Mike Dano is a Lead Industry Analyst in Ookla’s research and content team. He covers the North and South American markets, and global technology trends. Previously, Mike was a journalist covering the global telecom industry for 25 years at publications including RCR Wireless News, Fierce Network and Light Reading.
“Direct to device” (D2D) services are expanding, but they remain a small part of a much bigger industry.
D2D technology enables standard smartphones to connect directly to satellites, a capability that – until recently – was considered science fiction. Thus, D2D has the potential to eliminate outdoor cellular dead zones around the world.
However, D2D services today only support messaging and some light data services. Moreover, most mobile users spend the vast majority of their time within range of a cellular network.
That said, D2D still has significant implications for cellular network operators, equipment vendors, and regulators. That’s why companies ranging from Apple to Amazon to SpaceX to AST SpaceMobile are investing into the sector.
To provide context and perspective to this emerging industry, Ookla® has released a high-resolution downloadable poster showing Speedtest® data on the usage of D2D technology in countries around the world. This visual – derived from Android smartphones that register with D2D satellites from Starlink, Skylo, and Lynk – accompanies a detailed global study into the D2D marketplace, highlighting the technology, scope, and pricing driving this new sector forward.
D2D technology is set to improve significantly as major players like Starlink, AST SpaceMobile and Amazon Leo invest in new satellite constellations and acquire additional spectrum holdings for D2D.
Broadly, these moves ought to expand D2D services into more locations, as well as move the sector beyond basic text messaging to support more data-intensive services in the future.
For cellular network operators, this evolution could affect how they invest into the edges of their network footprint, potentially reducing their need to build cell towers in rural areas. Such a result could drag on the business opportunities for some cell tower operators and other equipment vendors.
Further, D2D promises to overhaul policy calculations designed to expand cellular services into more remote locations. Regulators intent on expanding connectivity are sure to take note.
Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.
Mike Dano is a Lead Industry Analyst in Ookla’s research and content team. He covers the North and South American markets, and global technology trends. Previously, Mike was a journalist covering the global telecom industry for 25 years at publications including RCR Wireless News, Fierce Network and Light Reading.
As regulators contemplate changes to rules that fostered Brazil’s smaller internet providers, Ookla data appraises some of those players.
The Brazilian internet market offers a unique perspective on telecom competition: Almost 60% of the Brazilian fixed broadband market is handled by smaller, regional players.
This stands in sharp contrast to most internet markets around the globe, which are often controlled by a handful of market heavyweights.
Now Brazil’s regulators are moving forward with a handful of new rules that could change the habitat that gave rise to these plentiful, and diverse, regional internet service providers (ISPs). Ookla® data offers a look at the performance of some of these regional ISPs, just as market consolidation appears set to accelerate.
Key takeaways:
The OECD calculated at the end of 2024 that 23.03% of Brazil’s inhabitants had fixed broadband, below the association’s 36.54% average. However, 18.7% of Brazil’s inhabitants used a fiber subscription, above the association’s average of 17.1%. Thus, in the locations where service is accessed, Brazilian fixed internet providers do provide speedy fiber connections.
In an assessment of Brazil’s top regional ISPs, providers like Brisanet and Algar Telecom offer median download speeds that are slower than the Speedtest benchmark measurement for all providers across Brazil. And when looking at benchmarks for the market’s top and bottom 10% download speeds, providers like Blink Telecom and Desktop routinely offer services above the norm.
A closer look at the Santa Catarina region of Brazil shows the depth of competition in regional areas of the country. Ateky, P4net Telecom, Unetvale, Serra Geral, and RVT are some of the top smaller providers in this region, each commanding around 1% of the market in Santa Catarina. And each provides speeds comparable to countrywide benchmark measurements, with RVT standing out in terms of median download and upload speeds.
Changes are coming to Brazil’s fixed telecom landscape. Consolidation is gaining momentum, particularly in light of Claro’s recent announcement to acquire a controlling stake in Desktop (another major regional ISP). That deal is pending approval by Brazilian regulators.
Measuring Brazil’s place in a digital world
Brazil ranks 26th in global fixed broadband speeds, according to the Speedtest Global Index. Median download speeds across the country reached 221.53 Mbps in March, more than double the global benchmark of 120.52 Mbps.
But there are plenty of other ways to slice and dice the Brazilian market for internet services. For example, DataReportal cites Kepios findings of 185 million internet users in Brazil in October 2025 (out of a population of 213 million).
The International Telecommunication Union (ITU), meanwhile, reports that 83.44% of Brazil’s population used the internet, as of 2024. But that’s a measurement of the total number of households that can touch the internet through any means possible: If one member of a household has a mobile phone with a connection to the internet, and makes that connection available for all the people in that household, then it’s considered covered within the ITU’s count.
A narrower accounting of Brazil’s digital landscape – subscriptions to fixed broadband services – comes from the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), an organization of 38 member countries that works to establish evidence-based international standards. The OECD calculated at the end of 2024 that 23.03% of Brazil’s inhabitants had fixed broadband, below the association’s 36.54% average.
However, 18.7% of Brazil’s inhabitants counted a fiber network subscription, above the association’s average of 17.1%. That’s noteworthy considering fiber networks often provide speedy internet services. Indeed, the World Bank’s Digital Development Global Practice is promoting fiber technology to improve connectivity across the region.
Such findings indicate that Brazilian fixed internet providers still have plenty of growth and expansion ahead of them, according to the financial analysts at New Street Research, as they upgrade older copper and cable technologies to more capable fiber connections, and expand service to more locations.
Broadly, the takeaway from all these figures and calculations is that, in the locations where they offer service, Brazilian fixed internet providers do provide speedy connections. Brazil’s median fixed download speed on the Speedtest Global Index is far ahead of regional peers like Mexico (104.25 Mbps) and global economic peers like Italy (117.11 Mbps) and Germany (103.72 Mbps).
Smaller providers define Brazil’s distinctive internet marketplace
Brazil has counted as many as 20,000 small and medium-sized ISPs. The rise of these regional players is not an accidental by-product of technological progress but the result of a deliberate regulatory framework designed by the country’s National Telecommunications Agency (Anatel).
The origins of Brazil’s diverse provider structure can be traced back to the breakup of the country’s state-run monopoly in the 1990s. The privatization process divided the country into a handful of regional monopolies. While this move succeeded in attracting private capital to modernize the country’s telecom infrastructure, the newly formed incumbents naturally focused their investments on profitable, high-density Brazilian cities like São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro.
Entrepreneurs then entered this connectivity void, offering various telecom offerings to residents outside the view of the incumbents. And regulators moved to accelerate this entrepreneurial market by mandating wholesale, high-capacity backhaul access at regulated prices, essentially allowing these new, small ISPs to “piggyback” on a national backbone.
Additional regulations supercharged emerging small providers. For example, incumbents were required to provide inexpensive access to telecom infrastructure such as ducts, poles, and regional backhaul. Smaller operators were also intentionally shielded from lengthy administrative duties like detailed financial and quality-of-service reporting.
Comparing and contrasting big, regional providers
Anatel in February counted a total of around 8,000 active fixed internet providers across Brazil. Many are quite small. For example, almost 400 of these tiny ISPs reported having less than 10 total customers.
On the other end of the list, here is Anatel’s February 2026 ranking of the top 15 fixed broadband providers (national and regional) in Brazil:
Rank
Company
Customers
Market Share
1
Claro
10,682,390
19.60%
2
Vivo
8,144,048
14.90%
3
Oi
3,578,605
6.60%
4
Brisanet
1,563,013
2.90%
5
Giga+
1,386,830
2.50%
6
Brasil Tecpar
1,364,222
2.50%
7
Vero Internet
1,335,264
2.40%
8
Desktop
1,208,182
2.20%
9
TIM
878,073
1.60%
10
Unifique
852,875
1.60%
11
Algar Telecom
839,702
1.50%
12
Alares
821,302
1.50%
13
Starlink
661,999
1.20%
14
Kore Brasil
442,725
0.80%
15
Ligga Telecom
347,472
0.60%
Here it’s worth noting that Ookla counts a total of more than 4,500 fixed broadband providers in Brazil with statistically relevant network performance metrics.
This study focuses on the 10 biggest regional providers in Brazil, those fixed, terrestrial internet operators apart from the nationwide providers (Claro, TIM, Vivo and Oi). It also does not include satellite internet providers (Starlink) or internet of things (IoT) operators like Kore. It includes Brasil Tecpar’s two consumer brands: Amigo Internet and Blink Telecom.
How do each of these providers stack up against each other, and the wider Brazilian market for fixed internet services? To answer that question, we compared each of the big, regional providers against the market’s average benchmark, as defined by the Speedtest Intelligence measurement for all providers in Brazil. Then we calculated how close (or how far away) each of these providers was from this baseline.
Provider Performance Relative to Brazil's Benchmark: Median Download Speeds
Speedtest Intelligence | 2025
Here, you can see that Brisanet (the biggest of the regional Brazilian ISPs) offers median download speeds that are almost 25% slower than the market’s baseline (the Speedtest measurement for all providers across Brazil). Similarly, Algar Telecom’s median download speeds are 40% below the market’s baseline. Meanwhile, Blink Telecom’s speeds are above the line, as are Vero Internet’s speeds. To be clear, these figures show the speeds users receive rather than the speed tier they may subscribe to.
However, this only provides one performance perspective. Another way to look at these measurements is to consider the fastest – and the slowest – Speedtest measurements. This allows a more nuanced view of each provider’s performance: Among the customers who receive the country’s slowest speeds, do each of these providers offer better – or worse – performance? Similarly, among the 10% fastest Speedtest samples, how do each of these providers stack up against Brazil’s overall best-10% market benchmark?
Provider Performance Relative to Brazil's Benchmark: Top 10% Download Speeds
Speedtest Intelligence | 2025
Some providers, like Ligga and Algar, offer download experiences well below Brazil’s baseline, including in the 10% fastest and the 10% slowest groupings. Others, like Blink and Desktop, routinely offer download services above the market’s benchmark, even in the most challenged conditions.
A closer look at Santa Catarina
The Santa Catarina region is a powerhouse of Southern Brazil, blending a high quality of life with a diverse landscape that ranges from tropical beaches to high-altitude plateaus where snow is common. Economically, it is one of Brazil’s most developed regions, boasting a low unemployment rate and a diverse industrial base centered around tech, textiles, and major ports. With a total population of roughly 7.6 million people spread across approximately 95,000 square kilometers, Santa Catarina has a population density of about 80 inhabitants per square kilometer, making it more densely populated than the Brazilian average.
According to Anatel, Santa Catarina is the region of Brazil with the highest density of fixed broadband subscriptions. In February, the agency reported that fully 38.8% of inhabitants in the region access fixed broadband, ahead of other regions including São Paulo (35.7% accessing fixed broadband internet) and Rio Grande do Sul (34.9%).
Here it’s worth investigating Brazil’s Prestadoras de Pequeno Porte (PPPs). According to Anatel, PPPs must have less than 5% market share in the regions where they operate.
As noted by Anatel, the top providers in Santa Catarina include Unifique (with 668,489 customers in February 2026 and 21.4% of the market), Claro (505,501 customers and 16.2% of the market), Vivo (214,086 customers and 6.8% of the market ), and Vero (183,925 customers and 5.9% of the market). But the region itself counts a total of more than 400 different providers.
According to Anatel’s February 2026 figures, some of the biggest PPP providers in Santa Catarina include:
Company
Customers
Market Share
Ateky
58,620
1.9%
P4net Telecom
36,575
1.2%
Unetvale
32,771
1.0%
Serra Geral
31,169
1.0%
RVT
29,253
0.9%
Here’s how these five small ISPs stack up against the Brazilian benchmark comprising all providers in the country:
Santa Catarina's Top PPPs
Speedtest Intelligence | 2022-2025
Diverse Brazilian ISPs head into an uncertain future
These small and regional Brazilian ISPs are all very different.
Three of these bigger providers are public companies: Brisanet, Desktop and Unifique. And Unifique and Brisanet both have mobile network operations in addition to their fixed network infrastructure. Others operate as MVNOs.
Moreover, each provider focuses on a slightly different area. For example, Brisanet is a leader in Brazil’s Northeast region. Meanwhile, Unifique primarily operates in the states of Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul in the South. Others, like Giga+ and Desktop, have focused on Brazil’s economic heartland in cities like São Paulo.
Algar Telecom remains a unique entity. It was founded in 1954 and is one of the few regional providers to have survived the rise and fall of state-run companies and telecom monopolies. It operates in the Triângulo Mineiro region and elsewhere.
Meanwhile, Ateky Internet is based in São Ludgero and focuses on combining its fiber offerings with streaming services like Disney+ or Max.
But changes abound. Fierce competition in the market has triggered some aggressive price wars. That has put pressure on some ISP financials. “Despite lower margins, operators are continuing to invest in FTTH as bundled services enhance customer retention. Fitch anticipates further consolidation among ISPs, which could enhance competitiveness through cost reductions and expanded customer bases,” wrote Fitch Ratings last year.
Indeed, consolidation appears to be accelerating. Already Brasil Tecpar has emerged as a consolidation engine with almost 30 acquisitions since 2021. Vero, meanwhile, has acquired more than 17 ISPs. And Claro (a subsidiary of América Móvil) just announced an agreement to acquire a controlling stake in Desktop. The roughly $750 million transaction involves Claro purchasing an initial 73% stake from the private equity firm H.I.G. Capital and Desktop’s founders. If approved, it would significantly bolster Claro’s footprint in the state of São Paulo, the wealthiest and most populous region in Brazil, by absorbing Desktop’s 58,000 kilometer fiber network and over 1.2 million subscribers.
New regulatory actions create yet another impact. Although Anatel is moving to simplify some administrative provisions, it’s also expanding the depth of data required from PPPs. At the same time, Brazilian tax reform may also create new reporting requirements for ISPs and others.
Concurrently, Anatel is enhancing some regulations around cybersecurity and telecom equipment. And it’s working to foster the development of domestic AI services and infrastructure.
Taken together, it’s clear that Brazil’s ISPs – both big regional players and smaller PPPs – face an uncertain future with both opportunities and challenges.
Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.
Mike Dano is a Lead Industry Analyst in Ookla’s research and content team. He covers the North and South American markets, and global technology trends. Previously, Mike was a journalist covering the global telecom industry for 25 years at publications including RCR Wireless News, Fierce Network and Light Reading.
Ahead of the Wireless Infrastructure Association’s (WIA) Connect (X) trade show in Miami, May 4-6, Ookla data highlights the city’s cell site showing the highest traffic strain.
As any wireless engineer knows, cellular networks are a shared resource. And they can get bogged down when lots of people share that resource at the same time.
Network speeds offer one clear way to measure the degree of that strain. When speeds slow for everyone, that’s typically an indication that the network itself is getting pushed beyond its design parameters.
But there are many factors at play here. As users travel across the network, and through the steps of their day, cellular traffic can ripple like a summer wind, sometimes blustery and sometimes tranquil.
Ookla data highlights the undulation of this kind of cellular usage, showing how it changes throughout the days, weeks and years – and through the hours of every day – in ways that can stress even the best-placed cell sites.
Key takeaways:
Aggregated mobile network speeds across Miami have risen more than 26% over the past few years, reaching 187.83 Mbps in 2026, according to Speedtest Intelligence® data. This corresponds to a similar increase in the number of people living in the city.
This overall rise in mobile speeds is underpinned by mobile network performance that can change on a minute-by-minute basis. For example, on a typical Tuesday in the first quarter of 2026, mobile network speeds across Miami rose to a high of 296.05 Mbps at 6 a.m. and fell to a low of 158.19 Mbps at 9 p.m. This variance reflects the ebb and flow of daily mobile data demand among users.
In a survey of almost 3,000 cell sites across Miami, Ookla identified the cell site showing the highest effect of traffic load on throughput: the site with the most data strain. It’s just north of the airport – not a surprise, given the unique demands placed on wireless networks by airport travelers.
These findings help highlight the constantly changing cellular landscape that wireless networking engineers must wend each day. And they must do so amid a rapidly evolving digital landscape – stretching from email to TikTok – with the shadow of AI looming over virtually everything.
Welcome to Miami
The Miami metropolitan area is one of the fastest-growing urban centers in the U.S. The population across the Miami metro area grew from 5.8 million people to 6.4 million people over the past 10 years. This rapid, sustained expansion places a significant and ongoing load on the city’s infrastructure, including its wireless networks.
However, the pressure this growth has placed onto the city’s cellular grid cannot easily be seen from a distance.
Median Mobile Download Speeds in Miami
Speedtest Intelligence | All providers | 2023-2026
Broadly, cellular speeds in Miami and elsewhere in the U.S. are on the rise, when considering the situation across the span of years. That’s due to more efficient cellular technologies (like 5G) as well as a wide range of other factors ranging from increased cell site density to the deployment of additional spectrum to more capable cellular radios – the list goes on.
