Mexico
Opensignal is the independent global standard for analyzing consumers' connectivity experiences. Our industry reports are the definitive guide to understanding what happens when people use their mobile and broadband connections in their daily life.
Mexico
Opensignal is the independent global standard for analyzing consumers' connectivity experiences. Our industry reports are the definitive guide to understanding what happens when people use their mobile and broadband connections in their daily life.
Key Findings
Telcel users see the fastest download and upload speeds in Mexico
Telcel wins the Download Speed Experience award with a big margin as our Telcel users saw average download speeds of 24.2 Mbps — a 7.9 Mbps (48.5%) lead over those on AT&T. Our AT&T users saw average download speeds of 16.3 Mbps, only 1.1 Mbps faster than third placed Movistar. Telcel also wins the Upload Speed Experience award outright with a score of 9.0 Mbps, 2.2 Mbps (31.8%) ahead of AT&T. AT&T secured second place with a score of 6.8 Mbps outperforming Movistar by a narrow margin of 0.4 Mbps.
Telcel is the clear winner for the Video Experience award
When streaming real-world video streams, our users in Mexico on Telcel’s network enjoyed the best quality of video experience. Telcel had a score of 49.0 (on a 100 point scale), commanding a lead of 8.2 points over AT&T and 12.5 points over Movistar.
AT&T users enjoy the best Games and Voice App experience
AT&T is the outright winner for both Games and Voice App Experience awards scoring 49.9 and 74.0 points respectively.
Our Telcel users saw 4G in the most locations in Mexico
Telcel wins the 4G Coverage Experience award outright with a score of 7.8 points on a 10 point scale. This means that our Telcel users connected to its 4G network in nearly eight out of 10 locations. While Telcel wins the 4G Experience award outright, AT&T and Movistar are joint winners of the Availability award with our users on their networks spending around 98% of their time connected to either a 3G, 4G or 5G signal.
Movistar wins both Excellent and Core Consistent Quality awards
Movistar had the highest percentage of users’ tests that passed the minimum recommended performance thresholds for both demanding use-cases such as HD group video calling evaluated using Excellent Consistent Quality and common use-cases like web browsing measured using Core Consistent Quality. Movistar had an Excellent Consistent Quality of 50.3% winning the award by a margin of just 0.6 percentage points closely followed by Telcel at 49.7%. AT&T lagged further behind with an Excellent Consistent Quality of 31.1%. For Core Consistent Quality, Movistar wins by a much higher margin of 11.7 percentage points scoring 73.4% while second placed Telcel scored 61.6%. AT&T placed third trailing Telcel by a substantial 16.1 percentage points.
Mobile Experience Awards
Market Overview
In our latest look at the Mexican mobile network experience, Telcel is the leading operator as it wins four out of nine awards — Video Experience, Download Speed Experience, Upload Speed Experience and 4G Coverage Experience. AT&T and Movistar are outright winners in two categories each and share a joint win in one category. While AT&T wins the Games and Voice App Experience awards, Movistar is the outright winner for both Excellent and Core Consistent Quality awards. Both operators share the prize for our Availability metric.
Mexican operators have recently started rolling out 5G in the country. In December 2021, AT&T announced that it began deploying 5G technology in the country starting in urban and industrial areas with a target to deploy 5G in the main markets in the next three years. In February 2022, America Movil’s Telcel also launched 5G in 18 cities in Mexico and expects to expand its coverage to 120 cities by end of 2022. Additionally, the Federal Telecommunications Institute (Instituto Federal de Telecomunicaciones, IFT) announced in February 2022 that it plans to hold a 5G spectrum auction selling frequencies in the 600 MHz, 1500 MHz (L-band), 3.3 GHz and 3.5 GHz bands.
In this report we examine the mobile network experience of the three main mobile network operators in Mexico: AT&T, Movistar and Telcel, over a period of 90 days starting on December 1, 2021 and ending on February 28, 2022, to see how they fared. We have used 5G measurements in addition to those from previous generations of mobile network technology when determining the overall scores for each award category.
Overall Experience
National Analysis
Looking at the quality of experience while streaming videos on a mobile network, our Telcel users had the best available experience in Mexico. Telcel is the outright winner for the Video Experience score of 49.0 points. AT&T follows Telcel with a score of 40.8 points while Movistar lags further behind scoring 36.5 points on a 100-point scale.
