More Africa NewsVodacom vs MTN – The fastest 5G network in South Africa

August 25, 2020by myles0

South Africa’s two biggest mobile network operators – Vodacom and MTN – recently rolled out their 5G networks.

Vodacom was first to launch its network on 5 May, going live at 20 sites, with 18 in Gauteng and two in the Western Cape.

The operator said that, given enough spectrum, 5G will work at average speeds of between 150Mbps to 200Mbps, while peak speeds will reach above 1Gbps.

“5G speeds can vary and depend on multiple factors: how far away you are from a mast, which spectrum is being used, and how many people around you are using 5G,” Vodacom said.

MyBroadband’s initial tests at multiple sites in Gauteng showed that the network was capable of reaching an average download speed of around 154 Mbps, confirming Vodacom’s claim.

MTN’s 5G rollout followed nearly two months later, with base stations in Gauteng, the Western Cape, and the Free State.

It said that customers can expect average speeds of 50Mbps and peak speeds of 500Mbps on its 5G mobile network.

Our initial tests at four locations in Johannesburg showed impressive results, with an average download speed of 503Mbps on MTN’s 5G network.

Comparing speeds

We recently performed new speed tests using the MyBroadband Speed Test app to see how MTN and Vodacom’s 5G speeds stack up now that both networks have been available for over a month.

We visited six locations covered by the respective networks – three of Vodacom’s, and three of MTN’s – and performed multiple speed tests with two Huawei smartphones – the P40 Pro and P40 Lite 5G.

For Vodacom, we performed speed tests in Menlyn, Eco Park, and Midstream Estate, while MTN’s speed tests were done at Epsom Downs Shopping Centre, Design Quarter, and the Palazzo Hotel at Montecasino.

All of these tests were conducted with full 5G bars of reception and strong signal strength.

MTN download speeds more than double

The differences in performance were noteworthy, with MTN achieving the better average, as well as maximum download and upload speeds.

On average, MTN’s 5G speeds were more than twice as fast as Vodacom, measuring 537Mbps as opposed to 261Mbps.

The top result we recorded on the day was also on MTN’s 5G network – at Design Quarter in Fourways – which measured just under 611Mbps.

On Vodacom’s 5G network, we reached a top speed of 496Mbps at Menlyn Maine.

There was an even bigger discrepancy measured for upload speeds, with MTN clocking a maximum of 106Mbps and Vodacom only hitting 37Mbps.

For the tested base stations, MTN’s network recorded a lower average latency of slightly over 13ms, whereas Vodacom’s network achieved just under 15ms.

The table below shows a summary of the average, maximum, and minimum download and upload speeds we recorded on each network, as well as the average, maximum, and minimum latency.

Network Performance
Component	Vodacom	MTN
Average Download Speed	261.33Mbps	537.41Mbps
Maximum Download Speed	496.04Mbps	610.91Mbps
Minimum Download Speed	107.94Mbps	443.69Mbps

Average Upload Speed	35.91Mbps	93.44Mbps
Maximum Upload Speed	37.82Mbps	106.04Mbps
Minimum Upload Speed	28.46Mbps	36.54Mbps

Average Latency	14.7ms	13.1ms
Minimum Latency	11ms	12ms
Maximum Latency	17ms	20ms

Location-specific results

The tables below show the top five results achieved at each location with regards to download speed on both the Huawei P40 Pro and P40 Lite 5G.