But those results are clear only with perspective, across years of study. By looking at hourly network performance data, the situation is much different. As Floridians rise and go about their day, they naturally turn to their devices for everything from emails in the morning to TikToks during lunch to Netflix in the evening. And those activities can pressure mobile networks throughout Miami and beyond.
Broadly, this data highlights the typical rising and falling pattern of mobile network traffic loads – the digital breathing of a community sharing the resource of wireless.
Cell towers are hard
Constructing and maintaining cellular infrastructure remains a significant hurdle for the wireless industry. After all, building a single terrestrial cell tower in a remote location in the U.S. can cost $200,000 or more. That expense becomes significant considering the 3 million square miles of territory U.S. wireless providers work to cover.
No wonder the WIA counted just under 639,000 structures supporting wireless infrastructure across the U.S. at the end of last year. That count covers 158,500 purpose-built cellular towers and 198,100 outdoor small cells, as well as broadcast TV and radio towers, water towers, rooftops, church steeples, billboards, utility poles, farm silos, and other buildings.
Broadly, the WIA estimates the U.S. mobile industry collectively spent a total of $65 billion last year on wireless networks and network-related costs, including construction, maintenance, and operations. These costs are exacerbated by a maturing industry that can no longer rely on subscriber growth alone, especially as the cost of winning new customers rises.
Similarly, cell tower operators also face a complex landscape of location-based challenges. Some existing cell sites may not be optimally situated for demand, or may not be capable of supporting the modern cellular equipment required for 5G. This necessitates a constant cycle of densification and equipment upgrades to meet the massive demand for mobile data, which reached 132 trillion megabytes in 2024, according to the CTIA.
Further, a persistent irony in the business centers on local communities that demand high-quality cellular coverage while simultaneously blocking the permits required to build the necessary infrastructure. This sentiment – summarized as “Not In My Back Yard” (NIMBY) – can stretch across everything from apartments to commercial developments to data centers. But there’s a certain contradiction in people using their mobile devices to read stories about the very cell towers they are working to block in their neighborhoods.
Nonetheless, the cell tower industry in general has been successful in expanding its reach.
For example, according to Speedtest Intelligence, the general availability of mobile service among all providers in the U.S. rose from 97.8% in 2023 to 98.7% in 2026.
Miamians, meet your hardest working site
The Miami cell site with the greatest daily traffic load sits on the north side of the Miami International Airport. As you might imagine, we’re not going to identify the exact location of this site due to security issues.
The site’s location doesn’t come as a surprise. Airports are notoriously hard on wireless networks, given the high number of travelers passing through airports on a daily basis, all using their phones for calls, work activities and catching up on their favorite streaming shows.
Further, airports present a unique wireless engineering challenge because they must support bursty traffic loads as airplanes land and travelers immediately switch on their device from airplane mode in order to check the time, weather, and where the Uber stand is. This creates sudden, large demands on network resources.
But how exactly did we conclude that this particular cell site is the one with the greatest traffic load in the greater Miami area? I’m glad you asked.
First, we scoured all 2,912 estimated cell site locations in the Miami metro area. These locations are determined by an algorithmic interpretation of signal strength data.
Then, we looked at Speedtest Consumer Quality of Experience (QoE) analytics from the fourth quarter of 2025 to the first quarter of 2026 on an aggregated, hourly basis, calculating the cell sites showing the greatest dip in speeds, as well as traffic load intensity, frequency of slowdowns, and load causality. Unlike consumer-initiated Speedtest data – which primarily captures throughput at a single point in time – CQoE data is collected throughout the day in the background as consumers naturally use their devices.
The results, for this particular site, look like this:
Into the future
Cell sites across the U.S. – including ones in Miami just north of the airport – face an uncertain future. Demand for mobile data continues to rise, thanks to widespread adoption of bandwidth-heavy applications like streaming video as well as the continued expansion of services like fixed wireless access (FWA). For airports specifically, a growing number of traveler and employee applications are going wireless, from ticketing to maintenance to security monitoring and analytics.
Further, emerging AI services are expected to accelerate traffic growth, particularly in the uplink (upload) direction. These AI workflows – such as smart glasses live-streaming users’ activities for real-time analysis – could require a fundamental shift in network architecture.
Such changes are forcing network operators to continuously try to predict how and where user consumption patterns will shift, so they can dimension their networks for the busiest hour of the busiest day across thousands of shifting cell sites. Daily traffic load measurement – such as the load on cell sites north of the Miami airport – is one way to do just that.
To meet this unrelenting demand, network operators can deploy several technical strategies to mitigate traffic increases and boost capacity. Some of the most common techniques involve increasing the network’s overall capacity through the deployment of additional spectrum, particularly the mid-band frequencies that offer a balance of coverage and speed. However, this option might not be available near the Miami airport, particularly considering concerns surrounding mid-band spectrum frequencies and aircraft altimeters.
Operators can also rely on densification, which involves building additional cell sites, including small cells, to reduce the geographic area each tower must cover. But this too might be a challenge in Miami, given the rising cost of real estate.
Finally operators can leverage more efficient cellular technologies such as Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO), carrier aggregation, and standalone (SA) 5G to maximize spectral efficiency. And future technologies, including higher orders of MIMO, may further make networks more efficient. Such advanced technologies are clearly gaining steam nationwide, according to recent RootMetrics findings.
Looking ahead, 6G is positioned as the next significant evolution of cellular technology that promises to make wireless communications even more efficient and, in theory, ease the strain on cell towers in general. Already early 6G standards are under development.
While this next wave of 6G is expected to deliver improved capacity, network operators in Miami and elsewhere must still manage their current traffic loads on a day-in and day-out basis. Including in locations just north of the airport.
Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.
Mike Dano is a Lead Industry Analyst in Ookla’s research and content team. He covers the North and South American markets, and global technology trends. Previously, Mike was a journalist covering the global telecom industry for 25 years at publications including RCR Wireless News, Fierce Network and Light Reading.
The D2D industry, still in its infancy, is showing steady progress.
Just a few years ago, the idea that a smartphone could connect to a satellite seemed more science fiction than technological possibility. But now, such connections are not only possible, they’re popping up in a growing number of locations around the world.
This development has significant implications for cellular network providers, telecom regulators, cell tower operators and equipment vendors – not to mention mobile users themselves. After all, D2D technology ultimately promises to eliminate outdoor cellular dead zones globally.
However, D2D technology is still maturing. Most such connections can only transmit a few bytes of data. And the service is commercially available in just a handful of countries. Ookla® data helps to shine a light on this emerging market and its growth potential.
Key takeaways:
The number of global D2D connections recorded by Ookla increased roughly 24.5% between July 2025 and March 2026. This growth coincides with the launch of Starlink Mobile’s D2D services in a number of countries, including Chile, Ukraine, Peru, and the U.K. However, growth in those countries was offset by a decline in the number of connections in the U.S. and Canada in recent months. This may correspond to moves by T-Mobile (in the U.S.) and Rogers (in Canada) to begin charging some customers for D2D services, as well as other factors such as seasonal usage trends
The U.S. leads the world in D2D connections, accounting for 45.9% of all global D2D connections in March 2026. Other countries showing noteworthy numbers of D2D connections in March 2026 included Australia (18.1% of global D2D samples), Chile (10%) and Canada (9.8%) – all countries with significant chunks of rural territory. Starlink accounted for the vast majority of these D2D samples, though Skylo and Lynk Global also generated some samples globally.
A very small percentage of mobile users are connecting to D2D satellites in each of these countries. For example, during March 2026, 0.46% of Speedtest® users in the U.S. recorded a connection to a D2D satellite. In Chile, that figure was 1.26% (the highest). In Canada, it was 0.70%. In Japan, it was 0.11% (the lowest). This is noteworthy because it helps to define the scale and scope of the overall D2D marketplace.
RootMetrics® conducted drive testing on Starlink’s D2D service for T-Mobile in rural New York state in the second half of 2025. The tests involved sending and receiving texts on phones that were in a moving car – essentially putting extra stress on a service that’s intended to be used outdoors, in a stationary situation, with a clear view of the sky. Nonetheless, the tests showed a 60% success rate. The average amount of time it took to successfully send and then receive a text (across 143 successful tests) was 1 minute, 17 seconds.
In the U.S., most D2D signal strength measurements (using RSRP, or Reference Signal Received Power) fell between -108 and -126 dBm. That’s outside the -80 to -120 dBm range of traditional, terrestrial cellular network measurements. This is likely due to the remote nature of these D2D connections, which are generally unaffected by interference from other users. They’re often in outdoor environments that aren’t cluttered with lots of other cellular signals, or with the traffic of lots of other users.
Turning fiction into reality
D2D technology connects satellites directly to smartphones. This is an impressive technological feat, considering those satellites are hundreds of miles above the Earth, and often traveling thousands of miles an hour. Traditional cell towers, meanwhile, are usually just a few miles away from mobile users.
Apple, via Globalstar’s satellites and spectrum holdings, pioneered the D2D market. Every iPhone since the iPhone 14, introduced in 2022, can send and receive text messages through these satellites.
But Apple isn’t alone.
SpaceX’s Starlink Mobile, Skylo, and Lynk Global have all announced commercial D2D services in select countries around the world. Viasat and AST SpaceMobile are among the companies that have announced plans to launch D2D offerings in the future. And just this month, Amazon announced plans to acquire Globalstar in order to provide D2D services to mobile network operators globally as part of its Amazon Leo satellite internet venture.
Most such services today support text messaging and some light data services, but D2D network performance ought to improve as vendors deploy additional satellites and spectrum.
As with most new technologies, there are a variety of technological designs and commercial implementations in the D2D marketplace. Apple, for example, is relying on Globalstar’s satellites, spectrum holdings and regulatory approvals to offer messaging via satellite. Meanwhile, both Starlink and Lynk are currently using spectrum from their mobile operator partners for D2D (and thereby supporting D2D connections across most newer smartphones). Bothcompanies are also moving to inject their own spectrum holdings into their D2D efforts. And Skylo is running its services over spectrum and satellites owned by its satellite operator partners.
Partly as a result, the technological standards for these types of services are still evolving. The 3GPP – the organization charged with setting most cellular standards – is in the process of fully integrating D2D technology into future 5G and 6G standards. And telecom regulators around the world are working to address the many issues surrounding emerging D2D services, from interference concerns to the effect D2D satellites might have on astronomy.
Ookla data helps to shine a light on progress in the D2D marketplace via data derived from Android smartphones that register with satellites from Starlink, Skylo, and Lynk. Here are the countries where Ookla has recorded such connections between July 2025 and March 2026:
D2D connections grow – but remain a small part of a big industry
Overall, the total number of D2D samples recorded globally by Ookla increased 24.5% between July 2025 and March 2026:
Ookla recorded D2D connections in Ukraine (2.52% of all samples in March 2026) due to Kyivstar’s November launch with Starlink there. However, those results are not included in any mapping information due to sensitivities around connectivity and the ongoing conflict in the country.
From July 2025 to March 2026, the U.S. accounted for the plurality of D2D samples. But other countries have begun to show growth in recent months.
D2D Sample Count Share by Country
July 2025 – March 2026
Broadly, these results track with the testing and launch of Starlink’s D2D services across a growing number of countries. And Starlink is promising more D2D growth in the months ahead: According to the company’s site, Starlink plans to launch D2D services in large parts of Africa as well as in countries ranging from Spain to Kazakhstan to Mongolia to Madagascar to Mexico.
Regardless, D2D in general is still just a tiny part of the overall, global cellular industry. The below results, broken out by country, show the percent of users who showed at least one D2D connection, on a monthly basis. This data is based on Speedtest users with Android smartphones that support D2D connections from Starlink, Skylo, or Lynk.
Unique Monthly D2D Users, by Country
July 2025 – March 2026
Broadly, these results are not necessarily a surprise. For example, GSMA Intelligence recently noted that terrestrial networks already cover 96% of the global population, and that D2D connections typically only work outside rather than indoors (where most smartphone usage occurs). “In practice, the majority of mobile users will not actively need D2D on a regular basis,” the firm wrote.
Further, the percentage of unique monthly D2D users showed a slight decline in recent months in the U.S. and Canada. This may be due to a variety of factors including season usage trends (people tend to travel less during the winter). Further, T-Mobile and Rogers (Starlink’s partners in the U.S. and Canada, respectively) began charging some customers for Starlink-powered D2D services after the end of an initial free trial period. Both operators now offer the service for no additional cost to customers who subscribe to their more expensive service plans, but charge roughly $10 per month to customers on less expensive plans. They also offer the service to customers from other carriers, for a fee.
In Ukraine, Kyivstar does not charge extra for Starlink Mobile. Neither does KDDI in Japan. In Peru, Entel offers 200 text messages through Starlink Mobile across a number of its service plans for no extra cost. In the U.K., Telefonica’s O2 is offering Starlink Mobile at no extra cost on its more expensive “Ultimate” plan, and for around $4 per month to other customers. In the U.S., Verizon is not charging extra for Skylo’s D2D text messaging services.
Tracking the growth of a new market
Like most telecom operators, D2D providers like Starlink and Skylo use Mobile Country Codes (MCC) and Mobile Network Codes (MNC) as unique numerical identifiers for their services. The MCC identifies the country (530 for New Zealand, for example), while the MNC identifies the specific carrier within that country. The International Telecommunication Union, an agency of the United Nations, is responsible for the global standardization of these identification codes.
These codes create a starting point for tracking the rollout of D2D services because Android phones record which MCCs and MNCs they access. However, additional filters must be applied to these MCC and MNC registrations in order to remove devices that may have only briefly connected to a D2D network operator while in the process of switching from a Wi-Fi network to a cellular network, for example.
Further, the D2D market is in a state of flux. For example, AST SpaceMobile has promised to join the industry via the launch of 45-60 satellites by the end of 2026. Most of those satellites will offer data speeds of up to 120 Mbps. It’s not yet clear how those capabilities will shape customers’ actual experiences, but AST SpaceMobile partners like AT&T are promising “a full suite of broadband connectivity: voice, data, and text.”
Similarly, Amazon Leo is promising to maintain Globalstar’s constellation for Apple while deploying its own D2D satellite constellation by 2028. “The Leo D2D system will offer substantially higher spectrum use and efficiency than legacy direct-to-cell systems, which translates into faster speeds and better performance for customers,” according to the company.
And Lynk, backed by satellite operator SES, announced a merger with Omnispace in late 2025 to combine its “cell-tower-in-space” technology with Omnispace’s extensive satellite spectrum holdings.
SpaceX’s Starlink Mobile, meanwhile, recently announced plans to launch a second generation of D2D satellites, a constellation that will be roughly double the size of its current D2D constellation. Those new V2 D2D satellites will support the spectrum SpaceX purchased from EchoStar, alongside improved antennas and other advancements that Starlink said will “enable full 5G cellular connectivity with a comparable experience to current terrestrial service.” However, the launch of Starlink’s V2 D2D satellite constellation is contingent on SpaceX’s bigger Starship rocket, which remains in testing.
That said, a major driver in the D2D industry broadly is the falling cost of satellite launches, thanks in large part to SpaceX’s existing Falcon 9 rocket. One estimate indicates that the price of putting 1 kilogram into orbit has recently tumbled from $10,000 to around $3,300.
The real-world use cases of D2D
The takeaways in any analysis of the global D2D marketplace are distinctly local in nature, as visible in the early results from T-Mobile’s deployment of Starlink’s D2D service in the U.S.
For example, the gradual rollout of D2D is clearly visible in Ookla data for Peru, where Starlink Mobile launched D2D services with Entel in December:
This helps to show the reach of D2D services, particularly in light of the fact that most cellular networks only cover populated areas and not the vast tracks of wilderness common across the globe (and in Eastern Peru).
Another view of Starlink’s D2D service comes from Ookla’s RootMetrics®, which conducts rigorous drive tests of cellular networks in the U.S. and globally. RootMetrics’s drive testing data can often provide a more nuanced look at the performance of mobile networks when compared with crowdsourced data from Speedtest.
Using flagship Android smartphones, RootMetrics’ engineers in the U.S. conducted drive tests in northern New York state in the second half of 2025, testing that included efforts to send text messages through T-Mobile’s Starlink-powered D2D connections in locations where T-Mobile’s cellular service wasn’t available. The drive traveled in and out of T-Mobile’s coverage area in the region.
In all, RootMetrics’ kit tried 238 times to send text messages through Starlink’s D2D network (when connected to Starlink’s MNC) during this drive test. The phones successfully sent and received texts 143 times, or roughly 60% of the time.
The longest amount of time it took for the RootMetrics’ kit to successfully send and receive a D2D text was 5 minutes. The shortest amount of time was 1 second. The average amount of time it took to successfully send and then receive a text (across the 143 successfully completed tests) was 1 minute, 17 seconds.
Again, this test was conducted while RootMetrics’ engineers were driving, so the sending and receiving phones were in a moving car and were not stationary. Most D2D services are intended to be used outdoors, in a stationary situation, with a clear view of the sky.