Definitions
Opensignal’s Video Experience quantifies the quality of video streamed to mobile devices by measuring real-world video streams over an operator's networks. The metric is based on an International Telecommunication Union (ITU) approach, built upon detailed studies which have derived a relationship between technical parameters, including picture quality, video loading time and stall rate, with the perceived video experience as reported by real people. To calculate video experience, we are directly measuring video streams from end-user devices and using this ITU approach to quantify the overall video experience for each operator on a scale from 0 to 100. The videos tested include a mixture of resolutions — including Full HD (FHD) and 4K / Ultra HD (UHD) — and are streamed directly from the world’s largest video content providers.
In addition to Video Experience, we report on the following metrics related to video experience:
- 5G Video Experience: The average Video Experience of Opensignal users when they were connected to an operator’s 5G network.
- Video Experience – 5G Users: The average Video Experience of Opensignal users with a 5G device and a 5G subscription across an operator's networks. It factors in 2G, 3G, 4G and 5G video experience along with the availability of each technology.
- 4G Video Experience: The average Video Experience of Opensignal users on an operator's 4G network.
- 3G Video Experience: The average Video Experience of Opensignal users on an operator’s 3G network.
National Analysis
AT&T wins the battle when it comes to playing multiplayer mobile games over cellular connections with a score of 49.9 points followed by Telcel which scored 42.1 points. Movistar comes in third with a score of 35.6 points. These scores indicate that all three operators have a lot to catch up when it comes to real-time mobile gaming. These scores place either in the Poor (40-65) category where most users found the experience unacceptable seeing a delay in the gameplay or Very Poor (Under 40) category meaning almost all users found the experience unacceptable and experienced a noticeable delay within the game, with most of them not feeling like they had control of the gameplay.
Definitions
Opensignal’s Games Experience measures how mobile users experience real-time multiplayer mobile gaming on an operator’s network. Measured on a scale of 0-100, it analyzes how our users’ multiplayer mobile gaming experience is affected by mobile network conditions including latency, packet loss and jitter.
Games Experience quantifies the experience when playing real-time multiplayer mobile games on mobile devices connected to servers located around the world. The approach is built on several years of research quantifying the relationship between technical network parameters and the gaming experience as reported by real mobile users. These parameters include latency (round trip time), jitter (variability of latency) and packet loss (the proportion of data packets that never reach their destination). Additionally, it considers multiple genres of multiplayer mobile games to measure the average sensitivity to network conditions. The games tested include some of the most popular real-time multiplayer mobile games (such as Fortnite, Pro Evolution Soccer and Arena of Valor) played around the world.
Calculating Games Experience starts with measuring the end-to-end experience from users’ devices to internet end-points that host real games. The score is then measured on a scale from 0 to 100.
In addition to Games Experience, we report on the following metrics related to games experience:
- 5G Games Experience: The average Games Experience of Opensignal users when they were connected to an operator’s 5G network.
- Games Experience – 5G Users: The average Games Experience of Opensignal users with a 5G device and a 5G subscription across an operator's networks. It factors in 2G, 3G, 4G and 5G games experience along with the availability of each technology.
- 4G Games Experience: The average Games Experience of Opensignal users on an operator's 4G network.
- 3G Games Experience: The average Games Experience of Opensignal users on an operator's 3G (e.g. UMTS/HSPA or CDMA 1X EV-DO) network.
National Analysis
AT&T is the outright winner of the Voice App Experience award, with a score of 74.0 points on a 100 point scale. This means that our users on AT&T’s network had the best available experience when using over-the-top (OTT) mobile voice apps such as WhatsApp, Skype and Facebook Messenger.
Telcel was second with a score of 69.6 and Movistar was close behind in third place with a score of 66.5 points. AT&T placed in the Acceptable (74-80) category unlike Telcel and Movistar that placed in the Poor (66-74) category meaning many users on the latter two operators’ networks were dissatisfied with the service experiencing significant call quality impairments such as distortion and clicking sounds.
Definitions
Opensignal's Voice App Experience measures the quality of experience for over-the-top (OTT) voice services — mobile voice apps such as WhatsApp, Skype and Facebook Messenger — using a model derived from the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) approach for quantifying overall voice call quality and a series of calibrated technical parameters. This model characterizes the exact relationship between the technical measurements and perceived call quality. Voice App Experience for each operator is calculated on a scale from 0 to 100.
