5G is expected to change the world, but right now, the deployment of that new technology has been slow and uneven—especially in the United States. In 2020's Fastest Mobile Network tests, we found that existing 5G networks were difficult to pick up, and in many cases, were actually slower than current 4G LTE service. It turns out that we aren't the only ones who found American 5G lacking this year.
According to a study conducted by Open Signal between July 1 and September 28, the US suffers from some of the slowest 5G wireless speeds in the world. The United States was compared with 14 other leading 5G markets, and its average download speeds of 52Mbps were found wanting.
Out of the 5G performance found in Australia, Canada, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Kuwait, Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, Spain, South Korea, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, UK, and US, Saudi Arabia (377.2Mbps) and South Korea (336.1Mbps) were found to have the fastest average speeds. Their numbers proved to be much faster than the third-fastest country, Australia (215.8Mbps). Canada, Italy, and Germany also proved to have superior 5G speeds compared to the US.
Despite its comparatively slow speeds, America's 5G is still measured to be 1.8 times faster than its current 4G infrastructure, but that also lags behind other countries. Only the Netherlands, whose 5G is 1.6 times faster than its current networks, lags behind the United States.
Meanwhile, countries including Thailand and Kuwait have 5G speeds that are currently 15.7 and 12.5 times faster, respectively. Even, South Korea, Canada, and Switzerland—countries with 4G speeds already faster than the US—have seen their 5G speeds increase over 4G by at least three times.
It's not all bad news for the United States, though. Open Signal confirmed that US callers are experiencing 5G 21.4 percent of the time, which is the sixth-highest level seen so far. Countries such as Kuwait, Thailand, Hong Kong, and South Korea are much smaller than the US, so 5G service may be easier to find in those places.
What this means is despite poor overall performance, America's 5G networks are reaching farther than in other countries that have better results. Once 5G improves in the United States, it will already be supported on a larger scale and be ready to outperform many other countries in both speed and availability. In the last few months alone, Verizon has officially launched its 5G network, T-Mobile has boosted its mid-band coverage, and AT&T is expanding its low-band coverage.