But, taking a step back, it’s also important here to note that many of these New York locations do not have any kind of internet connectivity. Thus, D2D connections can be critical in the event of a flat tire, broken ankle, or something worse.
Finally, text messaging represents the start of the D2D industry, but certainly not the end. Already Starlink has opened its D2D service to light data connections from a handful of applications including X, WhatsApp, onX, and Google Maps. And Starlink, AST SpaceMobile, Amazon Leo, and others have promised speedier D2D data connections in the future.
A closer look at D2D network conditions
D2D connections stand as a remarkable technical achievement, considering satellites in low Earth orbit (LEO) are roughly 60 times further away from users’ phones than a traditional, terrestrial cell tower that’s just a few miles away.
So it shouldn’t be a surprise that the “link budget” for a D2D connection is much different from a standard, terrestrial one.
A cellular “link budget” is the accounting of all the power gains and losses that a signal experiences in and between a transmitter (the cell tower) and a receiver (the phone). A link budget can be measured in a wide variety of ways, but for this exercise we’ll look at two basic measurements:
RSRP (Reference Signal Received Power): This measures the strength of a signal, in dBm (decibel-milliwatts). The closer the number is to zero, the stronger the signal. For standard terrestrial cellular networks, -80 dBm is very strong and -120 dBm is very weak.
RSSNR (Reference Signal-to-Noise Ratio): This measures the quality of a signal, in dB (decibel). It tells you how much the signal “stands out” from any background noise. Higher numbers mean a cleaner, faster connection. For terrestrial cellular networks, typical measurements range between -10dB on the lower end and +19 dB on the higher end.
Here is how Ookla’s D2D network measurements in the U.S. compare against typical terrestrial, cellular network measurements. These terrestrial measurements were taken on T-Mobile’s network in Los Angeles, a city with generally excellent cellular coverage. That’s due to a variety of factors including an abundance of cell towers, relatively flat topography and weather that’s friendly to a cellular signal (meaning, not a lot of rain).
Most U.S. D2D RSRP measurements fall in between -108 and -126 dBm. How can a seemingly weak −120 dBm signal sustain a functional D2D connection? It’s likely due to the remote nature of these connections. They’re often in outdoor environments that aren’t cluttered with lots of other cellular signals, or with the traffic of lots of other users.
Basically, these D2D signals represent “heroic” connections: They’re right on the edge of what physics allows. This is also why D2D connections today generally only support very slow-speed data services like text messaging. There’s no room in the “link budget” for anything heavier.
But D2D vendors plan to improve this situation. With more spectrum and more advanced satellites – carrying more powerful antennas that can tighten beams around smaller groups of users – they hope to eke out even better network performance from space.
What will a D2D future mean?
According to a February report from the Global mobile Suppliers Association (GSA), D2D services have been launched in 15 countries. And there are 61 countries and territories that are planning, evaluating, testing, or have already launched satellite-to-smartphone partnerships. Starlink leads in this respect with 59 partnerships, according to the GSA count, followed by AST SpaceMobile with 28 partnerships.
The GSA’s report doesn’t cover China. There, according to ABI, China Unicom and China Telecom are already licensed to offer D2D services via the state-owned Tiantong GEO satellite system. Meanwhile, China Mobile uses the BeiDou navigation satellite system, and plans to integrate with emerging satellite constellations to further expand its D2D capabilities. To scale these capabilities beyond emergency voice and text to full mobile broadband, all three state-backed telcos are coordinating with the government to integrate with China’s rapidly deploying LEO mega-constellations, most notably Project Guowang and G60 Qianfan (Spacesail).
The reach of D2D technology has significant implications for cellular network operators, particularly those looking to understand the movement of customers who leave their operator’s network footprint. For example, a large number of customers traveling into rural locations could spur a network operator to consider the installation of a cell tower to better cover those customers.
On the other hand, the widespread availability of satellite-powered “broadband connectivity,” as AT&T has promised, could ease demand for additional cell towers in rural areas. This could affect the long-term business for cell tower operators. Already Starlink is promising that its V2 constellation for D2D services will allow mobile network operators to “invest less in terrestrial networks while unlocking seamless service in remote areas.” The real calculation might ultimately be economic: Is it less expensive to construct a cell tower or to rely on a D2D provider to cover rural, outdoor areas?
As for regulators, the broad adoption of D2D services could affect a variety of policies, including financial incentives for telecom services in rural areas. For example, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in the U.S. is still evaluating the 5G Fund for Rural America, an initiative that aims to distribute up to $9 billion over the next decade to bring high-speed 5G to rural areas. Should D2D services factor into that spending?
Regardless, D2D likely won’t impact indoor coverage efforts, considering satellite-borne signals generally can’t penetrate buildings and other structures. This is important considering an estimated 80% of mobile data is consumed indoors.
For mobile users – those in outdoor, rural areas – such details may not matter. The growing availability of D2D could lead to the elimination of outdoor cellular dead zones, ensuring smartphone connectivity virtually anywhere on the globe.
Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.
Mike Dano is a Lead Industry Analyst in Ookla’s research and content team. He covers the North and South American markets, and global technology trends. Previously, Mike was a journalist covering the global telecom industry for 25 years at publications including RCR Wireless News, Fierce Network and Light Reading.
New data shines a light on the growth of mmWave 5G networks in the U.S., and their performance.
In the very, very early days of 5G in the U.S., millimeter wave (mmWave) spectrum was trumpeted as ground zero for the technology. Some even referred to the combination of 5G and mmWave as “wireless fiber.”
Indeed, in 2017, a bidding war broke out between Verizon and AT&T over mmWave spectrum owner Straight Path. Verizon eventually won the company’s mmWave holdings with a $3.1 billion acquisition deal.
But the noise surrounding mmWave 5G quickly died down after the FCC auctioned mid-band C-band spectrum in 2021. Unlike short-range mmWave spectrum, transmissions in midband spectrum like C-band (3.7 GHz) travel much further, thereby allowing operators including Verizon and AT&T to supercharge both the speed and the reach of their 5G connections.
Further, few other countries in the world followed in the mmWave footsteps of the U.S., with international spectrum regulators instead putting a focus on releasing mid-band spectrum for 5G.
However, mmWave networks haven’t disappeared. New drive test data from Ookla’s RootMetrics®, coupled with crowdsourced information from Ookla’s Speedtest Insights™, shows the ongoing growth of mmWave 5G networks in the U.S., as well as the remarkable performance characteristics of those systems.
Key takeaways:
Across all of RootMetrics’ testing in the second half of 2025, in both urban (metro) and rural (state) areas, mmWave showed up in 2.2% of Verizon’s samples. For AT&T, that figure was 0.2%. For T-Mobile, that figure was almost 0% (and as a result, this report will mainly focus on Verizon and AT&T).
Verizon’s mmWave connections showed up in 75 markets in the first half of 2024 (out of a total of 125 markets), a figure that rose to 91 in the second half of 2025. That’s almost triple the number of markets where RootMetrics recorded AT&T mmWave systems in the second half of 2025. 5G mmWave from T-Mobile, meanwhile, only showed up in 1 market covered by RootMetrics technicians during the second half of 2025.
Most mmWave samples were obtained within 150 meters (about 500 feet) of a mmWave transmission site, reflecting the spectrum’s relatively diminutive coverage area. However, download speeds over mmWave connections reached beyond 1 Gbps in some markets.
Denver, Atlanta, Philadelphia, and Boston are top mmWave cities for Verizon. Roughly 60% of RootMetrics’ outdoor testing samples landed on Verizon’s mmWave in these cities in the second half of 2025.
Verizon leads the way
The story of mmWave in the U.S. primarily centers on Verizon. The company’s acquisition of Straight Path (and later XO Communications) coupled with its subsequent spending in FCC mmWave spectrum auctions, gave the operator a solid footprint in the high-band spectrum. More importantly, Verizon then began a network buildout campaign that put mmWave-capable small cells (mini cell transmission sites) into stadiums and other big venues, as well as in outdoor, downtown areas with lots of foot traffic.
By 2020, Verizon’s CEO sought to leverage the company’s mmWave investments via an appearance during the unveiling of Apple’s first mmWave-capable iPhone.
“5G just got real,” Hans Vestberg, Verizon’s CEO at the time, proclaimed during the event.
Since then, Verizon has expanded its mmWave footprint via services for both mobile and fixed wireless access (FWA) users.
Now, RootMetrics’ testing highlights the scope and breadth of Verizon’s mmWave deployment. RootMetrics conducts controlled driving and walking tests using flagship Android smartphones across 125 of the nation’s largest metropolitan markets twice a year.
According to this testing data, Verizon continued to add to its mmWave network footprint in big U.S. cities throughout 2025. The number of distinct U.S. metropolitan markets where RootMetrics’ testing engineers registered Verizon mmWave samples increased from 75 in the first half of 2024 to 91 in the second half of 2025. That’s almost triple the number of markets where AT&T has deployed mmWave systems.
5G mmWave from T-Mobile, meanwhile, only showed up in one market covered by RootMetrics technicians during the second half of 2025 (a decline from two markets recorded in the first half of 2024). That lines up with the operator’s general approach toward mmWave.
Number of Markets with mmWave Samples
RootMetrics® | 1H 2024 – 2H 2025
Verizon’s mmWave signals also popped up in more rural RootMetrics state-area testing, which covers locations in large and small towns, as well as the highways between them. In state-area testing, RootMetrics’ technicians recorded Verizon mmWave connections in 33 markets in the second half of 2025, up from 14 in the first half of 2024. AT&T’s mmWave signals showed up in just 7 markets in the second half of 2025. T-Mobile mmWave didn’t show in any of these areas.
Further, Verizon’s mmWave connections also show up in a greater portion of RootMetrics’ samples in each of those U.S. metro areas, when compared with AT&T:
Before continuing, it’s worth explaining RootMetrics’ network-testing methodology. The company conducted over 3 million tests in the second half of 2025 across the entire U.S. Unlike crowd-sourced data from Speedtest®, RootMetrics’ data is derived from technicians who drive – and walk – around each city they test. Such tests are also randomized – meaning, RootMetrics technicians don’t test the same route each time they travel through a particular market. Instead, they test different routes.
RootMetrics’ technicians also visit a variety of different locations during their nationwide testing. In urban, metro areas, they drive through downtown areas and they walk along both indoor and outdoor routes. These outdoor routes typically traverse downtown streets and city parks.
In more suburban and rural settings (“state routes,” in RootMetrics parlance), technicians typically drive through neighborhoods, along business corridors, and down interstates and highways.
These testing methods highlight the different types of spectrum that operators deploy in these various locations. For example, Verizon generally leverages its 700 MHz low-band spectrum to cover the more rural “state routes” tested by RootMetrics – which makes sense considering signals in such spectrum can typically travel several miles at least. mmWave signals, meanwhile, can only travel a few hundred yards, making them more appropriate for dense, urban downtown locations (“metro areas,” in RootMetrics’ parlance).
Across all of RootMetrics’ testing samples in the second half of 2025, in both urban (metro) and rural (state) areas, mmWave showed up in 2.2% of Verizon’s samples. For AT&T, that figure was 0.2%. For T-Mobile, that figure was almost 0% (and as a result, this report will mainly focus on Verizon and AT&T).
For comparison’s sake, it’s clear that Verizon pivoted to mid-band C-band spectrum when the FCC made that spectrum available in 2021. According to RootMetrics data, Verizon increased its use of C-band spectrum to 81.3% of all samples in metro areas by the fourth quarter of 2025, up from 74.4% in the first quarter of 2025.
The reach of mmWave
mmWave 5G is distinct because it sits way up in the millimeter wave spectrum bands (generally between 20 GHz and 40 GHz). Earlier cellular networks – from 1G in the 1980s to 4G in the 2010s – mostly sat in much lower spectrum bands, generally from 700 MHz to 1900 MHz.
mmWave spectrum was long considered unusable for mobile, cellular communications until early work on the 5G standard convinced some in the global wireless industry that advanced technologies could unlock mmWave spectrum bands for commercial, on-the-move applications. Operators like Verizon coveted such mmWave bands because they promised to create massive pipes of network capacity, spanning multiple 100 MHz blocks of mmWave spectrum. Those ample chunks of spectrum were unheard of even in the world of 4G, when spectrum blocks didn’t get much wider than 20 MHz.
However, due to the physics of signal propagation, transmissions in mmWave spectrum sport a few important characteristics: They cannot travel nearly as far as transmissions in lower spectrum bands, such as 700 MHz. As a result, 5G signals in low-band spectrum like 700 MHz can travel many miles; signals in high-band, mmWave spectrum like 26 GHz can only travel several hundred meters. Moreover, mmWave signals typically cannot penetrate into buildings or other structures.
T-Mobile’s former CTO Neville Ray used a “layer cake” metaphor to explain this situation, with mmWave networks playing only in small, dense urban areas at the top of the cake:
However, such illustrations are mostly based on general networking principles rather than real-world data. Here, RootMetrics offers a clear look at the exact reach of mature, commercial mmWave networks. In general, 5G mmWave signals aren’t usable beyond 900 meters (or about half a mile). Further, most RootMetrics mmWave samples in the second half of 2025 were collected within just 150 meters (about 500 feet) of a mmWave transmission site.
Distance from Transmission Site, in Meters
RootMetrics® | 2H 2025 | % of total samples
In comparison, most RootMetrics’ C-band spectrum samples were collected within 1,000 meters (just over half a mile) from the transmission site – and in some cases they reached more than two miles from the transmission site.
AT&T exclusively uses the 39 GHz mmWave band. Most of Verizon’s mmWave transmissions travel over the 28 GHz mmWave band, but a very small amount use 39 GHz (just under 6% of samples in the second half of 2025). Verizon’s mmWave signals don’t show the same drop-off at 50 meters that AT&T’s signals do – likely a consequence of the inherently broader propagation characteristics of signals in 28 GHz compared with the higher 39 GHz band.
RootMetrics data also highlights the performance of mmWave 5G signals as users move away from mmWave transmission sites. All wireless networks show a degradation in performance as the distance between a user and a transmission site increases – but the situation can be measured in meters in 5G mmWave.
Median mmWave Download Speeds Slow as Distance Increases (in Meters)
RootMetrics® | 2H 2025
Finally, RootMetrics data can also show the exact signal characteristics that create connections between mmWave-capable devices and mmWave transmission sites. These “access thresholds” essentially show how strong a mmWave signal must be before the network will allow a user’s phone to connect to a mmWave site. If the signal isn’t strong enough, the network won’t allow the phone to connect to mmWave, and the phone will instead remain on a mid-band or low-band connection.
Access Thresholds for mmWave Connections, in dBm
RootMetrics® | 2H 2025
In a 5G network, dBm (decibels-milliwatts) is a measure of the power level of the radio signal received by a device. Values closer to zero indicate a stronger, more reliable connection.
Looking for signals: mmWave in big U.S. cities
Denver, Atlanta, Philadelphia, and Boston are top mmWave cities for Verizon. Roughly 60% of RootMetrics’ outdoor testing samples landed on Verizon’s mmWave in these cities in the second half of 2025. For AT&T, Philadelphia, Chicago, and Los Angeles are top mmWave cities – although AT&T’s mmWave touched roughly 20% of RootMetrics’ outdoor testing samples in these cities in the second half of 2025.
mmWave Samples in U.S. Metro Areas, by Activity
RootMetrics® | 2H 2025 | % of total samples
That both AT&T and Verizon view mmWave networks as an outdoor coverage solution is noteworthy. In the early days of mmWave 5G – before mid-band spectrum like C-band became available – mmWave networks were touted as a reasonable solution for urban outdoor areas, like downtown corridors. More recently, mmWave has been viewed as an ideal option for covering massive indoor locations, like stadiums, convention centers, and other high-traffic buildings.
Nonetheless, 5G signal scans from Ookla’s Speedtest Insights show Verizon’s extensive indoor and outdoor mmWave coverage throughout downtown Denver and Boston:
However, a closer look at Verizon’s coverage throughout the southern part of downtown Denver tells the story of mmWave’s relatively diminutive propagation characteristics, particular when compared with transmissions across all of Verizon’s spectrum bands, including both low-band and mid-band:
Finally, it’s worth noting that Speedtest Insights also shows some of T-Mobile’s mmWave deployments. For example, mmWave shows up in one of T-Mobile’s retail stores in its hometown of Bellevue, Washington. It also shows up in SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.
mmWave: Very, very fast
For operators, the economic calculation for mmWave can be tricky. Since coverage is measured in hundreds of meters, and mmWave transmitters are decidedly expensive to purchase, install and maintain, is the juice worth the squeeze?
The performance of mmWave connections helps to illustrate the reasons driving such deployments.
mmWave Median Download Speeds in Metro Areas
RootMetrics® | 2H 2025
Uplink speeds see a similar boost from mmWave.
