South Africa
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.
South Africa
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
South Africa's overall download speeds improved by up to 30%
Our users in South Africa have seen improvement in Download Speed Experience across the board. Cell C users observed the largest boost, 30%, followed by Telkom (11%), MTN (5%) and Vodacom (5%) users, compared to the March 2024 report. However, MTN’s leadership remains unchallenged in this category, with its overall download speeds averaging 50% faster than second-paced Cell C and Vodacom. Similarly, Cell C users have reported the biggest improvement in Upload Speed Experience, pushing Cell C to the top spot, sharing the win with MTN.
Cell C is top in South Africa for overall Video Experience
In the previous report, all four operators shared the Video Experience award. However, this time, Cell C has emerged as the outright winner, meaning users in South Africa enjoy the best quality of on-demand mobile video streaming experience on Cell C's network.
MTN continues to lead in 5G Video and 5G Games Experience
MTN is also the outright winner of the 5G Video and Games Experience awards. MTN's 5G Video Experience score rates as Very Good (68-78), one category higher than Vodacom. Likewise, for 5G Games Experience, MTN garners a better rating than its competitors. However, its winning score of 40 points (on a 100-point scale) suggests there is much room for improvement in South Africa.
MTN 5G users spend the greatest proportion of time connected to an active 5G signal
MTN wins the 5G Availability award, with our 5G users on its network connecting to 5G on average for 11.5% of the time. Having superfast 5G download speeds are only useful when users have a 5G connection. 5G Availability compares the amount of time our 5G users spend with an active 5G connection — the higher the percentage, the more time users on a network spend connected to 5G.
Vodacom is unbeaten for Consistent Quality
Vodacom wins the Consistent Quality award outright for the third consecutive time, currently with a score of 65.6%. This means that Vodacom users continue to see the greatest proportion of tests that meet the minimum thresholds to support more demanding commonly used mobile applications, such as video calling or uploading an image to social media.
Mobile Experience Awards
Market Overview
In Opensignal’s latest analysis of the mobile network landscape in South Africa, MTN continues to hold the lion’s share of awards, leading in seven out of 13 metrics. The operator retains outright wins for overall Download Speed Experience, 5G Availability, as well as 5G Video and 5G Games Experience. Vodacom wins the next biggest haul — with top scores in Consistent Quality, 5G Download Speed, 5G Upload Speed, Coverage and 5G Coverage Experience — followed by Cell C and Telkom.
It’s worth noting that Cell C users have seen the biggest increases across Overall Experience metrics compared to the last report. The quality of experience streaming on-demand video on Cell C has improved by 25%, while the average download and upload speeds have grown by 30% and 53%, respectively. These improvements are particularly significant given that Cell C has not been investing in its own network infrastructure due to severe financial difficulties in recent years. These challenges led to the company's recapitalization and the establishment of new wholesale and roaming agreements with MTN and Vodacom.
As part of this transition, Cell C deactivated its physical tower network and Radio Access Network (RAN). MTN now provides Cell C with a virtual radio access network for its prepaid and mobile virtual network operator subscribers, while Cell C’s contract customers roam on Vodacom’s network. However, Cell C continues to use its own spectrum and retains full control over the customer experience. Additionally, Cell C is currently testing 5G with network partners Vodacom and MTN, with plans to launch it soon.
Meanwhile, South Africa’s Department of Communications and Digital Technologies (DCDT) has extended the deadline for phasing out 2G and 3G networks to December 2027 to free up the spectrum for faster 4G and 5G networks. The country’s major operators are trying to prepare their customers for the migration by running initiatives such as offering upgrade incentives and educational campaigns. However, there are concerns that the switch-off could disrupt essential systems and cut off cellular access for many South Africans.
Vodacom has also announced increased investments in South Africa’s Free State and Northern Cape provinces to enhance its network speed and signal, especially in rural areas. MTN has announced plans to invest more than $100 million by mid-2024 in generators, batteries, and renewable energy solutions. This effort aims to mitigate the impact of ongoing power outages, ensuring network stability and service continuity despite South Africa’s persistent energy challenges.
On the other hand, Telkom has announced plans to sell its tower infrastructure, joining rivals MTN South Africa and Cell C in this strategic shift to focus on core business operations. With this move, Vodacom will be the only major mobile operator in South Africa that continues to own its tower infrastructure. This trend reflects a broader industry focus on streamlining business operations by offloading non-core assets.
