T-Mobile has again earned top marks as the fastest mobile carrier in the land. In a new report released Wednesday, Speedtest provider Ookla highlighted the Uncarrier for providing the top mobile network in the US during the first half of the year.
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(Disclosure: Ookla is owned by Ziff Davis, ZDNET’s parent company.)
The top US mobile carriers
In its report, Ookla cites T-Mobile for having the best and fastest mobile network overall and for offering the best and fastest 5G network specifically.
Based on data collected from Ookla’s Speedtest tool, TMO crosses the finish line with a median download speed of 245.48 megabits per second and a median 5G download speed of 299.36 Mbps. The Uncarrier also snags first place for median upload speed at 12.61 Mbps and for the lowest latency at 46 ms.
Verizon takes second place with a median download speed of 116.34 Mbps, followed by AT&T in third spot with a speed of 115.09 Mbps. Looking at 5G, Verizon records a median download speed of 214.58 Mbps, while AT&T again comes in third with 158.56 Mbps.
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T-Mobile captures top marks in several other areas, most notably the most consistent mobile network, which means that most of the data samples collected meet or exceed certain thresholds. TMO also takes first place for best 5G availability, best online gaming experience, and consumer sentiment.
But Verizon scores top grades in a couple of categories. Here, the carrier takes first place for the best overall mobile coverage, placing AT&T in second place and T-Mobile in third. Verizon is also lauded for the best streaming video experience, narrowly surpassing T-Mobile.
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T-Mobile’s winning streak
The latest results continue T-Mobile’s winning streak. In January, Ookla named TMO the top US carrier for overall performance and 5G speed in particular. Now, T-Mobile 5G customers may be in store for even better performance down the road.
On Monday, the company revealed that it’s adding a novel technology to its 5G Advanced network. Known as L4S – which stands for Low Latency, Low Loss, Scalable Throughput – this standard promises low latency, minimal loss of network packets, and real-time responsiveness, even under heavy traffic.
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L4S has been used in wired networks for several years, but T-Mobile says it’s the first mobile carrier to adopt it in a wireless environment at scale. Already proving its value in real trials, L4S aims to offer smoother and more reliable performance for network-intensive tasks such as online gaming, video calling, extended reality, and even remote driving.
The top ISPs
Ookla’s report covers broadband ISPs as well. Here, AT&T Fiber is named the fastest ISP in the US during the first half of 2025, recording a median download speed of 363.54 Mbps and a median upload speed of 296.52 Mbps. AT&T Fiber also captures the highest rating for consumer sentiment, indicating that customers are satisfied with the service.
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Among other ISPs, Frontier Fiber takes second place with a median download speed of 359.06 Mbps, followed by Verizon, Cox, and Xfinity. All of the ISPs included in the report score similar results for network consistency and streaming video experience.
How to check your mobile carrier or ISP speed
To check the speed of your own mobile carrier or ISP, head to Ookla’s Speedtest site or download the Speedtest app for iOS or Android. The test will measure and display your download and upload speeds.
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Source: Robotics - zdnet.com