The reason for these speeds is clear: Both AT&T and Verizon devote an eye-watering amount of mmWave spectrum to their deployments. Most of Verizon’s mmWave deployments using the initial 5G non standalone (NSA) version of the technology span eight 100 MHz channels. When combining all those channels together, Verizon is using an astounding 800 MHz worth of spectrum, mostly in the 28 GHz band, for its mmWave transmissions. That spectrum “depth” is the primary reason the operator is able to supply connections in some cases exceeding 1 Gbps.
AT&T also devotes a substantial amount of spectrum to its mmWave deployments. In some cities, like Seattle, the operator is using 800 MHz worth of spectrum. In others, like Atlanta, it’s using 400 MHz.
To be clear though, a variety of factors go into raw download speeds beyond spectrum depth, including users’ distance from transmission sites, their phone’s capabilities, their operator’s networking settings, and other factors.
mmWave: Across the globe, and into the future
Roughly six years on from the introduction of mmWave 5G, the U.S. remains the technology’s most visible proponent.
According to a Global mobile Suppliers Association (GSA) report from July of last year, 203 operators in 56 countries and territories were investing in 5G mmWave network deployments. Of those, 24 operators in 17 countries had launched 5G networks using mmWave spectrum.
Similarly, in a report released in December of last year, GSMA Intelligence found that 35 operators from 17 countries had launched 5G services in the mmWave bands. The firm reported that, at the end of the third quarter of 2025, mmWave spectrum for 5G had been assigned in 25 markets globally.
On the device side of things, the GSA recorded 150 devices that supported mmWave transmissions by June 2025, up from just 21 at the end of 2019.
However, the GSA reported a “considerable decrease” in spending on mmWave spectrum since the end of 2020. Indeed, operators in India didn’t bid in a 2024 mmWave spectrum auction, and operators in South Korea didn’t meet mmWave buildout requirements and ultimately returned their spectrum licenses to the country’s regulator. Among device vendors, companies like Apple have shown some recent ambivalence toward mmWave, going so far as to remove the technology from newer phones bound for the U.S. market. Such moves can help reduce the overall cost of devices.
Thus, it’s not clear whether Verizon’s new CEO, Dan Schulman, will continue the mmWave expansion spearheaded by the company’s former CEO.
Regardless, mmWave momentum continues. Ofcom in the U.K. recently conducted an auction of mmWave spectrum in that country, drawing some operator interest. Regulators in India, Japan and Canada may release additional mmWave spectrum as well. And KDDI in Japan has touted an expanding mmWave footprint in some downtown areas. Such moves could push more phone makers to add mmWave support into their devices – a key requirement for broad deployments.
Broad, international support for mmWave 5G is important because it can drive economies of scale for both equipment manufacturers and device vendors, potentially lowering costs and accelerating global adoption.
Finally, all of this mmWave gyration may affect the future of 6G. For example, U.S. officials are pushing for the 7 GHz band to be incorporated into future 6G networks. The 7 GHz band is much lower than mmWave bands like 28 GHz, but it’s higher than the 3.5 GHz band used for most mid-band spectrum deployments globally. Thus, networks in the 7 GHz band may suffer from some of the same propagation challenges that affect 5G mmWave networks. Support – and equipment – for the 7 GHz band will be a critical test for its success.
Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.
Mike Dano is a Lead Industry Analyst in Ookla’s research and content team. He covers the North and South American markets, and global technology trends. Previously, Mike was a journalist covering the global telecom industry for 25 years at publications including RCR Wireless News, Fierce Network and Light Reading.
The rules raise questions about the routers installed across the U.S. This is what Speedtest data reveals about the equipment currently in American homes, including those routers using older generations of Wi-Fi.
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) recently issued new rules intended to address reported security risks posed by routers produced outside of the U.S. The agency said security gaps in “foreign-made routers” were exploited in the recent Flax, Volt, and Salt Typhoon cyberattacks.
To address the situation, the FCC said that all new models of non-U.S.-produced routers will need a waiver to be sold to consumers in the U.S. The rules will impact not only companies that are based outside of the U.S. but also devices developed, designed, assembled, and manufactured outside of the U.S.
The move ignited a firestorm.
“To our knowledge consumer-grade Wi-Fi routers available in the U.S. are manufactured nearly exclusively in China, Taiwan, and Vietnam,” wrote Claus Hetting, CEO of Wi-Fi NOW. “Foreign manufacturing cannot easily be relocated since it is typically based on long-term contracts with foreign manufacturing entities. Such contracts will be costly to terminate.”
“It is not possible to build a consumer router based entirely on U.S. components; that part of the supply chain doesn’t exist in the United States,” added analyst Avi Greengart of Techsponential.
Speedtest® data helps highlight the Wi-Fi router vendors that will be most directly affected by these new rules. Here is a list of the top 10 Wi-Fi router vendors in the U.S. from January 2025 to March 2026, based on Speedtest users. This data can be considered a proxy for residential and public Wi-Fi router market share:
Rank
Vendor
Share of Speedtest samples
1
Eero
10%
2
TP-Link
9.9%
3
Netgear
9.6%
4
Arcadyan
8.9%
5
Askey
5.1%
6
Sagemcom
4.9%
7
Asustek
4.8%
8
Calix
4.4%
9
Arris
3.8%
10
Google
2.8%
Further, it’s clear that some of these existing gadgets – currently deployed in networks across the U.S. – will soon need to be replaced in order to take advantage of newer Wi-Fi technologies. Wi-Fi 4 was introduced in 2009 and supports theoretical peak speeds up to 600 Mbps. Wi-Fi 7 – the latest generation of the technology – supports theoretical peak speeds up to 46 Gbps, alongside more advanced networking and security technologies.
Wi-Fi generation breakdown by vendor
Speedtest Intelligence | January 2025 – March 2026
Indeed, roughly 28% of all Speedtest samples in the U.S. ran over Wi-Fi 5, and around 7% used Wi-Fi 4 or older. These older generations typically do not have the more advanced security protocols of newer generations of Wi-Fi. Additional rules affecting router vendors – coupled with rising costs for networking components – could potentially slow U.S. adoption of newer Wi-Fi technologies including Wi-Fi 7 and Wi-Fi 6E, which uses the 6 GHz band freed by the FCC for unlicensed operations.
Finally, it’s worth noting that U.S. service providers often supply their customers’ routers. Here, we can see the top three Wi-Fi router vendors – based on Speedtest samples from January 2025 to March 2026 – for each of the major internet service providers in the U.S.:
Operator
Verizon (prior to Frontier acquisition)
Comcast
Charter
AT&T (prior to Lumen transaction)
Top vendors
1. Arcadyan 2. Wistron 3. Netgear
1. Arris 2. Netgear 3. Technicolor
1. Askey 2. Sagemcom 3. Netgear
1. Humax 2. Nokia 3. Netgear
Although it’s not clear how the FCC’s new router rules will be implemented, it’s likely that these top router vendors will need to quickly determine how these rules will impact them in the coming months and years.
Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.
Mike Dano is a Lead Industry Analyst in Ookla’s research and content team. He covers the North and South American markets, and global technology trends. Previously, Mike was a journalist covering the global telecom industry for 25 years at publications including RCR Wireless News, Fierce Network and Light Reading.
The 2026 World Cup is going to be massive. Forty-eight teams, 16 stadiums, and three host countries – the U.S., Canada, and México – all trying to cram a colossal number of fans, players, broadcasters, and mobile data into cities across the continent.
Beyond that, fans will undoubtedly want to use their phones to track their favorite team’s progress, upload selfies, download game highlights, and otherwise enjoy the event as modern fans do.
Thus, Ookla® data can provide network operators, equipment vendors, city managers, World Cup fans, and others a guide on what kind of connectivity to expect during the festivities. This analysis will consider the event from a Latin American perspective.
Key takeaways:
During this year’s World Cup 2026, fans in and around U.S. stadiums can generally expect faster median mobile download speeds than those at Canadian stadiums. Stadiums in México may trail those in both the U.S. and Canada. Mercedes-Benz Stadium, in Atlanta, stands out as providing the fastest mobile upload and download speeds during the second half of 2025.
In a survey of World Cup locations across México – one that looked at both stadiums as well as the areas where fans are expected to gather – Telcel’s mobile offerings generally provided speedier connections than those from AT&T and Altan Redes.
During the World Cup this summer, inbound and outbound mobile roaming services will be paramount for travelers. Customer experiences here can vary widely. For example, travelers with services from Claro in Brazil may receive much faster 5G speeds in the U.S. when compared with travelers sporting service from TIM or Vivo in Brazil. Similarly, travelers into México who roam onto Telcel’s network there ought to expect LTE connections – unless they bought mobile services from Telus in Canada, or they hail from Brazil or Guatemala and have services from Telcel’s parent company America Movil. In those cases, they’ll have a good chance of connecting to Telcel’s 5G network in México.
Argentina, Brazil, and México contributed to a spike of mobile roamers from Latin America into Qatar during the 2022 World Cup. Most such travelers used Wi-Fi where available, but those who connected to Vodafone’s mobile network generally received faster median download speeds than those who connected to Ooredoo’s network during the event four years ago. Local users didn’t see this difference.
Learnings from Qatar
Qatar hosted the World Cup four years ago, during November 2022, and the country’s event can serve as a guide for fans, network operators, and others preparing for this year’s contest. Importantly, the 2022 World Cup also allowed wireless network operators in the country to show off the performance of 5G, a largely new and untested technology at that time. The results were impressive: Median 5G download speeds reached 472.13 Mbps during the event, according to a review from Ookla in 2022.
Beyond this network performance study, Ookla data can also shine a light on the fans who traveled into Qatar to catch the games. Specifically, Saudi Arabia and the United States contributed the highest number of roamers into Qatar during the 2022 World Cup. These countries also contribute the most overall cellular roamers into Qatar on a yearly basis.
Since this is a Latin American-flavored analysis, it’s worth noting that Argentina, Brazil, and México contributed a spike of roamers from the region into Qatar during the 2022 World Cup, based on the network operators supplying those roamers’ SIM cards:
Not surprisingly, most Latin American roamers connected via Wi-Fi rather than cellular (4G LTE or 5G) when cheering their teams in Qatar. This finding tracks with recent Ookla studies into the behavior of roamers, and is likely due to fans’ desire to avoid cellular roaming fees. Another factor that could affect travelers’ connectivity: eSIM technology, which allows travelers to bypass their home operator’s roaming packages in favor of local or regional data plans that may be less expensive.
Latin American roamers into Qatar, by network technology
November 2022 – December 2022
Personal (Argentina) and Vivo (Brazil) shine by providing their customers with access to Qatar’s 5G connections. This is likely due to roaming partnerships between the mobile network operators in Qatar and those in Latin America.
And here is where such partnerships come into focus. Qatar visitors who roamed onto Vodafone’s network in the country experienced median download speeds almost twice as fast as those who connected to Ooredoo’s network – during the 2022 World Cup, local users didn’t see that kind of difference. This difference in roaming speeds may be due to network-usage limitations imposed by either local or roaming network operators.
Network performance for roamers into Qatar November 2022 – December 2022
Operator
Median download (Mbps)
Median upload (Mbps)
Share of roamers
Ooredoo
48.81
15.98
46%
Vodafone
122.78
21.75
54%
Analyzing the stadiums of 2026
This year’s World Cup will span 16 stadiums across three countries. And the connectivity differences among those venues are clear:
World Cup 2026 Stadium Mobile Network Performance
Speedtest Intelligence | Zip code-level measurements in 2025 | All providers
These findings – which show median mobile download speeds in Mexican stadiums trailing those from Canada and the U.S. – also track with the Speedtest Global Index® for countrywide mobile speeds among the U.S., Canada and México. Such results generally reflect both the availability of hearty mid-band spectrum allotments for 5G as well as operators’ general willingness to invest in the equipment necessary to put that spectrum into action.
However, stadium upload speeds don’t track directly along country lines – nor is there as much difference among the venues as there is with download speeds. This likely will come as a relief to World Cup fans keen on uploading their celebrations during games.
As for the venues specifically, Mercedes-Benz Stadium, in Atlanta, Georgia, is conspicuous as a speedy location for uplinks and downlinks, as well as a place for snappy, low-latency connections. The stadium opened less than a decade ago, in 2017, and therefore likely benefits from the latest in wireless networking technologies, as well as a substantial backhaul connection that can shuttle fans’ data out of the venue and onto the wider internet.
Wireless network operators typically invest into equipment dedicated to stadiums and other popular, high-traffic venues. High-capacity distributed antenna systems (DAS), temporary cell sites, or millimmeter-wave (mmWave) spectrum can be used to better support large, dense collections of users, like those expected to attend World Cup 2026 festivities. Indeed, these are some of the techniques Verizon employed to provide median download speeds of 1464.38 Mbps in January in preparation for February’s Super Bowl LX at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California.
Given that this is a Latin American analysis, let’s look at México in more detail. According to El Diario, the country expects 5.5 million World Cup fans to descend onto the country. World Cup activities there ought to stretch far beyond each of the country’s World Cup stadiums: Estadio Akron in Guadalajara, Estadio BBVA in Monterrey and Estadio Banorte in México City.
Thus, we’ll look at metrics across each of these large city areas. These areas – roughly 310 square miles around the stadiums – are the broad locations where visitors and fans are expected to stay and play during the World Cup.
In this assessment, Telcel – which has invested in its 5G network in México – excelled in providing speedy median mobile download connections. Telcel also plans to use network slicing technology to manage potential congestion amid an influx of traffic on its network during the World Cup.
Median mobile download speeds in Mexico's large city areas
2H 2025
Telefonica’s Movistar isn’t listed in the above charts because the company piggybacks on AT&T’s network in México – but Telefonica is responsible for handling its customers’ roaming experience abroad. Moreover, Telefonica officials have said they plan to use analytics and AI technology to monitor the company’s network for potential bottlenecks.
Finally, a closer look at México’s World Cup locations shows the differences among the country’s providers as well as the differences among their various networking technologies, from 5G to 4G LTE to 3G. The below charts measure page load time (in ms), which is the period required for a specific webpage to display on a user’s screen. This serves as a critical benchmark for internet quality as it directly impacts a user’s browsing experience (meaning, how fast they can check World Cup scores). Similarly, video start time is the duration between when a user hits play and when the first frame of their video actually appears (meaning, how fast they can watch World Cup highlights). This reflects their operator’s ability to serve up a responsive and stable connection.
Not surprisingly, 5G consistently delivers the fastest times for both page loading and video starting. Further, both Telcel and AT&T are standouts. This indicates that Telcel may offer more raw speed, but that AT&T’s network also provides speedy response times to users’ requests.
Roaming in 2026: Which network will host the data?
A final question for network operators and World Cup fans alike involves the networks their phones will connect to while abroad. This roaming question creates complex dynamics for both mobile users and network operators.
For users, they must ensure connectivity while dealing with the anxiety of unpredictable costs and varying network quality. Meanwhile, operators must navigate intricate roaming agreements that cover billing systems, settlements across currencies, and a wide range of network- and phone-related technical details.
These complexities are clear in a look at Telcel’s inbound roaming metrics. The below charts show the top 10 international wireless operators that connected to Telcel’s network in México in the second half of 2025, based on the number of international customers roaming into México observed in Ookla data. This data highlights not only the experiences these travelers may receive when they arrive in México for the World Cup later this year, but also the types of roaming agreements international operators may ink with Telcel’s parent America Movil.
These findings indicate that World Cup fans traveling into México and connecting to Telcel (the country’s biggest operator with roughly 70% of the mobile market) should expect to spend most of their time on the operator’s 4G LTE network. However, that network generally provides downloads between 50 Mbps and 70 Mbps, speeds that are suitable for activities like checking team scores and watching game highlights. Not surprisingly, Telcel’s 5G network delivers clear improvements over 4G LTE, but only a few of the operator’s roaming partners (such as Telus in Canada) show meaningful 5G usage. Considering America Movil also owns Claro in Brazil and Guatemala, it’s no surprise that customers from those countries also connect to America Movil’s 5G network in México.
A final calculation in a Latin American-themed roaming analysis involves the reverse of inbound roaming: outbound roaming. Here we’ll look at travelers from Brazil into the U.S.; based on the SIM card in those roamers’ phones, T-Mobile is the preferred operator for two of Brazil’s three big mobile network operators.
Roamers from Brazil into the U.S.
2H 2025
Then, after that connection was established, Brazilian roamers into the U.S. often relied on 5G. However, those roaming customers didn’t necessarily receive the speedy download connections often available through 5G. Customers with service from Brazil’s Claro did see a speed gain, but those from TIM and Vivo experienced more modest improvements. This may suggest differences in those operators’ devices, roaming agreements, or traffic prioritization.
Of course, the World Cup is still several months away, which will give operators more time to expand and improve their networks, as well as to deploy temporary equipment in select locations where there may be extra network traffic. Nonetheless, this report provides a baseline – a way to prepare – in anticipation of high-demand conditions.