In addition to Voice App Experience, we report on the following metrics related to voice app experience:
- 5G Voice App Experience: The average Voice App Experience of Opensignal users when they were connected to an operator’s 5G network.
- Voice App Experience – 5G Users: The average Voice App Experience of Opensignal users with a 5G device and a 5G subscription across an operator's networks. It factors in 2G, 3G, 4G and 5G voice app experience along with the availability of each technology.
- 4G Voice App Experience: The average Voice App Experience of Opensignal users on an operator's 4G network.
- 3G Voice App Experience: The average Voice App Experience of Opensignal users on an operator's 3G (e.g. UMTS/HSPA or CDMA 1X EV-DO) network.
National Analysis
Our Mexican users received the fastest overall average download speeds of 24.2 Mbps on Telcel’s network, making it the clear winner for the Download Speed Experience award. Trailing by 7.9 Mbps, AT&T users saw the second fastest average download speeds of 16.3 Mbps while Movistar followed close behind averaging at 15.2 Mbps.
Definitions
Measured in Mbps, Download Speed Experience represents the typical everyday speeds a user experiences across an operator’s mobile data networks.
In addition to Download Speed Experience, we report on the following metrics related to download speeds:
- 5G Download Speed: The average download speed observed by Opensignal users with active 5G connections.
- Download Speed Experience – 5G Users: The average download speeds experienced by Opensignal users with a 5G device and a 5G subscription across an operator’s networks. It factors in 2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G download speeds along with the availability of each technology.
- 4G Download Speed: The average downlink speed observed by Opensignal users when they were connected to 4G.
- 3G Download Speed: The average downlink speed observed by Opensignal users when they were connected to 3G (e.g. UMTS/HSPA or CDMA 1X EV-DO).
National Analysis
Similar to Download Speed Experience, the fastest average upload speeds reported by our Mexican users were also experienced on Telcel’s network. With overall average upload speeds of 9.0 Mbps, Telcel is the outright winner for the Upload Speed Experience award. AT&T grabbed second place with a score of 6.8 Mbps, outperforming Movistar by a narrow margin of just 0.4 Mbps.
Definitions
Upload Speed Experience measures the average upload speeds for each operator observed by our users across their mobile data networks. Typically upload speeds are slower than download speeds, as current mobile broadband technologies focus resources on providing the best possible download speed for users consuming content on their devices. As mobile internet trends move away from downloading content to creating content and supporting real-time communications services, upload speeds are becoming more vital and new technologies are emerging that boost upstream capacity.
In addition to Upload Speed Experience, we report on five supporting metrics related to upload speeds:
- 5G Upload Speed: The average upload speed observed by Opensignal users with active 5G connections.
- Upload Speed Experience – 5G Users: The average upload speeds experienced by Opensignal users with a 5G device and a 5G subscription across an operator’s networks. It factors in 2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G upload speeds along with the availability of each technology.
- 4G Upload Speed: The average uplink speed observed by Opensignal users when they were connected to 4G.
- 3G Upload Speed: The average uplink speed observed by Opensignal users when they were connected to 3G (e.g. UMTS/HSPA or CDMA 1X EV-DO).
Coverage
AT&T
Movistar
Telcel
National Analysis
In Mexico, the competition was fierce when it comes to the proportion of time all of our users spent connected with a mobile broadband service using 3G, 4G or 5G technology. AT&T and Movistar share a joint win for the Availability award meaning our users on these two networks spent over 98% of time connected to a 3G, 4G or 5G signal. In third place, Telcel was close behind with a score of 96.8%.
Definitions
Our availability metrics are not a measure of a network’s geographical extent. They won’t tell you whether you are likely to get a signal if you plan to visit a remote rural or nearly uninhabited region. Instead, they measure what proportion of time people have a network connection, in the places they most commonly frequent — something often missed by traditional coverage metrics. Looking at when users have a connection rather than where, provides us with a more precise reflection of the true user experience.
We also keep track of the instances that leave mobile users most frustrated: when there is no signal to connect to at all. The most common dead zones users struggle with occur indoors. As most of our availability data is collected indoors (as that’s where users spend most of their time), we’re particularly astute at detecting areas of zero signal.
