Analysis of Europe’s progress on 5G makes stark reading for anyone in UK, with access to the network technology lower than almost any developed market out there.
According to data from Ookla, which has analysed European progress in terms of 5G coverage using Q2 2025 Speedtest Intelligence data Europe is very much the poor cousin of US, China and the Nordics with Europe’s consumers spending just 44.5% of their time on 5G.
Download the full report, 5G Coverage in Europe: Progress Toward Goals Amid Lingering Disparities, from Ookla here
But it is the UK where things are really dire. Its data shows that 5G availability in the UK remains low, with a coverage rate of 45.2% in Q2 2025. This is less than half the level observed in leading European markets such as Denmark (83.9%), Sweden (77.8%), and Greece (76.4%).
On average, EU mobile subscribers spent 44.5% of their time connected to 5G in Q2 2025, up from 32.8% in Q2 2024. In comparison, UK mobile subscribers spent just 37.6% of their time on 5G networks during the same period in Q2 2025.
While the UK continues to lag in 5G availability, it now ranks among the top three countries in Europe for 5G SA deployment progress. In Q2 2025, the UK recorded a 5G SA sample share of 3.6%, which is more than double the EU average of 1.3%.
The UK’s lack of competitiveness in 5G Availability stems from capital being tied up in mandated rip-and-replace measures under the Telecoms Security Act; the 2021 spectrum auction imposed only weak 5G coverage obligations after the SRN prioritised rural 4G; and post-Brexit funding gaps, along with low ARPU and high energy and operating costs, have further constrained investment.
However, the US and China are still far ahead, with 5G SA sample shares above 20% and 80% respectively.
The United Kingdom is not unique in its struggles. Belgium, home to the core of European bureaucracy, still features lower 5G Availability than many emerging markets in Latin America and Southeast Asia, says the report. The country’s federal structure led to chronic delays, as spectrum auctions originally planned for 2019 were pushed to 2022 amid regional disputes over revenue sharing between Flanders, Wallonia, and Brussels. Strict radiation limits in Brussels further slowed 5G deployment post-auction.
Spain continues to lead Europe in 5G SA deployment, with its 5G SA sample share surpassing 8% for the first time in Q1 2025. Both MasOrange and Telefónica have driven an aggressive nationwide rollout using a diversified spectrum strategy across low- and mid-bands, extending 5G SA coverage deeper into rural and underserved areas than anywhere else in Europe.
This progress has been enabled by Spain’s subsidy-heavy policy framework, which has allocated hundreds of millions of euros from EU recovery funds (NextGenerationEU) through “UNICO-5G” grants to finance more than 7,000 new sites in villages and along 30,000 km of roads.
Meanwhile, the German telecom regulator BNetzA has promoted competition in the 5G SA rollout by being one of the first globally to transparently track 5G SA deployment with detailed operator-level coverage maps available to the public.
