The worldwide wi-fi telecommunications trade achieved a historic step in 2024, with 5G connections reaching 2.25 billion worldwide. This exceptional progress highlights 5G’s speedy adoption, far outpacing earlier wi-fi generations. In response to 5G Americas and Omdia, 5G has expanded 4 occasions sooner than 4G LTE did in a comparable interval, when LTE had simply surpassed 500 million connections on the finish of 2014. The worldwide cellular ecosystem continues to broaden, with 1.5 wi-fi connections per individual worldwide by the top of 2024—up from one connection per individual in 2014.
The momentum is predicted to proceed, with forecasts indicating 8.3 billion 5G connections by 2029, representing 59% of all world wi-fi applied sciences. In the meantime, the Web of Issues (IoT) noticed unprecedented growth, including 438 million new connections in 2024, bringing the worldwide complete to three.6 billion.
“Reaching 2.25 billion 5G connections globally is a strong indicator of how quickly this expertise is remodeling the world—nevertheless it’s additionally a reminder of North America’s management in shaping that future,” mentioned Viet Nguyen, the president of 5G Americas. “With 5G now reaching 77% of our inhabitants, the area continues to set the tempo for innovation, community deployment and superior use instances. This momentum speaks to the power of our ecosystem—trade collaboration, funding and forward-looking coverage—all working collectively to make next-generation connectivity a actuality.”
North America stays a world chief in 5G adoption, closing 2024 with 289 million 5G connections, representing a 67% year-over-year enhance from 196 million connections on the finish of 2023. North America additionally has 77% of the area lined by 5G. For comparability, 4G LTE adoption in North America had solely reached 47% regional protection by the equal level in 2014.
Past adoption charges, North America can be the primary area on this planet to succeed in parity between the variety of business 5G and 4G LTE networks, reflecting the maturity and tempo of next-generation community deployment. This management is fuelled by sturdy trade funding, collaborative innovation, and a regulatory setting that continues to foster cutting-edge functions in areas like industrial automation, telehealth, good infrastructure and synthetic intelligence (AI)-powered connectivity.
“North America continues to showcase speedy 5G progress, outpacing earlier generations and setting the benchmark for world adoption,” mentioned Kristin Paulin, the principal analyst at Omdia.
Latin America additionally witnessed a surge in 5G adoption, doubling its 5G connections in a single 12 months to 76 million by 2024 year-end—up from 38.5 million in 2023. Whereas 5G growth accelerates, 4G LTE stays the dominant expertise, with 593 million customers, accounting for 74% of all wi-fi connections within the area.
The tempo of 5G community deployments additionally continues to exceed that of 4G LTE at an analogous stage of its rollout. As of March 17, 2025, there are 354 business 5G networks globally, with North America main in parity, being the one area the place the variety of 5G and LTE networks are equal. Europe follows, the place 5G deployments have reached 72% of LTE networks.
The variety of 5G and 4G LTE community deployments as of March 17, 2025 is summarised under:
5G:
- World: 354
- North America: 18
- Latin America and Caribbean: 53
4G LTE:
- World: 706
- North America: 18
- Latin America and Caribbean: 134
Go to www.5GAmericas.org for extra info, statistical charts, and an inventory of LTE and 5G deployments by operator and area. Subscriber and forecast knowledge is supplied by Omdia and deployment knowledge by 5G Americas and TeleGeography (GlobalComm).
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