UAE Ranks Second Globally for Fixed Broadband Speed

The United Arab Emirates ranked second globally for fixed broadband and remained in the global top ten for mobile throughout 2025, with a three‑month moving median mobile download speed of 691.76 Mbps in Q4 2025, according to Ookla’s Speedtest Global Index analysis.
Gulf Cooperation Council countries dominated regional performance in 2025. Kuwait, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia joined the UAE in the global top ten for mobile at various points during the year. On fixed broadband, the UAE’s second place was followed by Kuwait in 25th and Qatar in 38th globally as of December 2025.
New 5G rollouts in North Africa produced the year’s sharpest movements on the mobile index. Morocco rose 22 places to 39th after launching 5G in November 2025, while Algeria climbed 11 places to 78th following its December launch. Tunisia, which introduced 5G in February 2025, peaked at 47th in April before ending the year at 72nd. Egypt’s June 2025 launch yielded modest gains, with a Q4 median mobile download speed of 44.51 Mbps; operators’ use of only 20–30 MHz in the 2.6 GHz band shared between 4G and 5G constrained capacity.
Policy changes also shifted fixed broadband standings. Bahrain jumped 16 places after regulators mandated an increase in minimum fixed speeds from 100 Mbps to 300 Mbps in March 2025 and providers made faster plans more affordable. Oman improved five places to 18th globally on mobile by year‑end, supported by accelerated operator investments, activation of new carriers, and refarming of 3G spectrum, reaching a three‑month median of 165.07 Mbps in Q4 2025.
Within the G20, Saudi Arabia ranked ninth globally for mobile in December 2025, placing third among G20 members and ahead of the United States, China, Australia, Canada, and Japan. For fixed broadband, Saudi Arabia ranked tenth among G20 nations.

Sub‑Saharan Africa showed mixed progress on mobile: South Africa was 64th, Kenya 80th, and Nigeria 85th in December 2025, with median download speeds of 65.7 Mbps, 45.37 Mbps, and 44.14 Mbps respectively. On fixed, Côte d’Ivoire led the sub‑region at 103rd with a median of 58.17 Mbps, while Mauritania recorded the largest improvement, up 24 places to 106th after expanding its fibre backbone by 5,500 km.