Ookla will be monitoring performance during and after the World Cup matches – look for further analysis later this year. Also, don’t miss our March 26 webinar: World Cup 2026: Is Your Roaming Strategy Ready for High-Density Traffic? Get expert insights into roaming performance and network readiness for the 2026 World Cup host countries. Multiple sessions are available in English, Spanish, and Portuguese.
Preparando la Red para la Copa del Mundo 2026: perspectiva latinoamericana
La Copa del Mundo 2026 será enorme. Cuarenta y ocho equipos, 16 estadios y tres países anfitriones —EE. UU., Canadá y México— intentando albergar una cantidad colosal de aficionados, jugadores, emisoras y datos móviles en ciudades de todo el continente.
La conectividad durante el Mundial de este año será crucial. Las entradas para los partidos sólo se gestionarán a través de la aplicación oficial FIFA World Cup 2026™. Los correos electrónicos y las impresiones no funcionarán.
Además, los fans querrán usar sus teléfonos para seguir el progreso de sus equipos, subir selfies, descargar momentos destacados y disfrutar del evento como lo hacen los aficionados modernos.
Por ello, los datos de Ookla® pueden ofrecer a los operadores de red, proveedores de equipos, gestores municipales y aficionados una guía sobre qué tipo de conectividad esperar. Este análisis analiza el evento desde una perspectiva latinoamericana.
Conclusiones clave:
Durante la Copa del Mundo 2026 de este año, los aficionados en los estadios de EE.UU. y sus alrededores pueden esperar velocidades medianas de descarga móvil generalmente más rápidas que las de los estadios canadienses. Los estadios en México pueden quedar por detrás de los de EE.UU. y Canadá. El Mercedes-Benz Stadium, en Atlanta, destaca por haber ofrecido las velocidades de carga y descarga móvil más rápidas durante la segunda mitad de 2025.
En un análisis de las localizaciones de la Copa del Mundo en todo México —una que analizó tanto los estadios como las áreas donde se espera que se reúnan los aficionados— las ofertas móviles de Telcel ofrecieron conexiones generalmente más rápidas que las de AT&T y Altan Redes.
Durante la Copa del Mundo de este verano, los servicios de roaming móvil entrantes y salientes serán fundamentales para los viajeros. Las experiencias de los clientes aquí pueden variar ampliamente. Por ejemplo, los viajeros con servicios de Claro en Brasil pueden experimentar velocidades 5G mucho más rápidas en los EE.UU. en comparación con los viajeros que cuentan con el servicio de TIM o Vivo en Brasil. Del mismo modo, quienes viajen a México y utilicen el roaming en la red de Telcel deberían esperar conexiones LTE —a menos que hayan comprado servicios móviles de Telus en Canadá, o provengan de Brasil o Guatemala y tengan servicios de la empresa matriz de Telcel, América Móvil. En esos casos, tendrán una buena oportunidad de conectarse a la red 5G de Telcel en México.
Argentina, Brasil y México contribuyeron a un aumento de viajeros en roaming móvil desde América Latina hacia Qatar durante la Copa del Mundo 2022. La mayoría de esos viajeros utilizaron Wi-Fi donde estaba disponible, pero aquellos que se conectaron a la red móvil de Vodafone generalmente recibieron velocidades medias de descarga más rápidas que aquellos que se conectaron a la red de Ooredoo durante el evento hace cuatro años. Los usuarios locales no vieron esta diferencia.
Aprendizajes de Qatar
Qatar fue el anfitrión de la Copa del Mundo hace cuatro años, durante noviembre de 2022, y el evento del país puede servir como guía para los aficionados, operadores de red y otros que se preparan para la contienda de este año. Es importante destacar que la Copa del Mundo 2022 también permitió a los operadores de redes inalámbricas en el país presumir el rendimiento del 5G, una tecnología en gran medida nueva y no probada en ese momento. Los resultados fueron impresionantes: las velocidades medianas de descarga 5G alcanzaron los 472.13 Mbps durante el evento, según un análisis de Ookla en 2022.
Más allá de este estudio de rendimiento de red, los datos de Ookla también pueden arrojar luz sobre los aficionados que viajaron a Qatar para ver los juegos. Específicamente, Arabia Saudita y los Estados Unidos contribuyeron con el mayor número de viajeros en roaming hacia Qatar durante la Copa del Mundo 2022. Estos países también contribuyen con la mayor cantidad de viajeros en roaming celular total hacia Qatar anualmente.
Dado que este es un análisis con sabor latinoamericano, vale la pena señalar que Argentina, Brasil y México contribuyeron a un aumento de viajeros en roaming de la región hacia Qatar durante la Copa del Mundo 2022, de acuerdo con los operadores de red que suministraron las tarjetas SIM de esos viajeros:
No es de extrañar que la mayoría de los viajeros latinoamericanos en roaming se conectaran a través de Wi-Fi en lugar de celular (4G LTE o 5G) para animar a sus equipos en Qatar. Este hallazgo coincide con estudios recientes de Ookla sobre el comportamiento de los viajeros en roaming, y es probable que se deba al deseo de los aficionados de evitar las tarifas de roaming celular. Otro factor que podría afectar la conectividad de los viajeros: la tecnología eSIM, que permite a los viajeros omitir los paquetes de roaming de su operador local en favor de planes de datos locales o regionales que pueden ser menos costosos.
Latinoamericanos en itinerancia en Qatar, por tecnología de red
Noviembre 2022-Diciembre 2022
Personal (Argentina) y Vivo (Brasil) brillan al proporcionar a sus clientes acceso a las conexiones 5G de Qatar. Esto probablemente se deba a los acuerdos de roaming entre los operadores de redes móviles en Qatar y los de América Latina.
Y aquí es donde tales asociaciones entran en escena. Los visitantes de Qatar que utilizaron roaming en la red de Vodafone en el país experimentaron velocidades medias de descarga casi dos veces más rápidas que aquellos que se conectaron a la red de Ooredoo. Durante la Copa del Mundo 2022, los usuarios locales no vieron ese tipo de diferencia. Esta diferencia en las velocidades de itinerancia puede deberse a las limitaciones de uso de red impuestas por los operadores de red locales o de roaming.
Rendimiento de red para roamers en Qatar Noviembre 2022 – Diciembre 2022
Operador
Mediana bajada (Mbps)
Mediana subida (Mbps)
Porcentaje de roamers
Ooredoo
48.81
15.98
46%
Vodafone
122.78
21.75
54%
Analizando los estadios de 2026
La Copa del Mundo de este año abarcará 16 estadios en tres países. Y las diferencias de conectividad entre estas sedes son claras:
Rendimiento de red móvil de los estadios de la Copa del Mundo 2026
Speedtest Intelligence / Mediciones for código postal en 2025 / Todos los proveedores
Estos hallazgos —que muestran que las velocidades medianas de descarga móvil en los estadios mexicanos están por detrás de las de Canadá y EE.UU.— también coinciden con el Speedtest Global Index® para las velocidades móviles a nivel nacional entre EE.UU., Canadá y México. Tales resultados generalmente reflejan tanto la disponibilidad de asignaciones sustanciales de espectro de banda media para 5G como la disposición general de los operadores para invertir en el equipo necesario para poner ese espectro en acción.
Sin embargo, las velocidades de carga en los estadios no siguen directamente las líneas nacionales, ni existe tanta diferencia entre las sedes como ocurre con las velocidades de descarga. Es probable que esto represente un alivio para los aficionados de la Copa del Mundo interesados en subir sus celebraciones durante los partidos.
En cuanto a las sedes específicamente, el Mercedes-Benz Stadium, en Atlanta, Georgia, destaca como una ubicación rápida para enlaces de subida y bajada, así como un lugar para conexiones ágiles de baja latencia. El estadio se inauguró hace menos de una década, en 2017, y por lo tanto probablemente se beneficia de lo último en tecnologías de redes inalámbricas, así como de una conexión de backhaul sustancial que puede transportar los datos de los aficionados fuera del recinto hacia el internet en general.
Los operadores de redes inalámbricas suelen invertir en equipos dedicados a estadios y otros lugares populares de alto tráfico. Los sistemas de antenas distribuidas (DAS) de alta capacidad, los sitios celulares temporales o el espectro de ondas milimétricas (mmWave) pueden utilizarse para dar un mejor soporte a grandes y densas concentraciones de usuarios, como los que se espera que asistan a la Copa del Mundo 2026. De hecho, estas son algunas de las técnicas que Verizon empleó para proporcionar velocidades medianas de descarga de 1464,38 Mbps en enero, en preparación para la Super Bowl LX de febrero en el Levi’s Stadium en Santa Clara, California.
Dado que este es un análisis latinoamericano, analicemos México con más detalle. Según El Diario, el país espera la llegada de 5,5 millones de aficionados de la Copa del Mundo. Las actividades de la Copa del Mundo allí deberían extenderse mucho más allá de cada uno de los estadios mundialistas del país: el Estadio Akron en Guadalajara, el Estadio BBVA en Monterrey y el Estadio Banorte en la Ciudad de México.
Por lo tanto, analicemos las métricas en cada una de estas grandes áreas urbanas. Estas áreas —de aproximadamente 310 millas cuadradas alrededor de los estadios— son las ubicaciones amplias donde se espera que los visitantes y aficionados se hospeden y se diviertan durante la Copa del Mundo.
En esta evaluación, Telcel —que ha invertido en su red 5G en México— destacó por ofrecer conexiones medianas de descarga móvil rápidas. Telcel también planea utilizar la tecnología de segmentación de red (network slicing) para gestionar la posible congestión ante la afluencia de tráfico en su red durante la Copa del Mundo.
Velocidades medianas de descarga móviles en grandes áreas urbanas de México
2º Sem. 2025
Movistar de Telefónica no figura en los gráficos anteriores porque la empresa utiliza la red de AT&T en México —pero Telefónica es responsable de gestionar la experiencia de roaming de sus clientes en el extranjero. Además, directivos de Telefónica han señalado que planean utilizar tecnología de analítica e IA para monitorear la red de la empresa ante posibles cuellos de botella.
Finalmente, un análisis más detallado de las sedes de la Copa del Mundo en México muestra las diferencias entre los proveedores del país, así como las diferencias entre sus diversas tecnologías de red, desde 5G hasta 4G LTE y 3G. Los siguientes gráficos miden el tiempo de carga de la página (en ms), que es el periodo necesario para que una página web específica se muestre en la pantalla de un usuario. Esto sirve como un punto de referencia crítico para la calidad de internet, ya que impacta directamente en la experiencia de navegación del usuario (es decir, qué tan rápido pueden consultar los resultados de la Copa del Mundo). De manera similar, el tiempo de inicio de vídeo es la duración entre el momento en que un usuario presiona “reproducir” y cuando aparece realmente el primer cuadro de su vídeo (es decir, qué tan rápido pueden ver los momentos destacados de la Copa del Mundo). Esto refleja la capacidad de su operador para ofrecer una conexión estable y con buena respuesta.
Como era de esperar, el 5G ofrece consistentemente los tiempos más rápidos tanto para la carga de páginas como para el inicio de vídeos. Además, tanto Telcel como AT&T son destacados. Esto indica que Telcel puede ofrecer una mayor velocidad bruta, pero que la red de AT&T también proporciona tiempos de respuesta rápidos a las solicitudes de los usuarios.
Roaming en 2026: ¿Qué red albergará los datos?
Una última pregunta, tanto para los operadores de red como para los aficionados de la Copa del Mundo, hace referencia a las redes a las que se conectarán sus teléfonos mientras estén en el extranjero. Esta cuestión del roaming crea dinámicas complejas tanto para los usuarios móviles como para los operadores de red.
Para los usuarios, estos deben asegurar su conectividad mientras lidian con la ansiedad de los costos impredecibles y la calidad variable de la red. Mientras tanto, los operadores deben navegar por intrincados acuerdos de roaming que cubren sistemas de facturación, liquidaciones en distintas divisas y una amplia gama de detalles técnicos relacionados con las redes y los teléfonos.
Estas complejidades quedan claras al observar las métricas de roaming entrante de Telcel. Los siguientes gráficos muestran los 10 principales operadores inalámbricos internacionales que se conectaron a la red de Telcel en México en la segunda mitad de 2025, según el número de clientes internacionales en roaming observados en México por los datos de Ookla. Estos datos resaltan no sólo las experiencias que estos viajeros podrían recibir al llegar a México para la Copa del Mundo a finales de este año, sino también los tipos de acuerdos de roaming que los operadores internacionales podrían firmar con América Móvil, la empresa matriz de Telcel.
Estos hallazgos indican que los aficionados de la Copa del Mundo que viajen a México y se conecten a Telcel (el operador más grande del país con aproximadamente el 70% del mercado móvil) deben esperar pasar la mayor parte de su tiempo en la red 4G LTE del operador. No obstante, esa red generalmente proporciona descargas de entre 50 Mbps y 70 Mbps, velocidades que son adecuadas para actividades como consultar los resultados de los equipos y ver los momentos destacados de los partidos. Como era de esperar, la red 5G de Telcel ofrece mejoras claras sobre la 4G LTE, pero sólo algunos de los socios de roaming del operador (como Telus en Canadá) muestran un uso significativo de 5G. Considerando que América Móvil también es propietaria de Claro en Brasil y Guatemala, no es de extrañar que los clientes de esos países también se conecten a la red 5G de América Móvil en México.
Un cálculo final en un análisis de roaming de temática latinoamericana involucra lo opuesto al roaming entrante: el roaming saliente. Aquí analizaremos a los viajeros de Brasil hacia los EE.UU.. Si tenemos en cuenta la tarjeta SIM de los teléfonos de esos usuarios en roaming, T-Mobile es el operador preferido para dos de los tres grandes operadores de redes móviles de Brasil.
Roamers de Brasil a EE.UU.
2º sem. 2025
Posteriormente, una vez establecida esa conexión, los usuarios brasileños en roaming en los EE.UU. a menudo dependen del 5G. Sin embargo, esos clientes en roaming no necesariamente recibieron las conexiones de descarga rápidas que suelen estar disponibles a través del 5G. Los clientes con servicio de Claro de Brasil sí percibieron una mejora de velocidad, pero los de TIM y Vivo experimentaron mejoras más modestas. Esto puede sugerir diferencias en los dispositivos de esos operadores, en los acuerdos de roaming o en la priorización del tráfico.
Por supuesto, aún quedan unos meses para la Copa del Mundo, lo que dará a los operadores más tiempo para expandir y mejorar sus redes, así como para desplegar equipos temporales en ubicaciones seleccionadas donde pueda haber un tráfico de red adicional. No obstante, este informe proporciona una base —una forma de prepararse— para anticiparse a las condiciones de alta demanda.
Ookla estará monitoreando el rendimiento durante y después de los partidos de la Copa del Mundo. Publicaremos más análisis a finales de este año.
Preparação da Rede para a Copa do Mundo de 2026: uma perspectiva latino-americana
A experiência de conectividade dos fãs pode variar bastante dependendo para onde eles estão indo e de onde estão vindo.
A Copa do Mundo de 2026 será gigantesca. Quarenta e oito seleções, 16 estádios e três países-sede – Estados Unidos, Canadá e México – todos tentando acomodar um número colossal de torcedores, jogadores, emissoras e dados móveis em cidades por todo o continente.
A conectividade durante a Copa do Mundo deste ano será crucial. Os ingressos para as partidas serão entregues exclusivamente pelo aplicativo oficial da Copa do Mundo da FIFA 2026™ . E-mails e impressões não serão aceitos.
Além disso, os fãs certamente vão querer usar seus celulares para acompanhar o desempenho de seus times favoritos, enviar selfies, baixar os melhores momentos das partidas e aproveitar o evento como fazem os fãs modernos.
Assim, os dados da Ookla® podem fornecer aos operadores de rede, fornecedores de equipamentos, gestores municipais, torcedores da Copa do Mundo e outros, um guia sobre o tipo de conectividade que podem esperar durante as festividades. Esta análise considerará o evento sob uma perspectiva latino-americana.
Principais conclusões:
Durante a Copa do Mundo de 2026, os torcedores nos estádios dos EUA e arredores podem esperar velocidades médias de download em dispositivos móveis mais rápidas do que nos estádios canadenses. Os estádios no México podem ficar atrás tanto dos EUA quanto do Canadá. O Mercedes-Benz Stadium, em Atlanta, se destaca por oferecer as velocidades de upload e download em dispositivos móveis mais rápidas durante o segundo semestre de 2025.
Em um levantamento realizado em locais da Copa do Mundo no México – que analisou tanto os estádios quanto as áreas onde se espera que os torcedores se reúnam – os serviços móveis da Telcel geralmente oferecem conexões mais rápidas do que AT&T e Altan Redes.
Durante a Copa do Mundo 2026, os serviços de roaming móvel serão cruciais para os viajantes. As experiências dos clientes nesse quesito podem variar bastante. Por exemplo, viajantes com serviços da Claro Brasil podem receber velocidades 5G muito mais rápidas nos EUA em comparação com viajantes que utilizam serviços da TIM ou da Vivo Brasil. Da mesma forma, viajantes que chegam ao México e utilizam a rede da Telcel devem esperar conexões LTE – a menos que tenham adquirido serviços móveis da Telus Canadá, ou sejam originários do Brasil ou da Guatemala e possuam serviços da America Movil, empresa controladora da Telcel. Nesses casos, terão boas chances de se conectar à rede 5G da Telcel no México.
