T-Mobile retains 5G crown as AT&T falls massively behind Verizon in standalone access
T-Mobile customers get true 5G access over 71% of the time.
As of last year, all three major US carriers - T-Mobile, Verizon, and AT&T - have achieved true 5G nationwide coverage. According to a recent report, T-Mobile customers experience the most reliable 5G connection, with access to the network 71.2% of the time. Both Verizon and AT&T lag behind T-Mobile in terms of nationwide coverage and overall performance.
The journey to 5G was not without its challenges. Initially, networks relied on retrofitted LTE, but T-Mobile was the first to bring true 5G to the market. While Verizon and AT&T also managed to catch up, they lagged behind T-Mobile, which launched 5G SA to a limited number of customers in 2019 and expanded to full nationwide coverage in April 2025.
AT&T began offering 5G SA coverage in 2022 and fully launched its nationwide network in October of last year. Verizon started rolling out its 5G SA network in 2022 and is now largely covered nationwide. In terms of lower latency and overall quality, T-Mobile performs fairly well, though it doesn't lead the pack in these areas.
Written by urgent.news from Android Authority's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
