If you want the fastest iPhone 8 experience this year, you may want to consider upgrading to T-Mobile. A new report from Ookla and Speedtest shares that T-Mobile achieved the highest speed score on the iPhone 7. and streaming videos.
The average speed of mobile downloads increased by 19% in 2017, and while all major carriers are releasing faster downloads, there’s a clear winner among the big four and it may not be what you expect. Using over 3 million unique devices and more than 14 million speed tests, Ookla and Speedtest took the speed from Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile and Sprint.
T-Mobile is the fastest carrier in the USA
The average mobile download speed in the US is 22.69 Mbps down and 8.51 Mbps up. Upload speeds increased by about 4% compared to 2016. When it comes to top speeds, T-Mobile is the clear winner. Verizon is in second place, followed closely by AT&T. Sprint brings the tail end with a noticeable speed difference between other carriers.
Speedtest confirms T-Mobile’s fastest rollout of new advanced LTE features and states“T-Mobile is perfectly positioned to be the first all-LTE mobile operator in the United States that will enable them to more efficiently transmit voice and data.”
Even more important than the overall network speed is how fast popular devices are on the network. T-Mobile is not only the fastest, but also the fastest for the iPhone 7 and Galaxy S7. Both of these devices beat the carrier average, with the second and third coming in faster than Verizon and AT&T remaining. Sprint is in last place with a long shot.
iPhone is faster on T-Mobile.
There is one area where your T-Mobile iPhone 8 may not overlap with Verizon and AT&T, and that is coverage. Verizon and AT&T both have better coverage in rural areas and. Ookla shares that among all carriers, “there is a clear distinction between what customers in more populated areas can expect from their internet experience and what those in rural areas can.” You can see the fastest carrier in each of the cities in the table below, which isn’t always T-Mobile. This will help you choose the best carrier for your location.
| City | Download (Mbps) | Upload (Mbps) | Fastest Carrier | Speed Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Albuquerque, N.M. | 25.4 | 10.11 | T mobile | 29.98 |
| Anaheim, California | 20.33 | 9.46 | Verizon Wireless | 25.69 |
| Anchor, AK | 18.31 | 8.04 | AT&T | 19.64 |
| Arlington, Texas | 23.54 | 9.87 | T mobile | 24.79 |
| Atlanta, GA | 29.64 | 11.68 | sprint | 32.05 |
| Aurora, CO | 18.29 | 6.17 | T mobile | 17.34 |
| Austin, Texas | 25.08 | 7.91 | AT&T | 25.2 |
| Bakersfield, California | 24.29 | 9.97 | Verizon Wireless | 25.98 |
| Baltimore, MD | 21.38 | 7.82 | Verizon Wireless | 29.69 |
| Baton Rouge, Los Angeles | 22.62 | 7.37 | Verizon Wireless | 23.39 |
| identity | 20.03 | 6.23 | T mobile | 24.29 |
| Boston, MA | 23.07 | 10.47 | AT&T | 25.44 |
| Buffalo, NY | 19.47 | 7.85 | T mobile | 21.69 |
| Chandler, USA | 25.16 | 8.72 | Verizon Wireless | 24.89 |
| Charlotte, North Carolina | 19.03 | 7.38 | AT&T | 21 |
| Chesapeake, VA | 24.69 | 8.5 | T mobile | 29.64 |
| Chicago, IL | 24.76 | 10.66 | Verizon Wireless | 31.35 |
| Chula Vista, California | 22.49 | 10.46 | Verizon Wireless | 31.55 |
| Cincinnati, OH | 23.21 | 7.25 | sprint | 23.19 |
| Cleveland, OH | 27.25 | 9.92 | T mobile | 28.01 |
| Colorado Springs, CO | 20.96 | 7.87 | T mobile | 21.18 |
| Columbus, OH | 25.3 | 9.05 | T mobile | 29.35 |
| Corpus Christi, Texas | 22.94 | 8.97 | T mobile | 24.16 |
| Dallas, Texas | 23.27 | 9.65 | T mobile | 24.93 |
| Denver, CO | 18.99 | 6.46 | sprint | 20.18 |
| Detroit, MI | 24.47 | 10.35 | Verizon Wireless | 26.2 |
| Durham, North Carolina | 22.07 | 7.76 | AT&T | 24.01 |
| El Paso, Texas | 19.77 | 9.85 | T mobile | 21.45 |
| Fort Wayne, IN | 36.64 | 11.53 | Verizon Wireless | 41.54 |
| Fort Worth, Texas | 22.56 | 9.1 | T mobile | 24.97 |
| Fremont, California | 24.95 | 9.47 | Verizon Wireless | 27.17 |
| Fresno, California | 19.02 | 8.06 | AT&T | 21.26 |
| Garland, Texas | 22.94 | 9.49 | T mobile | 25.1 |
