The best fibre broadband in Ireland in August 2026 is Vodafone — 500 Mb full fibre at €25 for six months, then €40 on a 24-month term, sold on Open Eir, SIRO and NBI, and the €40 is the standing price: there is no cliff when the contract ends. That is the two-year pick. It is worthless if the Eircode is on Virgin cable only, or still waiting on a pole.
Pure Telecom is second — the fairest contract among the independents, same wholesale lines, no built-in April hike, and 500 Mb at €35 → €50. Sky still has the cheapest 12-month 500 Mb intro at €30, but thereafter is now €67.50 — the harshest fibre cliff on the board apart from Eir — which is why it has slipped to third. Virgin Media wins raw urban download on its own cable. None of those brands own the Irish countryside; Digiweb, Sky and Vodafone 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 | 500/100 and 1 Gb/200 on Open Eir; 500/50 and 1 Gb/100 on NBI; symmetrical on SIRO | 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–5 Gb down in a passed estate | Much lower than SIRO (50–200 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 (and, since 2022 and 2024, also resells SIRO and NBI, at prices we have not verified). That is why the same 500 Mb “fibre” can be €30 from one brand and €35 from another — and €67.50 or €50 a year later: 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; upload is 500/50, 1 Gb/100 — not symmetrical | 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 (Virgin itself also resells SIRO and NBI) |
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, NBI and Open Eir — Vodafone’s 500 Mb, 1 Gb and 2 Gb on SIRO are advertised as symmetrical, as is Digiweb’s SIRO Gigabit. 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, Eir — not NBI itself. Digiweb is the specialist rural searches keep hitting (NBI 500, 1000 and 2 Gb, plus SIRO in towns). NBI upload is the Open Eir-style asymmetric profile, not SIRO symmetry. 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 €30 intro that becomes €67.50 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vodafone | 9.3 | €25 (6 months) | €40 | 1 Gb | Yes — flat €3.50 each April | Open Eir, SIRO, NBI |
| Pure Telecom | 9.1 | €30 | €40 | 500 Mb | No built-in hike | Open Eir, SIRO, NBI |
| Sky | 8.8 | €30 | €67.50 | 500 Mb | Yes — €3.50 in April 2026 | Open Eir, SIRO, NBI |
| Virgin Media | 8.8 | €35 | €70 | 1 Gb | Price lock for the minimum term | Own cable / fibre |
| Digiweb | 8.7 | €34.95 (6 months) | €49.95 | 1 Gb | No built-in hike | Open Eir, SIRO, NBI |
| Eir | 8.3 | €34.99 | €75.99 | 500 Mb | Yes — €4 from April 2027 | Open Eir, NBI (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
Vodafone — best overall
Our number one fibre retailer because the price you land on is the price you keep. 500 Mb full fibre is €25 for six months, then €40 on 24 months (€35 then €40 on 12); 1 Gb is €35 then €50; 2 Gb €55 then €70. Those standing prices do not jump when the contract ends — 24 months of 500 Mb models at €870, against €1,170 for Sky’s 12-month plan. Co-owns SIRO with ESB, where the 500 Mb, 1 Gb and 2 Gb tiers are symmetrical; on Open Eir FTTH they are 500/100 and 1 Gb/200. Also sells NBI and 5G home. Second-largest fixed retailer (ComReg Q1 2026: 20.7%). Switcher.ie 2026 Best Technical Support.
The catch is the April letter: contracts from October 2024 rise by a fixed €3.50 a month each April (€4.50 with TV), inside the minimum term, with no penalty-free exit. The gig is €10 a month more than 500 Mb, not a wash — pay it only if the house will use it. 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 → €40); Pure Fibre 500 is €35 → €50 (the same €35 with a phone line, then €55); 1 Gb is €40 → €70. Uploads are the Open Eir profile — 500/100, 1000/200 — not symmetrical. €5 dearer than Sky in year one, €17.50 a month cheaper from month 13; year two is the point. Pure Telecom review.
Sky — best value intro
Still the cheapest 12-month 500 Mb deal on the board — €30, no setup fee, €360 for the year — and 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, and it is why Sky has dropped from first to third. Thereafter on 500 Mb is now €67.50 — the harshest fibre cliff we track apart from Eir; 1 Gb is €40 then €70; 5 Gb is €55 then €90. Sky raised standard prices by €3.50 in April 2026 and holds only the offer price, not the standard one. The 24-month 500 Mb plan at €35 flat (€840 over two years) is the sensible version if you will not switch. 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.
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 matches 500 Mb at €35, and a new 5 Gb fibre tier is €65. Outside that footprint it cannot use Open Eir — rural Ireland is usually a no, bar the NBI and SIRO addresses it has resold since 2024 and 2022, where its pricing is unverified. Cable upload on the plans we quote is 50–200 Mb, not SIRO. Thereafter jumps hard (€70 / €80 / €90 / €100), though Virgin now advertises a price lock for the minimum term and the €30 activation is usually waived. Peak-time contention is the classic cable complaint. Virgin Media broadband review.
Digiweb — best for NBI rural
The retailer rural searches keep hitting: NBI Fibre 500 at €34.95 for six months, €49.95 for the rest of year one, then €54.95 (€49.95 activation); HyperPulse NBI 1000 at €44.95 → €54.95 with free install; SIRO Gigabit from €37.95 → €49.95 (€29.95 set-up). NBI plans are 500/50 and 1 Gb/100 — only the SIRO plans are symmetrical. Prints “No CPI Increase” on its fibre plans. 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, and it retails NBI too. 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, then €85.99 (and a €149.99 install on the 12-month version); 5 Gb €49.99 → €89.99. 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 Vodafone, 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: €30 intro → €67.50 thereafter (€1,170 over 24 months; the 24-month plan is €35 flat, €840).
- Virgin 500 Mb / 1 Gb: €35 intro → €70 / €80 thereafter.
- Eir 500 Mb: €34.99 intro → typically €75.99 thereafter, plus €4 each April from 2027.
- Vodafone 500 Mb / 1 Gb: €25 / €35 for six months → €40 / €50 standing, no cliff at the end of the term (€870 / €1,110 over 24 months); flat €3.50 each April.
- Pure 500 Mb: €35 intro → €50 thereafter (€1,020 over 24 months), no built-in annual hike.
- Digiweb: six-month NBI intros and once-off activation fees; the gap to thereafter is smaller, and no CPI increase.
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 Vodafone, Pure or a Digiweb fibre plan whose thereafter you can live with — or budget Sky, Eir and 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. Virgin’s 500 Mb and 1 Gb intros are both €35. There is no honest reason to pay the same bill for half the download. Vodafone’s gig is €10 a month more — pay it only if the house will use it.
- 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.
