New Q1 2024 data from Ookla shows that T-Mobile continues to provide the fastest 5G download speeds in the U.S., with a median 5G download speed of 287.14 Mbps as of March 2024, an increase of 29.64 Mbps in a single month. That helped it extend its lead over Verizon, which recorded 224.67 Mbps, and AT&T with 145.36 Mbps.
The increases in 5G speeds will be an important factor in the ongoing competition between 5G providers and broadband services offered by cable operators.
The Ookla speedtest data from the U.S. also showed 5G delivered a much better page load speed than 4G on three major services during Q1 2024. Google loaded 21% faster on 5G than 4G, YouTube was 22% faster, and Facebook was 26% faster on 5G.
While national median speeds continue to advance, there remain some significant disparities in 5G performance at an individual state level. The Midwestern States fare best, with Illinois, Kansas, North Dakota, and Minnesota all within the top-5 performing states nationally, with median 5G download speeds above 225 Mbps during Q4 2023.
At the other end of the scale are U.S. states with the highest shares of rural populations, including Vermont, Maine, Mississippi, and West Virginia, which had median download speeds below 100 Mbps.
Performance gains from all national cellular providers also enabled the U.S. to climb the ranks when compared to its peers internationally. This has been driven by increased availability of mid-band spectrum for 5G use, Ookla reported.
More data and the full report can be found at https://www.ookla.com/articles/5g-in-the-us-q1-2024.