In this report, we examine the mobile network experience of the four main mobile network operators in South Africa — Telkom, Cell C, MTN and Vodacom — over a period of 90 days starting on May 01, 2024, and ending on July 29, 2024, to see how they fared.
Overall Experience
National Analysis
In the previous report, the award was won by Telkom, Cell C, MTN and Vodacom jointly. However, this time, Cell C wins the Video Experience award outright with a score of 67.2 points on a 100-point scale and a lead of around 11 points over Telkom, MTN and Vodacom, which place in second with their statistically tied scores of 53.1-58.9 points.
Cell C's score has increased by 14 points, while other operators’ scores haven't changed a significant amount since the previous report.
Video Experience scores account for adaptive bitrate streaming (ABR), a technology that allows Opensignal to accurately represent users' real video experience including video streams up to 4K quality.
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
We saw a close competition for the Games Experience award. Telkom, Cell C and MTN are joint winners, with statistically tied scores of just over 36 points on a 100-point scale, slightly ahead of Vodacom.
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
MTN users experience the fastest overall download speeds in South Africa, 49.3Mbps on average — over 50% faster than those on Cell C and Vodacom. Telkom places last with users reporting 14.4Mbps, on average.
Compared to the March 2024 report, the Download Speed Experience has improved across all four networks, with Cell C users reporting the biggest improvement of 30%, followed by Telkom (11%), while MTN and Vodacom users have seen an uptick of 5%.
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
In the previous report, MTN was the sole Upload Speed Experience award winner. However, this time around, MTN and Cell C are in a dead heat, as our users on Cell C observed the biggest boost of 2.6Mbps in their average upload speeds, while those on MTN did not see any significant change. Meanwhile, third-placed Vodacom’s and last-placed Telkom’s scores also improved by a relatively modest 0.5-0.6Mbps.
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).
5G Experience
National Analysis
MTN continues to lead in terms of the quality of on-demand mobile video streaming experience over 5G networks, ahead of Vodacom, as MTN's and Vodacom's scores haven't changed by a statistically significant amount since the previous report.
MTN places in the Very Good (68-78) category, while Vodacom rates one category lower in Good (58-68). A Very Good (68-78) rating means that our users are, on average, able to stream video at 1080p or better with satisfactory loading times and little stalling.
5G Video Experience scores account for adaptive bitrate streaming (ABR), a technology that allows Opensignal to accurately represent users' real video experience including video streams up to 4K quality.
Definitions
5G Video Experience quantifies the quality of mobile video experienced by Opensignal users on real-world video streams when they were connected to 5G. 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 5G Video Experience, we are directly measuring video streams from end-user devices and using this ITU approach to quantify the video experience observed by our users on each operator’s 5G network 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.
National Analysis
MTN is once again top in terms of the quality of multiplayer mobile gaming experience over 5G networks in South Africa. It wins the 5G Games Experience award outright with a score of 40 points on a 100-point scale, with a one-point lead over Vodacom, which places second.
Definitions
5G Games Experience measures how mobile users experience real-time multiplayer mobile gaming on an operator's 5G network. It analyzes how our users’ multiplayer mobile gaming experience was affected by mobile network conditions including latency, packet loss and jitter. 5G Games Experience for each operator is calculated on a scale from 0 to 100.
5G 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 5G Games Experience starts with measuring the end-to-end experience from users’ devices to internet end-points that host real games.
National Analysis
Vodacom wins 5G Download Speed outright, with users clocking in at 216.8Mbps — 48% faster than MTN. The average 5G download speeds with Vodacom are 6.6 times faster than the average download speeds across all technologies, while those with MTN are three times faster.
Definitions
5G Download Speed shows the average download speed experienced by Opensignal users across an operator’s 5G network. 5G Download Speed for each operator is calculated in Mbps (Megabits per second).
National Analysis
MTN and Vodacom are joint winners of the 5G Upload Speed award with statistically tied scores of 19.5-19.7Mbps. On average, the 5G upload speeds in South Africa are 2.5-3 times faster than overall upload speeds.
Definitions
5G Upload Speed measures the average upload speeds experienced by Opensignal users across an operator’s 5G network. 5G Upload Speed for each operator is calculated in Mbps (Megabits per second).
Coverage
National Analysis
Once again, Vodacom wins the Coverage Experience award outright with a score of 7.9 points on a 10-point scale and a lead of one point over MTN.