| Gilbert, USA | 24.46 | 8.07 | T mobile | 28.07 |
| Glendale, USA | 21.03 | 8.46 | AT&T | 23.29 |
| Greensboro, North Carolina | 20.19 | 7.85 | AT&T | 22.58 |
| Henderson, N.V. | 20.79 | 8.5 | T mobile | 20.62 |
| Hialeah, FL | 22.94 | 10.24 | T mobile | 24.22 |
| Hello, Honolulu | 18.32 | 11.97 | Verizon Wireless | 24.4 |
| Houston, TX | 22.99 | 9.4 | AT&T | 21.77 |
| Indianapolis, IN | 27.83 | 8.8 | AT&T | 29.29 |
| Irvine, California | 26.27 | 11.68 | Verizon Wireless | 28.97 |
| Irving, Texas | 21.6 | 9.29 | T mobile | 21.35 |
| Jacksonville, Florida | 24.15 | 9.41 | T mobile | 27.44 |
| Jersey City, N.J. | 22.69 | 11.57 | Verizon Wireless | 30.6 |
| Kansas City, MO | 25.15 | 7.79 | T mobile | 26.73 |
| Laredo, Texas | 16.25 | 5.67 | AT&T | 19.06 |
| Las Vegas, NV | 17.91 | 8.14 | AT&T | 17.87 |
| Lexington, KY | 21.78 | 8.27 | T mobile | 28.05 |
| Lincoln, NE | 24.1 | 9.13 | Verizon Wireless | 23.24 |
| Long Beach, California | 21.23 | 10.27 | AT&T | 20.88 |
| Los Angeles, California | 21.76 | 10.31 | Verizon Wireless | 24.57 |
| Louisville, KY | 24.23 | 7.83 | T mobile | 23.83 |
| Lubbock, Texas | 19.1 | 7.6 | Verizon Wireless | 24.87 |
| Madison, WI | 18.36 | 7.05 | AT&T | 22.2 |
| Memphis, TR | 19.13 | 6.96 | T mobile | 23.97 |
| LITTLE | 22.49 | 8.21 | T mobile | 23.58 |
| Miami, FL | 20.93 | 9.25 | Verizon Wireless | 23.58 |
| Milwaukee, WI | 22.7 | 8.47 | Verizon Wireless | 29.95 |
| Minneapolis, MN | 32.66 | 12.23 | T mobile | 32.49 |
| Nashville, TN | 21.27 | 9.91 | Verizon Wireless | 23.57 |
| New Orleans, Los Angeles | 21.88 | 7.92 | Verizon Wireless | 22.08 |
| New York, NY | 24.32 | 11.08 | Verizon Wireless | 28.83 |
| Newark, N.J. | 17.97 | 10.11 | Verizon Wireless | 24.07 |
| Norfolk, USA | 19.15 | 8.01 | T mobile | 24.25 |
| North Las Vegas, NV | 15.36 | 7.16 | AT&T | 16.84 |
| Oakland, California | 23.23 | 9.71 | Verizon Wireless | 27.62 |
| Oklahoma City, ok | 19.05 | 8.03 | T mobile | 21.2 |
| Omaha, NE | 20.38 | 8.32 | T mobile | 27.11 |
| Orlando, Florida | 25.13 | 10.04 | Verizon Wireless | 30.35 |
| Philadelphia, PA | 21.5 | 9.96 | T mobile | 21.12 |
| Phoenix | 20.54 | 7.9 | AT&T | 21.21 |
| Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | 28.42 | 11.12 | Verizon Wireless | 28.48 |
| Plano, Texas | 25.97 | 9.67 | T mobile | 34.15 |
| Portland, OR | 25.57 | 9.5 | T mobile | 31.43 |
| Raleigh, North Carolina | 23.86 | 8.32 | AT&T | 24.72 |
| Reno, N.V. | 19.05 | 8.04 | sprint | 20.57 |
| Richmond, USA | 23.35 | 9.09 | T mobile | 26.11 |
| riverside, California | 24.34 | 10.89 | Verizon Wireless | 24.65 |
| Sacramento, California | 20.65 | 9.83 | AT&T | 22.93 |
| San Antonio, Texas | 20.51 | 8.26 | T mobile | 23.48 |
| San Bernardino, California | 19.49 | 10.45 am | Verizon Wireless | 26.18 |
| San Diego, California | 23.22 | 10.9 | Verizon Wireless | 24.85 |
| San Francisco, California | 26.5 | 12.18 | Verizon Wireless | 34.7 |
| San Jose, California | 24.52 | 9.36 | Verizon Wireless | 26.46 |
| Santa Ana, California | 20.26 | 9.75 | Verizon Wireless | 27.88 |
| Scottsdale, USA | 24.38 | 7.88 | T mobile | 28.23 |
| Seattle, WA | 25.96 | 11.08 | sprint | 27.04 |
| St. Paul, MN | 32.03 | 12.1 | T mobile | 33.69 |
| Louis, MO | 22.48 | 8.27 | Verizon Wireless | 25.65 |
| St. Petersburg, FL | 23.47 | 10.34 | T mobile | 24.09 |
| Stockton, California | 19.69 | 9.06 | Verizon Wireless | 27.41 |
| Tampa, FL | 23.9 | 11.19 | T mobile | 24.25 |
| Toledo, OH | 26.08 | 8.65 | T mobile | 29 |
| Tucson, USA | 19.72 | 7.67 | Verizon Wireless | 21.91 |
| Tulsa, ok | 20.18 | 8.58 | T mobile | 26.04 |
| Virginia Beach, VA | 26.34 | 9.17 | T mobile | 33.23 |
| Washington DC | 22.68 | 9.16 | AT&T | 22.31 |
| Wichita, KS | 24.3 | 7.11 | Verizon Wireless | 27.49 |
| Winston-Salem, North Carolina | 20.89 | 8.46 | AT&T | 22.45 |
Ookla notes that unlimited data doesn’t appear to be causing network issues, but there has been an increase in speed tests below 5 Mbps, which they believe is degrading performance due to AT&T and Verizon signaling high and plan options rather than general network issues.
