2G and 3G switch-off: what stops working at home

Each network sets its own timetable within the 2033 limit, and smaller mobile brands that rent space on a big network (known as MVNOs, or mobile virtual network operators) follow their host network's schedule, according to Mobile UK, the operators' trade body.

The dates come from the networks' own pages, Mobile UK and the government's connectivity timeline (last updated 29 July 2026). O2's device-check page (updated March 2026) says its full 3G switch-off "is now complete", though its main 3G page still mentions some areas getting 3G during early 2026. Either way, don't plan on any 3G now.

This is a separate change from the landline switch-off, which moves everyone on Openreach's old copper phone network onto new services by 31 January 2027. If you have a home phone, our guide to the digital landline switchover covers that. KCOM runs its own copper network in Hull and East Yorkshire and says it will contact its customers when their service is due to switch; our guide to KCOM's own network explains what that means.

How EE's 2G plan has taken shape

EE announced its May 2029 start in October 2025, having said in January 2025 that it would contact business users first. In August 2026 ISPreview reported, citing its sources, that EE appeared to be starting to engage consumer customers, with customer service agents and shop staff alerted when a customer is likely to be affected.

If something with a SIM stopped connecting in the last couple of years and nobody worked out why, the 3G closures could be the reason. The networks are clear about what no longer works.

Phones that only do 3G

EE says a 3G device now gets no mobile data at all on its network: no internet and no messaging apps such as WhatsApp. Three says devices that only use 3G for calls and data are not supported, and O2 says 3G-only phone users need to upgrade to a 4G or 5G device.

Old dongles, pocket Wi-Fi and SIM tablets

A dongle is a small modem that plugs into a computer's USB port; a pocket Wi-Fi device (often called a MiFi) is a battery-powered router that shares a mobile connection over Wi-Fi. Three says anyone with a 3G-only broadband device should change it. O2 says mobile broadband devices such as dongles and pocket hotspots, and SIM devices such as smartwatches and tablets, may be affected and should be checked, changed or upgraded.

If you're replacing one, our guide to mobile broadband versus home broadband compares dongles, MiFi and phone hotspots with a home connection.

4G home routers and hubs

Three says there's nothing to do if you have a 4G or 5G data-only Home or Mobile Broadband device. ISPreview noted that when 3G went, some customers of various networks in certain places found they could only get a 2G service, mainly affecting data and broadband use.

Check your hub's model is listed as 4G or 5G on the maker's or provider's website, and run our broadband speed test at different times of day. If you put your own SIM in a router, see using a SIM-only data plan in a home router; for whether a hub can be your main connection, see can 4G or 5G replace fixed broadband.

Old SIM cards and price plans

EE says physical SIM cards activated before October 2012 need replacing (eSIMs, the digital SIMs built into newer phones, are fine), and customers on an old 2G or 3G price plan need to change plan, which EE says you can do when upgrading or by calling 150.

GOV.UK says most mobile devices in the UK already work on 4G or 5G. The ones at risk can only use 2G, and the networks list them broadly:

• EE: some older tablets, smartwatches, alarms and internet-connected (IoT) devices will stop connecting.
• O2: older mobile phones, alarms, payment terminals and monitoring and tracking equipment may be affected.
• GOV.UK: medical pendants (telecare alarms), lift alarms and fire alarms can rely on 2G.
• VodafoneThree: security alarms, care alarms and door entry systems may still be connected to 2G.

Around the home, that could mean (these are our own examples, not the networks') a basic handset kept for an older relative, a GPS tracker, a card reader for a small business run from home, or anything with a SIM fitted by an alarm company.

The catch with older 4G phones: voice calls

A phone that shows 4G for data isn't automatically safe, because calls can work differently from data. The method that carries calls over 4G itself is called VoLTE (Voice over LTE, LTE being the technical name for 4G), and the networks market it as 4G Calling. The TSA, the industry body for technology-enabled care services, warns that many 4G devices use 2G or 3G for voice and so could be affected.