Argentina, Brasil e México contribuíram para um aumento significativo de usuários de roaming móvel da América Latina no Catar durante a Copa do Mundo de 2022. A maioria desses viajantes utilizou Wi-Fi quando disponível, mas aqueles que se conectaram à rede móvel da Vodafone geralmente obtiveram velocidades médias de download mais rápidas do que aqueles que se conectaram à rede da Ooredoo durante o evento quatro anos antes. Os usuários locais não perceberam essa diferença.
Lições aprendidas com o Catar
O Catar sediou a Copa do Mundo há quatro anos, em novembro de 2022, e o evento realizado no país pode servir de guia para torcedores, operadoras de rede e outros que se preparam para a competição deste ano. É importante destacar que a Copa do Mundo de 2022 também permitiu que as operadoras de redes sem fio do país demonstrassem o desempenho do 5G, uma tecnologia em grande parte nova e ainda não testada na época. Os resultados foram impressionantes: a velocidade média de download em 5G atingiu 472,13 Mbps durante o evento, de acordo com uma análise da Ookla em 2022 .
Além deste estudo de desempenho da rede, os dados da Ookla também podem revelar informações sobre os torcedores que viajaram para o Catar para assistir aos jogos. Especificamente, a Arábia Saudita e os Estados Unidos foram os países que mais contribuíram com roaming para o Catar durante a Copa do Mundo de 2022. Esses países também são os que mais contribuem com roaming celular para o Catar anualmente.
Como esta análise tem um enfoque latino-americano, vale a pena notar que Argentina, Brasil e México contribuíram com um aumento significativo de usuários em roaming da região para o Catar durante a Copa do Mundo de 2022, com base nas operadoras de rede que forneceram os chips SIM desses usuários:
A maioria dos viajantes latino-americanos conectou-se via Wi-Fi em vez de rede celular (4G LTE ou 5G) ao torcer por seus times no Catar. Essa descoberta está de acordo com estudos recentes da Ookla sobre o comportamento de viajantes em roaming e provavelmente se deve ao desejo dos torcedores de evitar as tarifas de roaming celular. Outro fator que pode afetar a conectividade dos viajantes é a tecnologia eSIM, que permite que eles ignorem os pacotes de roaming de suas operadoras de origem, optando por planos de dados locais ou regionais que podem ser mais baratos.
Usuários em roaming latino-americanos no Catar, por tecnologia de rede
Novembro de 2022 – Dezembro de 2022
A Personal (Argentina) e a Vivo (Brasil) se destacaram por oferecer aos seus clientes acesso às conexões 5G do Catar. Isso provavelmente se deve às parcerias de roaming entre as operadoras de telefonia móvel no Catar e na América Latina.
É aqui que essas parcerias se tornam importantes. Visitantes do Catar que utilizaram a rede da Vodafone no país experimentaram velocidades médias de download quase duas vezes maiores do que aqueles que se conectaram à rede da Ooredoo – durante a Copa do Mundo de 2022, os usuários locais não observaram essa diferença. Essa diferença nas velocidades de roaming pode ser atribuída às limitações de uso da rede impostas pelas operadoras locais ou pelas operadoras de roaming.
Desempenho da rede para usuários em roaming no Catar Novembro de 2022 – Dezembro de 2022
Operador
Velocidade média de download (Mbps)
Velocidade média de upload (Mbps)
Participação dos viajantes
Ooredoo
48,81
15,98
46%
Vodafone
122,78
21,75
54%
Analisando os estádios de 2026
A Copa do Mundo deste ano será disputada em 16 estádios em três países. E as diferenças de conectividade entre esses locais são evidentes:
Desempenho da Rede Móvel nos Estádios da Copa do Mundo 2026
Speedtest Intelligence | Medições ao nível de código postal em 2025 | Todas as operadoras
Esses resultados – que mostram velocidades médias de download móvel em estádios mexicanos inferiores às do Canadá e dos EUA – também estão em consonância com o Índice Global de Velocidade da Speedtest® para velocidades móveis em todo o país entre os EUA , Canadá e México . Tais resultados geralmente refletem tanto a disponibilidade de amplas alocações de espectro de banda média para o 5G quanto a disposição geral das operadoras em investir nos equipamentos necessários para colocar esse espectro em funcionamento.
No entanto, as velocidades de upload nos estádios não seguem uma distribuição geográfica direta, e a diferença entre os locais também não é tão grande quanto a observada nas velocidades de download. Isso provavelmente será um alívio para os fãs da Copa do Mundo que adoram compartilhar suas comemorações durante os jogos.
Em relação aos locais específicos, o Mercedes-Benz Stadium, em Atlanta, Geórgia, destaca-se como um local de alta velocidade para conexões de upload e download, além de oferecer conexões rápidas e de baixa latência. O estádio foi inaugurado há menos de uma década, em 2017, e, portanto, provavelmente se beneficia das mais recentes tecnologias de redes sem fio, bem como de uma conexão de backhaul robusta que pode transmitir os dados dos torcedores para fora do estádio e para a internet em geral.
Operadoras de redes sem fio geralmente investem em equipamentos dedicados a estádios e outros locais populares com grande fluxo de usuários. Sistemas de antenas distribuídas (DAS) de alta capacidade, estações base temporárias ou espectro de ondas milimétricas (mmWave) podem ser usados para melhor suportar grandes concentrações de usuários, como os que devem comparecer às festividades da Copa do Mundo de 2026. De fato, essas são algumas das técnicas que a Verizon empregou para fornecer velocidades médias de download de 1464,38 Mbps em janeiro, em preparação para o Super Bowl LX, em fevereiro, no Levi’s Stadium, em Santa Clara, Califórnia.
Considerando que esta é uma análise da América Latina, vejamos o México com mais detalhes. Segundo o El Diario , o país espera receber 5,5 milhões de torcedores da Copa do Mundo. As atividades relacionadas à Copa do Mundo por lá devem ir muito além dos estádios do país: Estádio Akron em Guadalajara, Estádio BBVA em Monterrey e Estádio Banorte na Cidade do México.
Assim, analisaremos as métricas em cada uma dessas grandes áreas urbanas. Essas áreas ao redor dos estádios são os locais onde se espera que visitantes e torcedores se hospedem e joguem durante a Copa do Mundo.
Nessa avaliação, a Telcel – que investiu em sua rede 5G no México – se destacou por fornecer conexões móveis com velocidade média de download rápida. A Telcel também planeja usar a tecnologia de fatiamento de rede para gerenciar possíveis congestionamentos em meio ao aumento de tráfego em sua rede durante a Copa do Mundo.
Mediana das velocidades de download móvel nas grandes cidades do México
2S 2025
A Movistar, da Telefónica, não está listada nos gráficos acima porque utiliza a rede da AT&T no México – mas a Telefónica é responsável por gerenciar a experiência de roaming de seus clientes no exterior. Além disso, executivos da Telefónica afirmaram que planejam usar análises e tecnologia de IA para monitorar a rede da empresa em busca de possíveis gargalos.
Por fim, uma análise mais detalhada dos locais da Copa do Mundo no México revela as diferenças entre os provedores do país, bem como entre suas diversas tecnologias de rede, do 5G ao 4G LTE e ao 3G. Os gráficos abaixo medem o tempo de carregamento da página (em ms), que é o período necessário para que uma página da web específica seja exibida na tela do usuário. Isso serve como um parâmetro crítico para a qualidade da internet, pois impacta diretamente a experiência de navegação do usuário (ou seja, a rapidez com que ele pode conferir os resultados da Copa do Mundo). Da mesma forma, o tempo de início do vídeo é a duração entre o momento em que o usuário clica em reproduzir e o momento em que o primeiro quadro do vídeo aparece (ou seja, a rapidez com que ele pode assistir aos melhores momentos da Copa do Mundo). Isso reflete a capacidade da operadora de fornecer uma conexão estável e resposta rápida.
Não é surpresa que o 5G ofereça de maneira consistente os tempos mais rápidos tanto para carregamento de páginas quanto para reprodução de vídeos. Além disso, tanto a Telcel quanto a AT&T se destacam. Isso indica que a Telcel pode oferecer maior velocidade, mas que a rede da AT&T também proporciona tempos de resposta rápidos às solicitações dos usuários.
Roaming em 2026: Qual rede hospedará os dados?
Uma questão final para as operadoras de rede e para os fãs da Copa do Mundo diz respeito às redes às quais seus telefones se conectarão no exterior. Essa questão do roaming cria uma dinâmica complexa tanto para os usuários de telefonia móvel quanto para as operadoras.
Para os usuários, a conectividade é um desafio, ao mesmo tempo que enfrentam a ansiedade causada por custos imprevisíveis e qualidade de rede variável. Enquanto isso, as operadoras precisam lidar com acordos de roaming complexos, que abrangem sistemas de faturamento, pagamentos em diferentes moedas e uma ampla gama de detalhes técnicos relacionados à rede e aos telefones.
Essas complexidades ficam evidentes ao analisarmos as métricas de roaming de entrada da Telcel. Os gráficos abaixo mostram as 10 principais operadoras internacionais de telefonia móvel que se conectaram à rede da Telcel no México no segundo semestre de 2025, com base no número de clientes internacionais em roaming no México, conforme observado nos dados da Ookla. Esses dados destacam não apenas as experiências que esses viajantes poderão ter ao chegar ao México para a Copa do Mundo ainda este ano, mas também os tipos de acordos de roaming que as operadoras internacionais poderão firmar com a América Móvil, controladora da Telcel.
Esses resultados indicam que os torcedores da Copa do Mundo que viajarem para o México e se conectarem à Telcel (a maior operadora do país, com aproximadamente 70% do mercado de telefonia móvel) devem esperar passar a maior parte do tempo na rede 4G LTE da operadora. No entanto, essa rede geralmente oferece downloads entre 50 Mbps e 70 Mbps, velocidades adequadas para atividades como consultar o placar e assistir a melhores momentos das partidas. A rede 5G da Telcel oferece melhorias claras em relação ao 4G LTE, mas apenas algumas das parceiras de roaming da operadora (como a Telus no Canadá) apresentam uso significativo do 5G. Considerando que a América Móvil também é proprietária da Claro no Brasil e na Guatemala, não é surpresa que clientes desses países também se conectem à rede 5G da América Móvil no México.
Um cálculo final em uma análise de roaming com foco na América Latina envolve o inverso do roaming de entrada: o roaming de saída. Aqui, analisaremos viajantes do Brasil para os EUA; com base no chip SIM dos celulares desses usuários, a T-Mobile é a operadora preferida de duas das três maiores operadoras de telefonia móvel do Brasil.
Viajantes em roaming do Brasil para os EUA
2º Semestre de 2025
Depois que essa conexão era estabelecida, os brasileiros em roaming nos EUA frequentemente utilizavam o 5G. No entanto, esses clientes em roaming nem sempre recebiam as altas velocidades de download normalmente oferecidas pelo 5G. Clientes da operadora brasileira Claro observaram um aumento na velocidade, enquanto os da TIM e da Vivo experimentaram melhorias mais modestas. Isso pode indicar diferenças nos dispositivos dessas operadoras, nos acordos de roaming ou na priorização de tráfego.
É claro que a Copa do Mundo ainda está a alguns meses de distância, o que dará às operadoras mais tempo para expandir e aprimorar suas redes, bem como para implantar equipamentos temporários em locais selecionados onde possa haver tráfego de rede adicional. No entanto, este relatório fornece uma base de referência – uma forma de se preparar – em antecipação a condições de alta demanda.
A Ookla estará monitorando o desempenho durante e após as partidas da Copa do Mundo – aguarde mais análises ainda este ano.
Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.
Mike Dano is a Lead Industry Analyst in Ookla’s research and content team. He covers the North and South American markets, and global technology trends. Previously, Mike was a journalist covering the global telecom industry for 25 years at publications including RCR Wireless News, Fierce Network and Light Reading.
This year, the conversations at Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2026 in Barcelona shifted dramatically. While previous years focused heavily on intrinsic challenges for the telecom sector—the need for 5G monetization, the untapped enterprise opportunity, the calls for “fair share”, and the need for network consolidation—this year’s show focused more on upside. The show floor and our discussions were dominated by opportunities around topics such as satellite, sovereignty, amidst the emerging age of AI, and with a view towards the arrival of 6G. Following the event, our Ookla Research analysts—Mike Dano, Mark Giles, Luke Kehoe, and Karim Yaici—sat down to cut through the noise.
The mainstreaming of satellite and NTN
Satellite connectivity and Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTN) have officially moved from a niche talking point to a core architectural consideration.
Key announcements:
Starlink’s Next-Gen Push: Starlink held a massive keynote to announce its second-generation satellite constellation for direct-to-device (D2D), slated to begin offering services in 2028. Deutsche Telekom was announced as their first official customer for this new constellation. The introduction of the “Starlink Mobile” brand looks to be an important but still early stepping stone in a journey toward a more fully-fledged mobile service.
The AST SpaceMobile Counter: AST SpaceMobile continues to make a huge amount of noise, bolstered by a major pre-MWC announcement regarding their deepening partnership and joint venture with Vodafone through Satellite Connect Europe
Our take: Low-Earth-orbit (LEO)-based D2D satellite connectivity is graduating from a novelty feature for hikers into a standard “resilience layer” for mass-market mobile networks. The super-bundle of the future will integrate fiber, cellular, and satellite into a single service that automatically fails over when one link drops. What we are witnessing is a massive race to conquer space.
On one side, you have the operator-backed AST SpaceMobile, which operates without a consumer-facing brand and continues to face delays in constellation buildout. On the other, you have Starlink, which has been incredibly strategic about exposing its brand everywhere,from airline Wi-Fi to fixed broadband, and now mobile. The big question moving forward is whether Starlink’s D2D offering stays at that or is just a stepping stone toward a much more capable, hybrid space-terrestrial mobile offering in the future.
5G-Advanced, 5G Standalone, and the 6G horizon
The industry is balancing the need to monetize existing 5G investments with the architectural groundwork required for 6G.
Key announcements:
5G slice validation: Ookla showcased its own collaboration at the event: an industry-first methodology for testing 5G network slices, co-developed with Ericsson. This specialized proof of concept in the Speedtest app enables real-time validation of differentiated 5G connectivity for ultra-low latency and mission-critical reliability (think slices optimized for gaming or video conferencing).
6G timelines: SoftBank laid down a marker, stating they expect to deliver initial 6G services in 2029, emphasizing the need for massive 400 MHz bands to operate effectively.
AI-RAN commercialization: Nokia executives promised commercial AI-RAN deployments (in collaboration with Nvidia) by 2027, bridging the gap between 5G-Advanced and 6G.
Our take: 5G Standalone (SA) was frequently mentioned as a prerequisite and stepping stone to 6G networks. While our data, released just before MWC, shows huge variation in 5G SA adoption globally, it’s clear that leading operators are leaning into the technology, to launch new services and drive competitive advantage.
When it comes to 6G, the technical momentum is real, but it is tempered by economic caution. Many European operators remain hesitant about undertaking another massive capital expenditure so soon. However, the U.S. likely targeting the 2028 Olympics for early pre-commercial 6G deployment creates a global race dynamic, with rival markets and even operators within the U.S., forced to respond.
Digital sovereignty across the stack
The need for secure, localized telecom and cloud infrastructure is set to become a defining procurement criterion for enterprises and the public sector, especially in Europe. There is now a rigid demand for independent, Europe-anchored solutions that remain within local control. This drive for sovereignty isn’t just about satellite; it extends across the entire telecom stack, particularly the cloud.
Key announcements:
Deutsche Telekom’s Cloud Ambitions: DT delivered a standout presentation at its booth, detailing its heavy investment in its cloud business. It noted it is currently at roughly 80% feature parity with AWS and is pushing for 100% by year-end, with plans to expand its cloud availability regions beyond the DACH.
Orange’s Pan-European Sovereign Edge: Orange joined forces with Deutsche Telekom, Telefónica, TIM, and Vodafone to launch the “European Edge Continuum.” This first-of-its-kind federated edge cloud allows enterprises to deploy applications seamlessly across all five operator networks via a single entry point, providing a secure, sovereign alternative to U.S.-based public hyperscalers.
Post-quantum security: Several Tier-1 operators showcased active implementations of Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC) across their networks, ensuring that sovereign data remains secure against future quantum computing threats.
Our take: Digital sovereignty is driving renewed focus from leading telcos in their B2B operations, as demand rises for local platforms capable of hosting sovereign AI models and evolving cloud workloads. For telcos, this is a massive B2B opportunity. By offering secure, localized solutions that align with national data regulations, operators can position themselves as the active shield of the digital economy, moving far beyond basic connectivity.
