led: the new retailer usually manages the move. Time it for the end of the minimum term, or leave penalty-free if a Contract Change Notification (for example an in-contract price rise) opens an exit window. Do not sit on a thereafter tariff out of habit. Walkthrough: how to switch broadband, April price rises, and cheapest broadband in Ireland for the year-two maths.
If you will not switch or renegotiate when the intro ends, do not pick the flashiest teaser. Pick Pure or a Digiweb fibre plan whose thereafter you can live with — or budget Eir/Virgin year two as a different product.
How to choose fibre at your Eircode
There is no national fibre winner the way a VPN ranking can have a national winner. Broadband is local. Use this order:
- Check the Eircode first. Open Eir, SIRO, NBI and Virgin each miss whole counties. Brand comes second to the line at the house. Check broadband by Eircode.
- Confirm FTTH, not FTTC. If the checker is vague, ask which wholesale product you are ordering. A ~100 Mb “fibre” cap is usually copper on the last stretch.
- Shop the retailer, not the pole. On Open Eir, SIRO or NBI you can often buy the same glass from Sky, Vodafone, Pure or Digiweb. Compare intro, thereafter and whether an annual rise is baked in.
- Take the gig if it is the same money. Vodafone’s 500 Mb and 1 Gb, and Virgin’s 500 Mb and 1 Gb intros, are frequently a wash. There is no honest reason to pay the same bill for half the download.
- Skip the landline on full fibre. FTTH does not need a phone line. TV bundles only pay if you would buy the telly anyway.
- If fibre is not at the door yet, use 5G, wireless or Starlink as a stopgap — then switch when NBI or SIRO is live. Those options live on the main broadband ranking and best rural broadband, not on this fibre list.
Related: what speed do I need, broadband without a landline, best broadband for working from home, and fibre vs 5G vs Starlink.