As the coverage experienced by our Cell C users varies depending on whether they are prepaid customers (using MTN’s RAN) or postpaid customers (roaming on Vodacom), we have not included Cell C in this analysis.
Definitions
The Opensignal Coverage Experience metric measures the extent of mobile networks in the places people live, work and travel. The metric represents the experience users receive as they travel around areas where they would reasonably expect to find coverage.
Traditional coverage metrics typically estimate either a percentage of land area covered, or a percentage of population covered; often neither will be an accurate measurement of the true user expectation and experience. In many markets there are areas where neither population density nor geographic area reflect the importance of coverage to users. For example, in a large mountain range most users will not expect coverage in the wilderness, but poor coverage in the relatively small area of a ski resort is critical for the enjoyment of a holiday. Estimates based purely on population give undue significance to coverage in the most densely populated areas.
Coverage Experience measures geographic coverage of populated areas and therefore more accurately reflects the coverage expectations and experience of typical users. It can give a result that is somewhat different to traditional estimates based on either geographic or population measures. The metric uses a scale from 0 to 10.
National Analysis
Vodacom continues to lead in 5G Coverage Experience. MTN’s and Vodacom’s scores have improved by 0.3 points on a 10-point scale.
Definitions
The Opensignal Coverage Experience metric measures the extent of mobile networks in the places people live, work and travel. The metric represents the experience users receive as they travel around areas where they would reasonably expect to find coverage.
Traditional coverage metrics typically estimate either a percentage of land area covered, or a percentage of population covered; often neither will be an accurate measurement of the true user expectation and experience. In many markets there are areas where neither population density nor geographic area reflect the importance of coverage to users. For example, in a large mountain range most users will not expect coverage in the wilderness, but poor coverage in the relatively small area of a ski resort is critical for the enjoyment of a holiday. Estimates based purely on population give undue significance to coverage in the most densely populated areas.
Coverage Experience measures geographic coverage of populated areas and therefore more accurately reflects the coverage expectations and experience of typical users. It can give a result that is somewhat different to traditional estimates based on either geographic or population measures. The metric uses a scale from 0 to 10.
5G Coverage Experience shows the proportion of places Opensignal users with a 5G device and a 5G subscription had an active 5G connection.
National Analysis
Our Telkom users continue to spend the highest proportion of time connected to either a 3G, 4G or 5G. Telkom wins the Availability award outright this time with a score of 99.1%, while Cell C, MTN and Vodacom follow closely with statistically tied scores of 98.4-98.6%. Compared to the last report, Vodacom's, Cell C’s, and MTN’s scores have improved by one percentage point, while Telkom's hasn't changed significantly.
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.
National Analysis
MTN wins the 5G Availability award outright as our 5G users on its network spend 11.5% of time connected to an active 5G signal — four percentage points higher compared to Vodacom.
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.
5G Availability shows the proportion of time Opensignal users with a 5G device and a 5G subscription had an active 5G connection.
Consistency
National Analysis
Vodacom is the winner of Consistent Quality with a score of 65.6% — a lead of three percentage points over second-placed MTN. Cell C comes third with a score of 55.2%, followed by Telkom with 46%.
Since the last report, Vodacom's and Cell C’s scores have increased by 2-3 percentage points, while MTN's score hasn't changed significantly. On the other hand, Telkom's score has decreased by five percentage points.
Consistent Quality measures if the network is sufficient to support common mobile application requirements at a level that is ‘good enough’ for users to maintain (or complete) various typical demanding tasks on their devices. It assesses a number of experience indicators such as download speed, upload speed, latency, jitter, packet loss, and time to first byte.
Definitions
Consistent Quality measures if the network is sufficient to support common mobile application requirements at a level that is ‘good enough’ for users to maintain (or complete) various typical tasks on their devices.
We combine different experience indicators such as download speed, upload speed, latency, jitter, packet discard, and time to first byte to calculate Consistent Quality. These components are evaluated against thresholds recommended by various more demanding common applications used for a range of common tasks.
To calculate the metric value, the proportion of tests that pass the requirements of Consistent Quality is multiplied by the test success ratio, which is the proportion of completed tests to all tests conducted. Tests that pass indicate that activities such as video calling, uploading an image to social media, or using smart home applications will be possible without noticeable lag or slowdown.
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