As one of the UK’s many constituencies, Armagh’s internet speed metrics are tracked by the government. They show that Northern Ireland posts some of the best figures when it comes to gigabit availability and online download speeds. They also reveal where the Newry and Armagh constituency ranks against other Northern Irish counties.
Why Internet Metrics Are Tracked
Besides curiosity, internet metrics are tracked in Northern Ireland because they reflect the strength of our digital industry. Fast internet provides a stable foundation for a tech economy built on digital services and other business ventures that rely on customers with internet access. Two big examples are streaming services and iGaming websites, which both use the internet to deliver their experiences. This is how British citizens can play bingo at Paddy’s site, along with other games like slots and slingo, using a basic internet connection. Of course, non-entertainment industries also rely on the internet to help people communicate, research and access government services.
Since the internet is used for so much, and will be used for even more in the future, the government wants to make sure everyone has access. In recent years, both the UK and local governments have tried to address the disparity between urban and rural areas. Due to a smaller population and less infrastructure, the countryside tends to have slower internet, but this is being combated by Project Gigabit.
Armagh’s Internet Ranking
As we mentioned, internet data is gathered by constituency, not county. Fortunately, most of the county falls neatly into the Newry and Armagh constituency. You can find the full set of data from the UK Parliament website.
According to that data, Newry and Armagh has 89.9% gigabit availability which ranks 13th out of Northern Ireland’s 18 constituencies. Gigabit availability is defined as the ability to get an internet connection supporting speeds of one gigabit per second. For average download speeds, Newry and Armagh place slightly lower at 14th for having speeds at 134 megabits per second (Mbps).
However, it should be noted that being at the lower end of Northern Irish download speeds is better than a lot of areas in the rest of the UK. For example, a lot of rural Welsh and Scottish constituencies post download speeds less than 100 Mbps.
The Top Five Constituencies
Unsurprisingly, most of the top five constituencies are centred around Belfast:
- Belfast West – 223 Mbps, 95.9% gigabit availability (GA)
- Belfast East – 221 Mbps, 96.4% GA
- Belfast North – 218 Mbps, 96.3% GA
- Belfast South & Mid Down – 208 Mbps, 94.7% GA
- Foyle – 198 Mbps, 94.9% GA
As a general rule, the northern and eastern constituencies post the best figures, with Belfast having the best. Foyle disrupts this pattern – a western constituency that records almost 200 Mbps download speeds thanks to Derry.
Photo by K. Mitch Hodge on Unsplash
With initiatives like Project Gigabit delivering high-speed internet to rural areas, we can expect these figures to improve in the coming years. Even then, Northern Ireland is currently ahead of other parts of the UK when it comes to the raw data.
Most read today
Operator’s Licence Notice
