How fast is 5G home internet? (& is it good enough?)

Whether or not 5G home internet is fast enough for your needs depends on several factors, as well as the activities you perform when accessing the internet.

If you depend on the internet for gaming, working from home or streaming content, then 5G internet may not be fast enough or provide a consistent experience for you.
 
Most people consider download speeds first when figuring out their usage needs. People consume more data when downloading. However, upload speeds are essential for sending large amounts of data.
 
Your actual speed experience can vary, as 5G home internet speeds may be affected by factors that even the FWA provider cannot control including:

• • Distance from cell towers
  • Weather events
  • Coverage

Your location can be a limiting factor, for example, 5G home internet coverage isn’t available everywhere.

Because 5G home internet uses radio frequencies, signals are limited by distance. The further you are from the radio towers, the weaker your internet signal will be.

Moreover, even if you’re near the radio towers, buildings, trees and other objects can block those signals.
 

On the other hand, due to fiber’s robust design, fiber-powered ISPs can deliver a more consistent connection. Fiber is resistant to electromagnetic interference, temperature changes and weather conditions, leading to fewer service interruptions.

Fiber’s infrastructure also enables solutions like Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH), providing direct connections from the fiber hub to the network of any residence or business.

With fiber-powered Gig internet, customers can connect their phones, tablets, TVs, gaming consoles and other devices to access a more consistent connection.

While both fiber internet and 5G can deliver speed, with fiber consumers can choose from multiple speed tiers, ranging from lower to higher speeds, based on their needs, demands and plans.

As each FWA provider offers different upload and download speed ranges, as well as rules around throttling, congestion, network priority, and fair use policies, be sure to read through the technical specifications to understand exactly what you’re receiving.

Though speed is an important factor in choosing your internet plan, also consider:

• Latency.
• Jitter.
• Lag.

Typically, 5G internet providers cannot guarantee a specific speed; instead, they provide a range of speeds.
 
Moreover, there are other factors to consider when assessing 5G home internet, such as latency, jitter, and lag.

Latency is the amount of time it takes for a data packet to go from one place to another. 5G promises lower latency. But in areas where 5G infrastructure is underdeveloped or overburdened, users may still experience significant latency, as some Redditors have reported.

If you want a more consistent connection, look for a solution like cable or fiber-powered internet.
 

Jitter is when there is a time delay between packets of data transmitted over a network. In 5G networks, some users from reddit have reported that jitter is more pronounced in areas with unstable 5G signals, or during peak hours.

If you work from home during normal working hours on a 5G home network, you might experience poor video and audio quality. These disruptions are the direct results of jitter affecting your home 5G network.
 

Lag is almost always the result of high latency. In situations where the network is congested, or signal is weak, users might still experience noticeable delays when gaming or streaming, as seen on Reddit.

For instance, some users report their 5G home internet working at 200 Mbps, but when gaming or streaming their 5G home internet connection drops to about 10 Mbps.

Let’s take a look at some of the top 5G home internet providers, and what they offer in terms of speed and reliability.

AT&T Internet Air 5G home internet speeds:

• • The maximum download speed available is 140 Mbps.
  • Currently available only in select areas.
  • AT&T may temporarily slow data speeds if the network is busy. Service may be slowed, suspended, terminated or restricted for misuse, abnormal use, interference with AT&T’s network or ability to provide quality service to others.​

T-Mobile 5G home internet speeds:

• • Maximum download speed available is 245 Mbps.
  • Currently available only in select areas.
  • 25% of users experience slower speeds than advertised.
  • During congestion, Home Internet customers may notice speeds lower than other customers due to data prioritization.

Verizon 5G home internet speeds:

• • Maximum download speed of 300 Mbps.
  • Currently available only in select areas.
  • On certain plans, Verizon may prioritize your 5G and 4G LTE data behind other traffic. If the cell site you are connected to begins experiencing high demand during the duration of your session, your 5G and 4G LTE data speeds may be slower than the other traffic’s speed.

As you can see, while 5G home internet typically can deliver speeds of 40 Mbps to 300 Mbps, it comes at a trade-off.
 
With Astound’s high speed internet you can get maximum download speeds of 300 Mbps* for $20 per month. You also have the option of maximum download speeds of 2,000 Mbps in select areas, which is more than 14x-50x faster than most 5G home internet providers.

With these fiber-powered speeds, you can connect 10x as many devices, and support multiple users on your home network – at scale.

Moreover, you have freedom to choose the exact speed that best fits your lifestyle whether you’re gaming, working from home or streaming

 
Learn more about the differences between fiber-powered internet and 5G home internet.