Global 5G connections are doubling every year.

• Global 5G connections add 813 million in Q2 2022; an increase of 112% compared to the second quarter of 2021
• The forecast is that they will reach 5,900 million by the end of 2027, with 1,000 million more per year from 2023 to 2027
• 5G connections in North America grew 21% quarterly to reach 99 million at the end of the second quarter of 2022

BELLEVUE, Washington, September 21, 2022 –Global adoption of 5G wireless networks is doubling year over year with 813 million connections as of the end of the second quarter of 2022. According to data from Omdia and 5G Americas, the projection of 5G connections global will reach 1,100 million at the end of the current year.

Chris Pearson, President of 5G Americas, said: “The advancement of 5G continues across the Americas, with more spectrum, coverage and usage. We are entering an era of innovation with an expansive 5G ecosystem that is learning how to harness the technical capabilities of this great technology.”

The doubling of global 5G connections is in line with mobile data usage, which is also roughly doubling every year, according to Ericsson. The latest data from Omdia suggests that 430 million 5G connections were added globally from Q2 2021 to Q2 2022, representing a 1,121.1 percent increase from 383 million to 813 million. These numbers equate to consecutive quarterly growth of 16 percent, from 703 million in the first quarter of 2022 to 813 million in the second quarter of 2022. Global 5G connections are projected to accelerate again in 2023 to approach 2,000 million and reach 5.9 billion by the end of 2027.

By region, North America had a total of 99 million 5G connections and 502 million LTE connections at the end of the second quarter of 2022. This translates to an additional 17 million 5G connections in the quarter: an increase of 20.7 percent. percent from the first quarter of 2022. Additionally, CTIA notes rapid growth in 5G adoption in the United States, now identifying 315 million Americans with 5G coverage and one-third of American adults with an active 5G device . In total, 137 million 5G connections are projected to come from North America by the end of 2022.

Comparatively, 4G LTE is expected to remain strong in Latin America and the Caribbean through the end of 2022. In the second quarter of 2022, there were 540 million 4G LTE connections, representing quarterly growth of 6.9 percent with 34.7 million new LTE subscriptions, a figure that is expected to reach 541 million by the end of the year. The projection for Latin America and the Caribbean is that they will have 22 million 5G connections by the end of 2022, and 398 million by 2027.

According to José Otero, Vice President for the Caribbean and Latin America of 5G Americas: “The deployment and adoption of 5G is advancing in Latin America. Governments will need to continue working with industry to streamline processes and provide more radio spectrum to operators in the region. Latin America is an industrial hub of global importance and 5G will bring economic and social benefits to everyone in the region.”

In total, the number of commercial 5G networks in the world reached 233, according to data from TeleGeography and 5G Americas. That number is expected to reach 313 by the end of 2022 and 352 by the end of 2024, representing strong growth in 5G network investments in many regions around the world. The number of 5G and 4G LTE network deployments as of August 15, 2022 is summarized below:

5G:

Overall: 233
North America: 14
Caribbean and Latin America: 26

4G-LTE:

Overall: 699
North America: 18
Caribbean and Latin America: 131