5G Home Internet Reaches 18 Million U.S. Households, Taking 13% Market Share From Cable
Updated
Updated · The Washington Post · Nov 6
5G Home Internet Reaches 18 Million U.S. Households, Taking 13% Market Share From Cable
1 articles · Updated · The Washington Post · Nov 6
Summary
More than 18 million U.S. households now use 5G home internet, according to MoffettNathanson, giving fixed wireless about 13% of households and chipping away at cable broadband’s long-held dominance.
Price has driven much of that shift: AT&T starts at $55 a month, T-Mobile at $50 and Verizon at $35, while cable teaser rates often rise sharply after a year and some legacy plans still carry data caps.
T-Mobile leads the segment with 6.2% of the residential broadband market in Ookla’s second-quarter estimate, ahead of Verizon at 2.5% and AT&T at 1.6%.
Speed remains the tradeoff. Ookla showed median second-quarter 2026 downloads topping out at 223 Mbps and uploads at 18 Mbps, enough for many households but below cable and especially fiber.
Coverage and network capacity still limit adoption, particularly in rural areas, though analysts say further discounts could keep pressure on cable as fixed-wireless growth slows.
Could the rapid rise of 5G home internet permanently end the era of expensive cable monopolies and hidden fees for consumers?
Are telecom giants using deeply discounted 5G home internet simply as a Trojan horse to lock you into their mobile ecosystems forever?
While 5G internet promises cheaper bills, will neighborhood network congestion and weather interference secretly throttle your everyday browsing speeds?