EE's own switch-off page says customers using any of these will lose mobile service completely once 2G is switched off:

1. a 2G or 3G device, or a 4G device that doesn't support VoLTE (4G Calling)
2. an old 2G or 3G SIM card
3. a 2G or 3G price plan.

EE adds that you'll only need a new phone if yours doesn't support 4G Calling or 5G; O2 says a device that supports 4G Calling is unlikely to be affected.

Emergency alerts

EE says phones and tablets connected to 2G won't receive emergency alerts, and VodafoneThree says they work over 4G and 5G on compatible devices within range of a 4G or 5G mast.

Who isn't affected by the 2G closure

GOV.UK says customers of providers without a 2G network, naming Three, Superdrug Mobile and Smarty, won't be affected by the 2G switch-off. Three closed 3G in November 2025, though, so 3G-only devices there have already stopped working. With a smaller brand, ask which network it uses: its timetable follows that network's.

Start with the quick checks that work on any network, then use your network's own tool to be sure.

1. Turn Wi-Fi off and look at the top of the screen. GOV.UK says to look for 4G or 5G while using mobile data, not Wi-Fi. VodafoneThree says a phone or tablet on 2G shows "2G" in the top corner.
2. Find the 4G Calling setting. GOV.UK says to make sure 4G calling (VoLTE) or 5G calling is turned on; it's on by default on most modern phones. Search your phone's settings for "VoLTE" or "4G calling".
3. Use your network's checker (see the table below).
4. For dongles, MiFi and hubs, find the model number on the label or in the device's admin page and look it up with the maker or your provider.
5. If you're unsure, ask your provider. Have the model and the IMEI ready: the IMEI is your device's unique identity number, usually shown in the phone's settings under About.

A 4G Calling phone still needs 4G signal where you use it. If signal indoors is the problem, Wi-Fi Calling lets a compatible phone make ordinary calls over your home broadband, and our guide to the Shared Rural Network explains the programme building 4G in the countryside.

When your network gets in touch

GOV.UK says your mobile provider will always contact you directly if it needs to. If you doubt that a caller is really your provider, GOV.UK's advice is to hang up and call back on a number you know is genuine.

In March 2026 the government published a 2G Switch-Off Charter, a voluntary set of commitments signed by EE, Virgin Media O2 and VodafoneThree and by smaller brands including Tesco Mobile, Sky Mobile, BT Mobile and giffgaff. GOV.UK says they cover around 95% of mobile customers (signatory list updated 22 October 2026). They commit to:

• announce the date of their 2G switch-off at least three years before it begins
• trial the switch-off in different areas before going nationwide, announcing each trial publicly and telling affected customers directly at least three months beforehand (this applies to the networks themselves, not the smaller brands)
• check that reliable 4G or 5G coverage is in place before switching 2G off, avoiding new not-spots and keeping access to emergency services
• contact affected customers well in advance, by several different means where possible, saying when the switch-off happens and what to do, with accessible information for vulnerable customers
• where applicable, keep a supply of VoLTE-enabled phones to buy for customers who need extra support.

There are limits. The charter doesn't cover users' own responsibility to identify and manage their services, and it notes that networks often have no direct relationship with the person actually using a device. So don't wait for your network to warn you about an alarm or tracker that a care service or installer supplied: ask that supplier.

ISPreview expects EE's 2G process to resemble its 3G one, including free handsets for some vulnerable customers. That's an expectation, not a commitment: if someone you help would struggle to replace a phone, ask the network what support it offers.

Alarms need the most care, because you often can't see which network a device uses, and the person relying on it may not know either. Telecare means personal alarms and other kit that summons help, such as a pendant worn around the neck.

The sources we checked agree: ask the company that supplied or monitors the device, not your mobile network.

• GOV.UK says to check with your service provider that the alarm works with 4G or 5G, and to upgrade if it doesn't.
• EE says customers with a medical alert or similar telecare device must ask its manufacturer or provider, which may not be BT, to confirm it's 4G or 5G compatible.
• The TSA says a service provider whose service relies on 2G or 3G is responsible for keeping it running after the switch-off.