AI in telecom: moving beyond an efficiency play
AI was omnipresent at MWC26, but the narrative has evolved from generative AI chatbots to “agentic AI” and network-level intelligence.
Key announcements:
AI-Enhanced Calling: Asian operators (like LG Uplus and China Mobile), along with Deutsche Telekom, are injecting new innovation into a historically stagnant area: the calling experience, using AI for real-time translation and network-driven functions like enhanced interactive video. Deutsche Telekom showcased similar examples, drawing on recent announcements around AI-translated calling features in the U.S.
AT&T’s connected AI: AT&T outlined its industrial edge strategy, partnering with major hyperscalers to position its fiber and edge infrastructure as the backbone for enterprise AI workloads.
Our take: AI is framing nearly every technical discussion in telecom, but it’s clear that most of the focus has been on using AI to streamline operations and target cost-cutting. MWC 26 saw this evolve, with developments targeting improvements to the user experience – most notably for voice services, and a renewed focus on the edge with AI-RAN.
Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.
Mike Dano is a Lead Industry Analyst in Ookla’s research and content team. He covers the North and South American markets, and global technology trends. Previously, Mike was a journalist covering the global telecom industry for 25 years at publications including RCR Wireless News, Fierce Network and Light Reading.
Mark Giles heads up Ookla Research™, leading a team of expert analysts in transforming the world's largest repository of network performance data into authoritative insights. Mark is passionate about using data to illuminate the state of global connectivity, in order to advocate for a better, more accessible internet for all.
Luke Kehoe leads Ookla’s research and thought leadership efforts in Europe.
An electronic engineering alumnus of University College Dublin, Luke has extensive experience collaborating with mobile operators, telecoms vendors, and government agencies in research and advisory roles across Europe. He has contributed to internationally recognised thought leadership publications in areas such as 5G, IoT, open RAN, and edge computing, working with prestigious organisations like the Telecom Infra Project and the World Economic Forum.
Karim Yaici is the Lead Industry Analyst at Ookla covering the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region. Previously, he directed Analysys Mason's MEA research program, where he was responsible for telecoms forecasts, market reports, consumer surveys, and custom research.
Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites – led by SpaceX’s Starlink – are upending the market for space-based internet services across virtually every corner of the globe.
The satellite internet industry – which traces its origins back at least three decades – is now in a period of rapid evolution. The development of LEO satellites, which orbit much closer to the Earth’s surface than traditional geostationary (GEO) satellites, has opened the door to services for consumers that are fast enough to support most modern digital activities, ranging from video conferencing to video gaming.
Starlink, the satellite internet constellation operated by rocket company SpaceX, has helped usher in this new reality. Launched commercially just five years ago, its rapid deployment of a massive LEO satellite network has quickly translated into market progress, allowing Starlink to capture a significant global customer base. It’s a powerful case study in disruptive innovation.
Ookla’s Speedtest Intelligence® data helps to capture the scope of this satellite market evolution and its effects on players around the world, as well as the scale of Starlink’s growth and the extent of its networking improvements.
Key takeaways:
Since 2019, SpaceX has launched a total of 10,790 Starlink satellites, helping it to gain a total of 9.2 million satellite internet customers. Starlink’s success in consumer-focused satellite internet services is clearly visible in Speedtest data. The company accounted for 97.1% of all global satellite Speedtest samples in the third quarter of 2025. Viasat came in a distant second with 1.7%. HughesNet was third globally with 1.0%.
Speedtest data also provides a view into where Starlink’s customers are located. The United States, Mexico, Indonesia, Brazil, and Canada are the company’s top five markets, according to Speedtest sample counts – with the U.S. accounting for more than one in five Starlink samples. As for network performance, Starlink median download and upload speeds have been rising in all of its major markets.
Starlink has also displayed clear improvements in its latency measurements in countries all over the globe. Starlink’s highest latency – 282 ms in the Marshall Islands in the third quarter of 2025 – was still less than half that of the fastest GEO satellite latency measurements.
In reaction to Starlink’s growth, a number of incumbent GEO satellite operators have engaged in mergers and acquisitions. Those providing services to consumers – including Viasat and HughesNet – deliver download speeds roughly three times slower than those of Starlink in most big markets. Meanwhile, new LEO satellite players like Amazon Leo are seeking to capture a share of the market.
The race to space
The story of satellite internet is rooted in the dawn of the Space Age. The development of powerful, multi-stage rockets – initially for military and later for space exploration purposes – paved the way for placing objects into Earth orbit. Following the launch of the Soviet Union’s Sputnik in 1957, the race to space culminated in the U.S. moon landing in 1969. These events helped set the stage for the deployment of the first communication satellites.
By the late 1990s and early 2000s, a handful of companies began leveraging satellite launch technology to offer internet access to consumers in areas unserved by telecom operators on the ground. Early pioneers, including WildBlue (later acquired by Viasat) and Hughes Network Systems (HughesNet), recognized the potential in using GEO satellites to connect the unconnected.
These early GEO systems were designed to cover wide swathes of the planet with a minimal number of satellites. However, such satellites must orbit at the same speed as the Earth’s rotation, in order to maintain their position. To do so, they have to sit 22,236 miles above the Earth’s surface. This distance between GEO satellites and Earthlings makes real-time applications, such as video conferencing and online gaming, challenging.
The GEO model dominated the satellite internet landscape for decades, mainly due to the steep costs involved with developing and launching satellites.
But things began to change roughly a decade ago. Unlike their GEO predecessors, LEO satellites orbit much closer to Earth, typically between 300 and 1,200 miles up. This speeds up connections – but it also means LEO satellite operators must launch lots of satellites. After all, at that orbit, a LEO satellite might complete a full circle around Earth in under two hours. Thus, keeping one specific location covered consistently requires multiple LEO satellites, each traveling over that location during a separate time period.
But before LEO satellites could disrupt the satellite internet market, first rockets needed to evolve.
Tracking the rise of Starlink
The ascent of Starlink’s service is directly linked to the cadence of SpaceX’s rocket launches, now almost daily. Those launches are the figurative and literal engine of Starlink’s global satellite internet expansion. Each successful launch – mainly using SpaceX’s reusable Falcon 9 rocket – adds dozens of new satellites to Starlink’s constellation, which now numbers almost 10,000 total active satellites. Each additional satellite creates more network capacity and coverage, thereby supporting Starlink’s growth and expansion.
As noted by Space.com, SpaceX launched 165 orbital flights in 2025, which accounted for 85% of the United States’ total tally. It’s also twice as many as China. Starlink’s satellites accounted for 123 of SpaceX’s 165 Falcon 9 launches.
This operational rhythm is the single greatest differentiator for Starlink. As noted in its 2025 annual report, Starlink activated more than 35 new markets in 2025 while gaining 4.6 million additional customers.
Starlink Satellite Launches and Customer Growth
Company reports | 2019 – 2025
Increases in Starlink’s satellites and customers are commensurate with growth in traffic on the company’s satellite internet network. According to Cloudflare, a global cloud infrastructure provider, Starlink’s network traffic volume grew 2.3x across 2025.
Starlink itself has been working to stay ahead of that traffic. According to the company’s 2025 report, its cumulative network capacity recently passed 600 Tbps.
All of this growth can be contrasted against some of the market’s foremost traditional GEO satellite operators like Eutelsat OneWeb, SES, Viasat, and EchoStar. None has a consumer-oriented internet business that measures up to Starlink.
For example, Viasat counts around 157,000 satellite internet subscribers in the U.S., down from around 228,000 a year ago. The company does not disclose the number of customers it has outside of the U.S. And HughesNet, owned by EchoStar, counts roughly 783,000 satellite internet customers globally. That too is down from the 912,000 it counted a year ago.
Indeed, according to PCMag, HughesNet is preparing to refer its own satellite internet customers to Starlink after its parent company, EchoStar, reached a deal to sell spectrum to SpaceX.
In general, Starlink’s GEO rivals are increasingly shifting away from residential, consumer-focused internet services and toward wholesale services for business customers like governments, airplane operators, and maritime companies. For example, in its most recent earnings report, SES said its aviation business now serves 3,000 airplanes. And Viasat announced a new deal with U.S. Space Force Space Systems Command.
But here too Starlink is providing competition: Starlink recently reported it provides connections to a total of 1,400 commercial aircraft and 150,000 boats, including cruise ships, tankers, and fishing vessels.
Regardless, Starlink’s success in the consumer-focused satellite internet business is clearly visible within Ookla Speedtest data. The company accounted for 97.1% of all global Speedtest samples in the third quarter of 2025. Viasat came in next with 1.7%. HughesNet was third globally with 1%.
Speedtest samples can also serve as a proxy for Starlink’s global operations, shining a light on where the company’s 9.2 million customers are located:
Starlink's Top 20 Markets
Speedtest Intelligence | Q3 2025
To be clear, these findings provide relative guidance and scale, but not exact customer figures. Just last week, a top Starlink official said the company now counts 1 million customers in Brazil, making it Starlink’s second-largest market.
Still, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the U.S. accounts for around one out of every five Starlink samples – SpaceX is based in the U.S., and the U.S. was among the first markets where it launched Starlink services. But concerns over Starlink’s growing satellite internet dominance are now pushing other countries to pursue their own sovereign satellite internet options.
Starlink speeds rise across top markets
The performance of Starlink’s network varies around the world. In the third quarter of 2025, a diverse selection of relatively small countries recorded the globe’s fastest aggregated median Starlink download speeds.
Country
Q3 2025 Median Download Speed (Mbps)
Date Starlink launched
Latvia
187.30
April 2022
Northern Mariana Islands
186.15
November 2020
New Zealand
185.37
April 2021
Azerbaijan
182.44
March 2025
Portugal
180.18
August 2021
A similarly diverse mix of smaller countries made up the five slowest Starlink markets.
Country
Q3 2025 Median Download Speed (Mbps)
Date Starlink launched
South Sudan
15.87
August 2024
Madagascar
23.64
June 2024
Liberia
26.74
January 2025
Svalbard and Jan Mayen
27.80
February 2025
Yemen
28.07
September 2024
None of these countries is geographically near each other, considering they span from the middle of the African continent to the Arctic Circle. Thus, Starlink’s speed variances could be due to a variety of other factors ranging from obstructions blocking users’ receivers, or rain interfering with Starlink’s satellite signals, to Starlink’s network management efforts, and the placement of users’ Wi-Fi routers in ways that slow connections.
In general, Starlink’s top five markets show less variation in terms of speeds. They also show a general rise in overall median download and upload speeds.
Starlink Median Download and Upload Speeds in Top Markets
Speedtest Intelligence | 2021-2025
To be clear though, these speeds are aggregated across the span of months. Because Starlink is a finite, shared resource, users’ network speeds can fluctuate on a daily – or even hourly – basis. This is simply due to the dynamic interplay between the company’s network capacity supply and users’ data demands. Speedtest data highlights this situation, showing speedier U.S. connections in the middle of the night, when few users are on the network:
In any case, Starlink’s networking speeds make it an increasingly competitive option when compared with many local providers, even in developed markets. Moreover, the company’s pricing has been falling even as its speeds have been rising. For example, in the U.K. Starlink’s new £35 ($47 USD) per month plan for 100 Mbps speeds is slightly less expensive than a similar offering from BT, when setup and other costs are spread out over two years, according to the financial analysts at New Street Research. It’s slightly more expensive than 100 Mbps fixed internet pricing from the likes of YouFibre and Vodafone.
Broadly, Starlink’s global reach is noteworthy in its scope and scale. Indeed, the company launched commercial services in two new countries – South Korea and São Tomé and Príncipe – in December 2025.
Starlink Global Median Download Speeds
Speedtest Intelligence | Q3 2025
Overall, Starlink today is available in more than 155 countries and markets.
A closer look at Starlink’s latency
Latency is the time between sending a request for internet data (clicking a link) and receiving a response (getting a web page). It’s typically measured in milliseconds (ms). High latency causes noticeable lag, making real-time applications like video calls and online gaming frustrating. Low latency provides a snappier, more immediate user experience. Fixed networks on the ground, like those running through fiber connections, typically provide latency of 10 ms or below. Mobile networks, like those using 5G, often achieve latency of 30-40 ms.
Latency in Starlink’s network is complicated by the fact that users’ connections must travel roughly 341 miles above the Earth’s surface, to where Starlink’s satellites orbit.
As the company noted last year, Starlink’s signals traveling at the speed of light usually require under 10 ms to make the round trip up from a user to a Starlink satellite and back down to a Starlink gateway site on the ground. Additional latency can be introduced by a variety of other factors, including the laser links between Starlink satellites that can route traffic around congestion. Another major factor is the geographic distance between a user and a Starlink gateway site, which directs users’ traffic onto the internet via a “point of presence,” or PoP. Each hop of this journey – including transmissions across the internet itself – can add latency to a user’s connection.
All of these factors – and more – are at play in the five Starlink markets showing the lowest latency in the third quarter of 2025: New Zealand, The Bahamas, Australia, Uruguay, and Kenya.
Broadly, Starlink continues to show latency improvements across the globe.
Interestingly, New Zealand has consistently ranked as the country with the lowest Starlink latency throughout 2025. That’s likely due to the multiple ground stations Starlink operates throughout the country, coupled with New Zealand’s relatively speedy, extensive, and robust fixed internet infrastructure.
But perhaps Kenya best illustrates the importance of nearby ground stations when it comes to Starlink’s latency. A number of East African countries saw a significant improvement in Starlink latency early this year, likely linked to the deployment of a new Starlink PoP in Nairobi in January 2025. Prior to that deployment, Starlink’s latency in Kenya was 289 ms. Afterward, it was just 53 ms.
“You can expect latency to continue to improve … as we prioritize software changes, build additional ground infrastructure, and launch more satellites,” Starlink wrote last year.
That focus could eventually lead the company to target the Marshall Islands, which showed the world’s highest Starlink latency measurements (282 ms) in the third quarter of 2025, according to Speedtest data. This sprawling oceanic nation comprises more than 1,000 islands and 29 coral atolls, and is located roughly halfway between Hawaii and Australia. Not surprisingly, it struggles to support speedy internet connections, and possibly as a result it does not appear to host a Starlink ground station. The nearest Starlink ground station to the Marshall Islands appears to be located in Fiji, roughly 1,800 miles away.
Here it’s worth noting that Starlink’s highest latency measurement in the third quarter of 2025 was still less than half the best latency measurement Speedtest recorded for any GEO satellite internet provider during that period. Specifically, GEO satellite operator Kacific – which provides internet connections across the Asia-Pacific – notched a latency measurement of 599 ms in the Philippines in the third quarter of 2025. This isn’t a surprise. GEO satellites orbit roughly 65 times farther away from their users than LEO satellites. This is the primary reason GEO satellite internet services have higher latency than LEO satellite services.
Nonetheless, Starlink isn’t the only satellite internet provider investing in ground infrastructure. SES, Globalstar and AST SpaceMobile are among those satellite operators that have constructed new ground-based infrastructure. And Amazon Leo officials have said the emerging LEO satellite operator will have around 300 ground stations – or double the estimated 150 ground stations supporting Starlink.
One final element in an analysis of Starlink’s operations involves the company’s network resiliency – Starlink argues that its network can also be used as a backup in the case of emergencies. For example, Starlink said that its satellites used their laser links to maintain connectivity during the April 2025 power outage in Spain and Portugal.
Ookla’s DownDetector shows a handful of Starlink outage reports in 2025, on a global basis.
A Starlink official acknowledged the July 24, 2025, outage was due to “failure of key internal software services that operate the core network.”
Evaluating the other satellite providers
The U.S. was by far Viasat’s top market in terms of Speedtest samples, accounting for 83% of results in the third quarter of 2025. Ukraine, Brazil, Italy, and Canada were Viasat’s other top markets.
The U.S. also notched the fastest median download speeds on Viasat’s network.
Viasat's Network Performance in its Top Markets
Speedtest Intelligence | Q3 2025
EchoStar’s HughesNet showed similar results. The U.S. accounted for 72% of the company’s Speedtest samples in the third quarter, and it also notched HughesNet’s fastest median download speeds at 46.31 Mbps. Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, and Peru rounded out the company’s top five markets.
Like Viasat, HughesNet generally showed latency between 600 and 800 ms across its network in the third quarter of 2025. In the U.S., the company’s biggest market, HughesNet’s latency hasn’t shown much change during the past two years:
HughesNet U.S. Latency Remains Steady
Speedtest Intelligence | Q3 2025
A handful of regional satellite operators also registered some results among Speedtest users. For example, Kacific saw samples in the Philippines, Australia, and Pakistan in the third quarter of 2025, with speeds and latency measurements similar to those of its fellow GEO satellite operators HughesNet and Viasat. Similarly, YahClick showed some samples in the United Arab Emirates, Pakistan, and South Africa, with performance similar to other GEO providers. YahClick is a Middle Eastern GEO satellite operator tied to Thuraya and Space42.
