Ofcom, the government approved regulatory office, has released its research on mobile phone networks' phone call quality. EE has come out on top.

The research was carried out to help people make an informed decision on the best network for them. This will be especially helpful for those in rural areas where the variation across networks is greatest.

The research studied mobile phone call quality in the UK as a whole, in urban areas and in rural areas. EE had a rate of 97 per cent of calls completed successfully, with 97.5 per cent in urban areas and 93.7 per cent in rural areas.

The networks were all rather closely matched but in last place was a considerably poorer Vodafone that offered just 79.9 per cent of calls completed successfully in rural areas, 95.3 in urban for a UK total of 92.6 per cent.

O2 came in second with 95.3 per cent overall, 87.4 in rural and 97.7 in urban. Three was coincidentally third with 94.5 per cent overall, 86 rural and 96 urban.

Overall Ofcom found that 78 per cent of urban area customers were satisfied with their networks compared to 67 per cent in rural areas.

An EE spokesperson said: "It’s great to see our ongoing investment in phone calls reflected in Ofcom’s report, confirming that we continue to provide the best call experience across the UK, particularly in rural areas. We’re investing hundreds of millions each year in expanding the reach of our network so that more people can make phone calls in more places."

Ofcom carried out the work as part of a push to make networks offer a better service. EE, O2, Three and Vodafone are now working with Ofcom to develop a common methodology for measuring the rates of calls successfully completed on their networks. Perhaps being monitored will encourage better service on their parts.

Later this year Ofcom will be publishing the results from a study comparing 3G and 4G broadband speeds across networks. Ofcom is working with the government to help invest the £150 million in infrastructure to improve mobile phone coverage. It's also helping improve Wi-Fi access on railways with the £53 million set aside for improvements.

Read the full report at the Ofcom link below.

READ: Ofcom plans to give networks digital TV spectrum for 4G: How will it affect you?