Questions to ask the alarm supplier

• Does this unit connect over the mobile network, the landline, or both?
• If mobile, does it use 2G, and if so, when will it be upgraded or replaced, and who pays?
• If it makes voice calls over mobile, does it use VoLTE?
• Does it have a second way to connect if one fails?

The last two come from GOV.UK guidance for housing providers (October 2026): where an alarm uses mobile, it should not use 2G and should use VoLTE for voice calls, and dual connectivity, preferably fixed broadband alongside mobile, is recommended.

The same guidance says most personal alarms currently use a mobile connection. But government-commissioned research it cites, with alarm receiving centres in winter 2025 to 2026 and May to June 2026, found around one-third of personal alarms are still analogue, and it warns that an alarm not upgraded to digital when its phone line is moved could become unreliable or fail completely. So the landline switchover matters too. Our guide to telecare and alarms after the landline switch-off covers that side, and door entry and lift phones in the digital switchover covers communal systems in flats.

Your smart meter doesn't use your phone contract or your Wi-Fi. It sends readings through a communications hub, a small box usually next to the electricity meter, over a network run for the energy industry by the Data Communications Company (DCC). In northern Britain that link uses long-range radio from Arqiva. In the central and south regions it uses 2G/3G cellular and wireless mesh technology provided by Virgin Media O2, under a DCC contract that runs to 2028 with an option to extend to 2033. So the mobile switch-offs do reach smart meters.

Here's what DCC says:

• Meters carry on as normal after the 3G switch-off, switching to 2G.
• Second-generation (SMETS2) meters that rely on 2G/3G need a replacement communications hub to work with 4G, and that work is under way.
• Any remaining first-generation (SMETS1) meters that haven't been upgraded to SMETS2 will need physically replacing before 2033, because their 2G hub is built in.
• It has finished buying a 4G hub service to replace its 2G and 3G service, with a 15-year Vodafone agreement, and is fitting 4G hubs in homes: the first in December 2024 (E.ON did one of them), with standard rollout planned from summer 2025.

ISPreview reported in December 2025 that swapping the hub needs a quick engineer's visit, and that DCC had connected its 100,000th 4G hub. It also showed what happens when a swap is missed: around 46,000 homes with hubs on 2G connections outside the regions they were meant for were due to lose their connection on 1 January 2026, until Ofgem extended service to 1 June 2026. One rural Northumberland customer told ISPreview he couldn't get an appointment for his 4G hub, and Ofgem said losing the connection could stop prepayment customers topping up remotely. DCC said in May 2026 that the temporary arrangement would not be extended beyond 31 May, and estimated that around 30,000 of those hubs would lose their connection from 1 June 2026.

The practical rule: if your energy supplier offers to swap your smart meter's communications hub, book it. If readings stop reaching your supplier, contact the supplier, not your mobile network.

If the switch-offs leave a gap in how your household gets online, the answer depends on what the old device was doing:

• Replacing an old 3G dongle at home: if it was your main connection, weigh a plug-in 4G or 5G home hub and a fixed line as well as another portable device. See what Three, EE and Vodafone offer.
• No usable mobile signal at all: satellite-to-phone services such as O2 Satellite can carry texts and a short list of apps on compatible phones where there's no O2 signal, but not normal voice calls, including 999 calls; our guide to satellite-to-phone services explains what they can and can't do.

When you're ready, you can compare broadband deals at your postcode. We show live deals through a partner's comparison tool; we don't switch you ourselves, and only a device's maker or supplier can confirm it will keep working.

1. List every device at home with a SIM card, including spare phones and old dongles.
2. With Wi-Fi off, check each phone or tablet shows 4G or 5G, that 4G Calling is on, and run your network's checker.
3. On EE, check for a SIM activated before October 2012 or an old 2G or 3G price plan.
4. Ask each alarm, pendant or door entry supplier in writing whether the unit uses 2G.
5. If your energy supplier offers to swap your smart meter's communications hub, book it.
6. Be wary of unexpected switch-off calls; call your provider back on a number you trust.