Our availability metrics take a user-centric, time-based approach that complements the user-centric and geographical-based methodology used by our reach metrics.
Availability shows the proportion of time all Opensignal users on an operator’s network had either a 3G, 4G or 5G connection.
Map Definition
The coverage maps show the locations where we received measurements from users connecting with 3G or better mobile service. Each map provides an indication of the areas in which it is possible to obtain mobile service from that mobile operator.
National Analysis
Telcel is the outright winner of the 4G Coverage Experience award by a good margin with a score of 7.8 points — 2 points ahead of second placed AT&T and almost double the 4.1 scored by Movistar. This means that our users on Telcel’s network connected to the 4G network in nearly eight out of 10 locations visited by all users. Movistar placed third with a score of 4.1 points on a 10 point scale.
Definitions
4G Coverage Experience measures how mobile subscribers experience 4G coverage on an operator’s network. Measured on a scale of 0-10, it analyzes the locations where customers of a network operator received a 4G signal relative to the locations visited by users of all network operators.
In simple terms, 4G Coverage Experience measures the mobile coverage experience in all the locations that matter most to everyday users — i.e. all the places where they live, work and travel. It considers all the areas that Opensignal users visit, the portion of locations that 4G is available to them, and locations that more users visit have higher importance to them.
Map Definition
The coverage maps show the locations where we received measurements from users connecting with 3G or better mobile service. Each map provides an indication of the areas in which it is possible to obtain mobile service from that mobile operator.
Consistency
National Analysis
Movistar wins the award for Excellent Consistent Quality which measures how often our users’ experience met the minimum recommended performance thresholds required for demanding use-cases such as watching HD video and group video conference calling. At 50.3%, Movistar was just 0.6 percentage points ahead of second placed Telcel. AT&T was much further behind with an Excellent Consistent Quality of 31.1%.
Definitions
Consistent Quality measures how often users’ experience on a network was sufficient to support common applications’ requirements. It measures download speed, upload speed, latency, jitter, packet loss, time to first byte and the percentage of tests attempted which did not succeed due to a connectivity issue on either the download or server response component.
Full details on how the Consistent Quality metrics — Excellent Consistent Quality and Core Consistent Quality — are calculated can be found here.
Excellent Consistent Quality is the percentage of users’ tests that met the minimum recommended performance thresholds to watch HD video, complete group video conference calls and play games.
National Analysis
At 73.4%, Movistar wins the Core Consistent Quality award by a large margin. Movistar’s score is 11.7 percentage points higher than second placed Telcel which had a score of 61.6%. The difference between Movistar and third placed AT&T which scored 45.5% was even higher at 27.9 percentage points. Core Consistent Quality is the percentage of users’ tests that met the minimum recommended performance thresholds for lower performance applications including SD video, voice calls and web browsing.
Definitions
Consistent Quality measures how often users’ experience on a network was sufficient to support common applications’ requirements. It measures download speed, upload speed, latency, jitter, packet loss, time to first byte and the percentage of tests attempted which did not succeed due to a connectivity issue on either the download or server response component.
Full details on how the Consistent Quality metrics — Excellent Consistent Quality and Core Consistent Quality — are calculated can be found here.
Core Consistent Quality is the percentage of users’ tests that met the minimum recommended performance thresholds for lower performance applications including SD video, voice calls and web browsing.
Related Analysis
Our Methodology
Collecting billions of individual measurements daily from over 100 million devices globally, Opensignal independently analyzes mobile and broadband user experience on every major network operator around the globe.
About Opensignal
Opensignal is the leading global provider of independent insights into consumers' connectivity experiences and choice of carrier. Our proprietary insights into mobile and broadband networks give operators the solutions they need to profitably compete and win, from executive level scorecards and public validation to pin-point level engineering analytics and consumer decision dynamics.
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Confidence Intervals
For every metric we calculate statistical confidence intervals indicated on our graphs. When confidence intervals overlap, our measured results are too close to declare a winner. In those cases, we show a statistical draw. For this reason, some metrics have multiple operator winners.
In our bar graphs we represent confidence intervals as boundaries on either sides of graph bars.
In our supporting-metric charts we show confidence intervals as +/- numerical values.
Why confidence intervals are vital in analyzing mobile network experience