Latin American satellite operator Orbith also registered activity in Argentina and Mexico in the third quarter of 2025. However, its latency measurements in Mexico (38.66 ms) could reflect its efforts to add LEO satellite options alongside its existing GEO services. Orbith’s latency results in Mexico were decidedly different from the 734.17 ms latency it posted in Argentina.
Broadly, Starlink’s effect on the traditional GEO satellite market can be viewed through ongoing consolidation in the sector. For example, the combination of GEO satellite operator Eutelsat and OneWeb, an emerging LEO satellite player, was completed in September 2023. Another major combination – Viasat’s acquisition of Inmarsat – was finalized in May 2023. And the merger of SES and Intelsat closed in July 2025.
What to expect next
While Starlink dominates the market for consumer-focused LEO satellite internet services today, that may not always be the case. Amazon Leo (formerly Project Kuiper) has been steadily building out its own LEO satellite constellation, and it is currently testing services across its roughly 180 satellites. The company hopes to launch more satellites in the coming months and years – a necessity as it works to present competition to Starlink. Amazon Leo has promised speeds ranging from 100 Mbps to 1 Gbps, based on the type of receiver a customer uses.
Meanwhile, in China, Qianfan and Guowang are among those in the country planning LEO constellations that could span thousands of satellites. And in Canada, Telesat’s Lightspeed hopes to operate a few hundred LEO satellites, although Lightspeed will be sold to business customers rather than consumers.
The latest: Rocket company Blue Origin said its TeraWave satellite internet constellation will ultimately span more than 5,000 satellites, providing services up to 6 Tbps. The company said it will begin launching satellites toward the end of 2027.
Most such efforts are focused on connecting satellites to customers’ dedicated receivers. But a new dynamic in the sector – direct to device (D2D) – promises to expand the satellite internet market into smartphones. Here, companies like Lynk Global, AST SpaceMobile, Globalstar (partnered with Apple), and Starlink too are heavily investing into this evolving opportunity. According to surveysby Analysys Mason, up to 27% of respondents are willing to pay extra for these D2D services, thereby giving mobile network operators a 1% boost to their annual revenues.
However, all of these business models are contingent on satellite operators getting their satellites into orbit. Here Starlink is again the standout, considering its SpaceX parent is the world’s leading satellite launch provider. But others – including United Launch Alliance (ULA) and Blue Origin – are scaling up to meet demand.
Starlink, of course, is not standing still. The company said its new V3 satellites, set to launch during 2026, will provide 10 times the downlink and 24 times the uplink capacity of the company’s V2 satellites. And in support of those LEO satellite expansion plans, SpaceX continues to test its massive, reusable Starship rocket, which promises to deliver more satellites into orbit than any of SpaceX’s previous rockets.
This continuous, aggressive upgrade cycle underscores Starlink’s strategy to stay ahead of new market entrants by consistently increasing both the capacity and reliability of its global network. And that cycle could receive a major acceleration if SpaceX embarks on an initial public offering (IPO) during 2026.
Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.
Mike Dano is a Lead Industry Analyst in Ookla’s research and content team. He covers the North and South American markets, and global technology trends. Previously, Mike was a journalist covering the global telecom industry for 25 years at publications including RCR Wireless News, Fierce Network and Light Reading.
Emerging AI technologies could put an increased focus on mobile users’ upload connections and capabilities.
Most mobile users today are mostly concerned with surfing the web, watching videos and checking social media – all tasks that center on their phone’s ability to pull data down from the internet.
But this may change as AI sails into the mainstream. Already services like ChatGPT can analyze users’ uploaded pictures. And some smart glasses hint at a future where AI could provide real-time insights into an uninterrupted, uploaded live stream of users’ daily activities.
This kind of future could put new demands on mobile networks. Thus, it’s worth looking at how mobile network operators globally have managed their uplink connections to date, in the shadow of this possible AI future.
Key takeaways:
Of the 17 major operators analyzed in Ookla Speedtest Intelligence® data, U.S. providers allocated the smallest percentage of capacity to users’ uplink connections. Chinese operators allocated the largest percentage.
Mobile upload speeds have been rising globally from 2021 to 2025, thanks to the release of additional spectrum and a variety of technological advances. But operators have not been increasing the percent of network capacity allocated to uplink connections during this period. Some have been reducing that percentage.
According to Ookla RootMetrics® drive test data for the U.S. market, T-Mobile, AT&T, and Verizon all allocated 20% of their Time Division Duplex (TDD) midband network “slots” to uplink connections in the second half of 2025. TDD is widely used among 5G network operators to determine the ratio between uplink and downlink resources in midband spectrum.
Future AI technologies could create new networking demands. For example, widespread adoption of smart glasses – those that upload users’ live views for AI analysis – may create a multitude of lengthy, continuous video streams that could pose difficulties for bandwidth-constrained uplink connections. At the same time, however, there are plenty of unknowns in this emerging space. For example, will most future AI requests be answered by software running inside of users’ phones, thus eliminating the need for a network connection entirely?
Anticipating the effect of AI on the network
Meta’s newest smart glasses allow users to receive an AI analysis of what they see. Google’s Gemini Live provides a similar service. These types of offerings hint at a new paradigm of computing that could eventually stream users’ live video feeds directly to an AI analysis bot. This constant visual data stream could even allow AI to proactively understand a user’s context in real-time and offer immediate, situation-specific assistance, without being prompted.
Real-world scenarios using this type of technology abound. For example, as a user looks at a broken appliance, an AI bot could identify the specific model, access repair manuals, and highlight exactly which component needs attention via audio and visual cues. It could provide instant translation of foreign street signs as a user walks past them, or it could offer nutritional analysis of food via a glance at a menu.
If these kinds of services become popular, high levels of uplink traffic could put additional demand on mobile networks globally. Already 5G equipment vendor Ericsson has speculated on what this AI future might mean for mobile network operators. “The uplink traffic will increase significantly over the coming years and, indeed, is becoming telecom’s new ‘currency,’” the company wrote. “This potential growth of uplink traffic underlines the importance of network capacity planning, spectrum allocation, and RAN [radio access network] feature developments.”
Ericsson isn’t alone. “AI changes how traffic is generated, where it flows and when it peaks. It increases uplink use in the home, it injects automation and machine vision into industrial sites, and it multiplies east–west movement between data centers,” Nokia wrote in its own report on future mobile traffic, including from AI.
And in a new report, the GSMA trade association offered three different scenarios for future growth of traffic on mobile networks globally. “In the low-growth scenario, the downlink remains predominant at around 85% of total traffic, with uplink at 15%,” the firm wrote. “However, in the medium- and high-growth scenarios, the share of uplink increases to around 25% and 35%, respectively, by 2040.” The reason? AI.
But such predictions are just that: forecasts that may – or may not – come true. There is still much uncertainty regarding the parameters and the extent of AI traffic on a wireless network. For example, it’s not clear how much AI processing will ultimately be conducted on users’ devices and how much will need to be routed through a network connection to a cloud-based computing service. This question is central to forecasting AI’s eventual networking demands.
Another unknown involves the speed at which AI requests will need to be answered. This topic sits in the realm of latency – the time it takes for a cloud-based service to respond to a request from a user – and it too will have serious implications for eventual AI networking designs.
Yet another unknown involves the extent to which 5G will play a role in an AI future. How many AI requests will be routed through wired and Wi-Fi connections? Will those types of non-cellular networking connections be pervasive enough to reduce any possible AI strain on a 5G operator’s network?
Such questions go on and on: Will newer video compression technologies ease upload bandwidth demands? Will technological advancements – such as those from new5G-Advancedstandards – make wireless networks even more speedy and efficient?
With all that said, now is the time for 5G operators to begin considering how AI might affect the usage of their networks. For years now, mobile users globally have been sucking down movies and memes on the downlink. But AI may flip that: It will need eyes and ears to work, and that could translate into massive streams of data flowing up from users to the internet.
Operators gauge uplink capacity allocations
Frequency Division Duplexing (FDD) was used widely in previous generations of cellular technology, including 4G LTE, to determine the amount of capacity allocated to users’ uplink connections. FDD divides users’ uplink and downlink connections into two dedicated, separate channels. Think of FDD traffic as lanes on a highway separated by a concrete barrier: One lane is permanently dedicated to uplink traffic, and the other is permanently dedicated to downlink traffic. This setup worked well for initial networking priorities focused on voice and coverage in spectrum allocations between 5 MHz and 20 MHz.
But FDD doesn’t cut it in the age of 5G. Operators need speedy, efficient and flexible data connections, particularly when they’re dealing with chunks of midband spectrum that can range up to 100 MHz or higher.
“To increase flexibility as well as make spectrum usage more efficient, Time Division Duplex (TDD) is becoming increasingly common and important,” noted the GSMA global trade association.
As a result, many of today’s midband 5G networks use TDD. For example, according to Ookla’s RootMetrics drive testing data in the U.S., a large portion of T-Mobile’s 5G samples used TDD technology. Specifically, around 93% of T-Mobile’s downlink samples used standalone (SA) 5G in the second half of 2025. Of that 93%, 78.6% used TDD and the rest (14.4%) used FDD.
TDD essentially uses a single “lane” for data traffic in both directions, upstream and downstream, but it rapidly switches the direction of the flow of traffic thousands of times per second. By adjusting the timing of this “traffic light,” an operator can decide to keep the light green for downloads for 80% of the time and only switch to uploads for 20% of the time, for example.
While dynamic TDD allocations may be possible – where an operator adjusts its traffic light in real time to meet a sudden surge in users’ uplink demands – most operators stick to static, synchronized patterns to maintain network stability and prevent interference.
Upload capacity varies by operator and geography
Since operators have some control over the network resources they allocate to uplink connections versus downlink connections, it’s worth looking at how some of the biggest operators in the world handle this decision.
To do so, we used the relationship between upload and download speeds as a basic proxy for carriers’ allocation of networking resources toward uplink and downlink capacity. (This is separate from Ookla’s Speed Score® that incorporates download speeds, upload speeds, and latency).
To be clear, upload and download speeds are a product of operators’ network capacity decisions, but they can be affected by a wide variety of factors including operators’ spectrum holdings and the capabilities of users’ phones. Nonetheless, this study of operators’ upload and download speeds helps to shine a light into their capacity priorities within the parameters of what they can control.
The below findings are from Ookla Speedtest Intelligence data. They show the percent of networking capacity dedicated to operators’ uplink connections, which we calculated by dividing aggregated upload speeds by the sum of operators’ aggregated download and upload speeds. We only used the top 10% fastest 5G download samples (using both FDD and TDD) in order to obtain a clearer view into operators’ networking designs, one that’s unimpeded by connections potentially suffering from interference, network congestion, or other issues.
Network Resources Allocated to Uplink Connections
Speedtest Intelligence | 2025
Of the operators studied, it’s clear that Chinese wireless network operators like China Telecom and China Unicom likely allocate a larger portion of their network capacity to users’ uplink connections
On the other end of the chart, U.S. operators like Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile likely allocate a smaller portion of their network capacity to users’ uplink connections.
It’s also worth noting that overall spectrum ownership doesn’t appear to affect operators’ approaches to uplink capacity. For example, according to the GSMA’s Spectrum Navigator, Vodafone holds the most overall midband and lowband spectrum (526 MHz) of the 17 operators studied. China Telecom sits in the middle of the pack with 220 MHz of midband and lowband spectrum. And AT&T sits near the bottom with 172 MHz.
The ratio between uplinks and downlinks could reflect a wide range of factors such as differences in customers’ usage patterns, device capabilities, local competition among operators for the title of fastest provider, network vendor capabilities, and other parameters. Indeed, some Asian network operators have been highlighting service plans that focus on uplink performance as a way to entice livestreamers.
That focus on the uplink could expand to other markets. Uplink is “one of most under-talked topics of the industry,” T-Mobile Chief Network Officer Ankur Kapoor recently told Fierce Network.
As speeds rise, downlinks dominate
Most users around the world are enjoying faster uplink speeds than ever before. For example, overall mobile upload speeds in the U.K. increased by around 36% between 2021 and 2025, according to Ookla Speedtest Intelligence data for the market’s 10% fastest connections across all mobile technologies. In the U.S., that figure is around 40%. Other leading 5G markets have seen similar improvements.
This uplift can be traced to a wide variety of factors ranging from additional spectrum allocations (more spectrum typically results in faster speeds) to technological innovations like carrier aggregation (which can speed up connections by “glueing” together transmissions in different spectrum bands) and MIMO antennas (which can transmit and receive simultaneous data streams).
But there are also plenty of caveats. Yes, mobile upload speeds have been rising globally, but that’s mainly because 5G enables faster overall connections, both on the uplink and the downlink. In some countries, like Brazil, the percentage of network capacity allocated to upload speeds has been falling. In other countries, like China, the capacity allocated to the uplink has been holding relatively steady. In no country in this study is the percentage of capacity allocated to the uplink rising in a significant way.
The data reveals a clear trend: as mobile network technologies mature and meet baseline user needs for upload capacity, operator focus pivots toward driving ever-faster download speeds. Indeed, overall mobile download speeds in the U.K. increased by around 58% between 2021 and 2025, according to Ookla Speedtest Intelligence data for the market’s 10% fastest connections across all mobile technologies. In the U.S., that figure is around 251%.
Thus, while uplink performance is improving, the proportional importance of download capacity continues to dominate operator investment and network configuration choices.
Here too are caveats. Network operators can tweak their networks in different ways for different locations. For example, venues like sports stadiums or concert halls may feature network settings and equipment tuned in ways that aid fans’ uplink connections.
Another important caveat: Nationwide standards for TDD connections designed to prevent interference. As explained by the GSMA, all the operators in a given geographic area that use 5G TDD in spectrum bands like 3.5 GHz must synchronize their network “clock” and frame structure so that all their users transmit and receive data at the exact same times. This helps prevent interference and avoids large, inefficient physical separation zones between networks. This may explain the similarities in uplink percentages among operators in the same geographic markets in recent years.
RootMetrics highlights operators’ uplink settings
Aggregated Speedtest results are one way to gain a view into operators’ uplink calculations. Another, more exacting method is via RootMetrics drive test results. Such tests – using flagship, off-the-shelf Android smartphones – provide a deeper look into operators’ network settings via 11 million total tests conducted annually. RootMetrics administers controlled, nationwide testing in the U.S. and elsewhere.
A sampling of RootMetrics’ insights into uplink connections: Roughly 79% of T-Mobile’s uplink sample tests in the second half of 2025 traveled over the operator’s 2.5 GHz midband spectrum holdings. And just over one-third of those samples used two-carrier aggregation technology. By aggregating multiple carriers on the uplink and downlink, operators can increase users’ overall speeds.
More importantly, RootMetrics data can offer a closer look at the uplink settings deployed by U.S. wireless network operators. For example, it can show the number of network “slots” allocated to uplink connections. In TDD networks, “slots” are the specific time intervals – typically measured in milliseconds – within a transmission frame that are designated for either sending data (downlink) or receiving data (uplink).
According to RootMetrics U.S. data, T-Mobile, AT&T, and Verizon all allocated 20% of their TDD midband network “slots” to uplink connections in the second half of 2025. However, the operators’ median upload speeds during that period showed some variation:
U.S. Median Upload Speeds
RootMetrics | 2H 2025
There are a variety of reasons behind these results. For example, T-Mobile was an early mover to 5G standalone (SA) technology, which generally supports speedier connections than non-standalone (NSA) architecture. Furthermore, T-Mobile’s midband 5G network sits in 2.5 GHz spectrum, whereas Verizon’s uses C-band and AT&T uses both 3.45 GHz and C-band. And the operators also apply different levels of carrier aggregation to their uplink connections.
That last item – carrier aggregation – can have clear impacts on users’ uplink speeds. For example, the Samsung Galaxy S24 and S25 Ultra smartphones are endowed with carrier aggregation technology for uplink connections. Such technology binds two bands of spectrum together to improve network capacity and upload speed. T-Mobile in 2024 enabled two-carrier aggregation for uplink connections on its 5G SA network. The result of this deployment can be seen within Speedtest data:
Upload Speeds Among T-Mobile's Top 10% Fastest 5G Samples
Speedtest Intelligence | Q4 2025
In RootMetrics’ testing in the fourth quarter of 2025, roughly 37.8% of T-Mobile’s 5G SA samples in its 2.5 GHz spectrum used two-carrier aggregation technology.
Ookla analyst Kerry Baker contributed to this article.
Ookla retains ownership of this article including all of the intellectual property rights, data, content graphs and analysis. This article may not be quoted, reproduced, distributed or published for any commercial purpose without prior consent. Members of the press and others using the findings in this article for non-commercial purposes are welcome to publicly share and link to report information with attribution to Ookla.
Mike Dano is a Lead Industry Analyst in Ookla’s research and content team. He covers the North and South American markets, and global technology trends. Previously, Mike was a journalist covering the global telecom industry for 25 years at publications including RCR Wireless News, Fierce Network and Light Reading.
