Cite this: As of August 2026, Three home broadband is 5G, not fibre — no Open Eir, SIRO, NBI or Virgin. The promotional Unlimited 5G plan is €25 a month for 24 months, then typically €40. Sky’s 500 Mb fibre is €27.99 intro, then typically €50. Vodafone fibre is often €40 for 500 Mb and 1 Gb. 5G wins for renters and “this week”; fibre wins for WFH upload, gaming and evening reliability.
Three is 5G home, not fibre
Fibre in Ireland means a wholesale line: Open Eir FTTH, SIRO, NBI, or Virgin’s own cable/fibre. You order from a retailer, an engineer (or a Virgin tech) fits or activates the last mile, and the speed is a wired product with a technology label on the order.
Three does none of that. Home broadband here is 5G on Three’s mobile network — a self-install indoor router talking to the nearest mast. Coverage, congestion and indoor walls decide the speed. There is no Open Eir, SIRO, NBI or Virgin path on this product. If you need those, you are shopping a different retailer. Full review: Three 5G home broadband.
ComReg Q1 2026 puts Three at 2.2% of fixed broadband lines. It is a specialist 5G substitute, not a fibre also-ran to Sky or Vodafone.
Three 5G vs fibre, side by side
“Fibre” below means FTTH on Open Eir, SIRO or NBI (and, for download, Virgin cable). Prices are introductory EUR as of August 2026 from the plans we track — they move.
| Three 5G home | Fibre (Open Eir / SIRO / NBI) | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Mobile 5G router. Not a wholesale fibre line | Glass (or Virgin cable) to the premises. Retailer on a network |
| Install | Self-install. No engineer. This week if 5G covers the house | Engineer / ONT (or Virgin activation). Diary, not this afternoon |
| Who it’s for | Renters, new-builds waiting on OpenPort, anyone who needs internet now | Anyone the checker says is passed — WFH, gaming, households that stay put |
| Advertised speed | Up to 500 Mb down — headline, not a wired guarantee | 500 Mb, 1 Gb, 2 Gb, 5 Gb depending on network and retailer |
| Upload & latency | Loses to full fibre. Cell-dependent. Evening congestion is real | SIRO / NBI often symmetrical. Open Eir FTTH typically 100 Mb+ up on 500 Mb plans |
| Contract | Promo 24 months €25 → €40; or 12 months €44.99 → €50 | Typically 12 months. Sky 500 €27.99 → €50; Vodafone often €40 for 500 Mb and 1 Gb |
| Portable? | Yes — take the router to the next let | No — the ONT stays on the wall |
| Landline? | No | No on FTTH. FTTC / copper sometimes still bundles a phone |
When 5G wins
Three is the default 5G home broadband we point at when the wired checkers are empty or the calendar is the problem. It wins in three honest cases:
- Renters. You cannot wait for a landlord’s Open Eir appointment, or you will move before a 12-month fibre intro is worth the install. Take the router with you. Students and short lets: broadband for students.
- This week. New-build waiting on SIRO OpenPort, rural house waiting on NBI, or a move-in on Friday. Fibre has a diary. 5G has a socket.
- No engineer. Self-install. No landline. No wayleave on a long lane. If a phone on Three 5G already works well in the room where the router will sit, that is the coverage check that matters.
The promotional €25 / 24-month Unlimited 5G can also undercut fibre intros you can actually order. That is a price win, not a technology win. Do not sign 24 months of mobile broadband to avoid plugging into fibre that is already in the hall.
When fibre wins
Whenever SIRO, Open Eir FTTH, NBI or a decent Virgin line is live at the Eircode, fibre is the product. 5G will not beat a wired line on the three jobs that actually hurt:
- WFH upload. Video calls, backups, two-way traffic. SIRO and NBI are often symmetrical. Open Eir FTTH at 500/100 still sits in a different league from a busy 5G cell. Guide: best broadband for working from home.
- Gaming. Ping and evening consistency. A mast is shared; a fibre last mile is not. Guide: best broadband for gaming.
- Evening reliability. Tea-time cell congestion is the 5G tax. Full fibre still has a peak; it does not share a sector with every phone on the road.
Fibre ranking, not 5G: best fibre broadband in Ireland. Technology labels: FTTH vs FTTC vs cable.
Prices (August 2026)
Introductory EUR from the plans we track. Confirm at checkout; they move. Thereafter is the number that matters if you stay.
| Plan | Intro | Thereafter | Term |
|---|---|---|---|
| Three Unlimited 5G (promotional) | €25 | €40 | 24 months |
| Three Unlimited 5G | €44.99 | €50 | 12 months |
| Sky 500 Mb fibre | €27.99 | €50 | 12 months |
| Vodafone 500 Mb / 1 Gb fibre | €40 | €55 | 12 or 24 months |
Three can be the cheapest month-one bill. Sky’s 500 Mb fibre is close on intro and is a wired product. Vodafone is not the cheapest 500 Mb; it is the honest 1 Gb upgrade when 500 Mb and 1 Gb are the same €40. Mobile-broadband contracts can still include price increases — read the 12- versus 24-month small print, not just the tile.
Which to pick
Check the Eircode first: ComReg Compare, SIRO, NBI, Virgin, then a fibre retailer. Walk the house with a phone on Three 5G if you are considering the router.
- Fibre is passed — order fibre. Do not pick 5G over a wired line for WFH, gaming or a household that stays put.
- Fibre is coming, you need internet now — Three 5G as a bridge. Prefer 12 months if the pole date is near; do not lock 24 months into an early-termination fee the week the engineer books.
- You rent or move — Three 5G is the product that matches the lease. Fibre is someone else’s wall box.
- No mast, no pole — 5G will not invent coverage. Look at Imagine wireless or Starlink, and the rural ranking.
The wider technology comparison is fibre vs 5G vs Starlink. Networks (who owns the glass): Open Eir vs SIRO vs NBI vs Virgin.
