U.S. ranks 11th in global mobile speed performance

Key findings

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• As of June 2024, Americans got 113.10 Mbps of mobile download speed and 8.97 Mbps of mobile upload speed.
• The U.S. is 11th in the world for median mobile speeds.
• T-Mobile was the fastest mobile operator in the U.S. during Q3 2024, with a median download speed of 188.96 Mbps, an increase from 163.59 Mbps in Q3 2023.
• Qatar has the fastest mobile performance in the world.

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As of June 2024, Ookla’s Speedtest Global Index ranks the U.S. 11th in the world for median mobile speeds. With 113.10 Mbps download and 8.97 Mbps upload, the U.S. falls behind 10 other countries.

Which countries are ahead of the U.S.?

The U.S. ranks behind 10 other countries when it comes to mobile speeds. This is a downgrade compared to its fifth-place ranking in fixed broadband speeds. So, which countries are ahead of the U.S., and why?

The Middle East finishes in the top three for mobile speeds, with Norway and Denmark closing out the top 5. Qatar continues to top the Speedtest Index and first surpassed the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for fastest mobile speeds in February 2024. Qatar’s peak mobile performance may be due to its preparations for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, where it received millions of visitors for the massive event.

According to an Ookla report, Qatar’s 5G networks successfully supported 2.45 stadium spectators and helped the country set the framework for network improvements for future events like the AFC Asian Cup, which concluded in February 2024.

Fastest mobile providers in the U.S.

Ookla’s most recent data for Q3 2024 reports T-Mobile as the fastest mobile provider across the board by a landslide. With a median download speed of 188.96 Mbps, T-Mobile beats Verizon’s 91.62 Mbps and AT&T’s 90.82 Mbps by almost 100 Mbps.

T-Mobile with the fastest median upload speeds

T-Mobile also topped Ookla’s mobile upload speed charts ahead of Verizon and AT&T, with a median upload speed of 12.19 Mbps, compared to Verizon’s 9.98 Mbps and AT&T’s 8.06 Mbps.

T-Mobile has lowest multi-server latency

Latency refers to the time it takes for data to travel from one point to another. The lower the latency, the better since that means your data is traveling at a faster speed. T-Mobile had the lowest multi-server latency of the top mobile providers with 50 ms, versus Verizon’s 57 ms and AT&T’s 64 ms.

5G performance wins for T-Mobile

Ookla also tested the top three mobile providers only on 5G connections. T-Mobile’s 5G performance notably finished ahead of Verizon’s as well—and by a large margin. T-Mobile’s 5G median download speed measured 238.87 Mbps, while Verizon’s came in at 196.43 Mbps. According to Ookla, all three providers improved from the previous year.

Ookla’s Speedtest Connectivity Report outlines the network performance in each U.S. market. The report attributes T-Mobile’s success to the deployment of additional mid-band spectrum. However, it notes Verizon and AT&T’s improvements over the last year, which led to performance metric increases.

Top 25 cities for median mobile speeds

Ar-Rayyan, Qatar, has the fastest median mobile download speeds at 419.35 Mbps, followed by Doha, Qatar, Dubai and Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The Middle East’s domination in the mobile sphere reflects significant 5G integration in recent years.

According to the World Economic Forum, governments in the Middle East are investing in digital transformation strategies, with 5G at the forefront. 6G is already “poised to revolutionize communications and connectivity,” as demonstrated by the UAE’s plans to introduce it by 2030.

Global mobile performance over time

Median mobile download speeds increased by over 10 Mbps from June 2023 to June 2024. Upload speeds had a smaller margin of increase at just over 1 Mbps. Latency decreased by one ms from August to September 2023 and remained steady until June 2024.

6G on the horizon

The Middle East’s investments in its mobile networks have led to its domination of mobile performance in the Speedtest Index, with countries like the UAE and Qatar already planning for the next iteration of mobile technology, 6G, to be launched by the end of the decade. 6G will result in faster, more reliable networks to support growing digital innovation worldwide.

Until then, 5G mobile networks will continue to expand. In the U.S., T-Mobile’s network improvements pushed the provider to overtake Verizon and AT&T in Ookla’s Speedtest Index, but the latter two made strides in recent years to improve their mobile performance. 6G integration is in its early stages in the U.S., but it won’t be long before we see faster mobile networks available.