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OpenSignal is back with another yearly investigation into the state of the major mobile networks in the US. The data looks at the 3G and 4G data speeds offed by the big four – AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon – along with latency data and network availability. If you’re keen to know which is the best and most reliable network to pick for your next contract, here’s the information you need to see.
Data speeds
According to the research, it’s a tie between Verizon and T-Mobile for the fastest 4G LTE network in the US, with 16.89Mbps and 16.65Mbps average speeds respectively (as seen by users). AT&T is not far behind on 13.68Mbps, but Sprint is considerably slower on average at just 9Mbps.
Although it’s a closely-run race for 4G, T-Mobile retains its title as the fastest 3G network in the US, with 4Mbps typical, followed by AT&T on 3Mbps. Verizon and Sprint both clock in below 1Mbps, meaning a much slower experience on average when roaming out of 4G range. Although we should note that 3G speeds are becoming increasingly irrelevant, as the time spent on these connections is barely registering anymore in OpenSignal‘s research.
This situation tells a different story to just a few months ago. Back in August, OpenSignal‘s look at the US carrier market revealed that T-Mobile was edging ahead with 4G LTE data speeds. At the time, T-Mobile’s LTE speeds were clocked at 16.3 Mbps, just ahead of Verizon’s 15.9 Mbps. While both are a little faster today, it appears that Verizon has managed to successfully close the gap.
Looking back even further to March 2016, US customers will probably have noticed an improvement to their 4G LTE and 3G speeds, regardless of which carrier they are on. Back in 2016, T-Mobile led the way with 12.26Mbps, followed by Verizon on 11.98Mbps, AT&T on 7.93Mbps, and Sprint on 6.56Mbps.
While all carriers have improved their 4G LTE speeds, its AT&T that has seen the biggest boost, up a whopping 75 percent compared with last year. The other three major carriers have all improved their 4G LTE speeds by between 35 and 41 percent. AT&T has also seen the biggest improvements in its 3G speeds, showing almost a 50 percent improvement from 2.22Mbps to around 3Mbps.
This notable boost to 4G LTE data speeds has come following a number of LTE-Advanced activations up and down the country. In August last year, Verizon announced it was implementing its LTE-A upgrade across its 4G network, T-Mobile has been upgrading its network with similar technologies for a while already and is planning further boosts, and Sprint has just switched on its three-carrier aggregation technology too.
These 4G-LTE rollouts have seen major speed boosts in certain cities, with Verizon’s New York coverage hopping from 17.4Mbps to 22Mbps last summer. Speaking of cities, Verizon ranked highest in speed in 14 of the 36 cities analyzed, compared to four cities for T-Mobile, and one for AT&T. Seven other metro areas results in a speed tie for Verizon and T-Mobile.