American wireless data usage increased the most it ever has in a single year

The latest study from the CTIA - The Wireless Association, a non-profit trade organization that represents the wireless communications industry, found wireless data usage across the United States increased the most it ever has in a single year in 2023.

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The association published its 2024 Annual Wireless Industry Survey, which states Americans consumed an astonishing 100 trillion megabytes of wireless data throughout 2023, which is 100 billion gigabytes for those who don't want to manually do the conversion. The CTIA states in its survey that last year was the single largest increase it has seen in wireless data usage over a year, with Americans consuming 36% more data compared to the year prior, and nearly double the data in 2021.

The CTIA also found there was a sharp increase in the number of devices that are 5G compatible, which the association attributes to the skyrocketing rise in wireless data usage. According to the survey, nearly 40% of all wireless devices had a 5G connection in 2023, an increase of 34% compared to 2022. In total, there are 558 million wireless connections in the US, which means for every single American, there are 1.6 wireless connections. How? Wireless connections can count for devices such as smartphones, watches, tablets, etc

Additionally, the survey states that 330 million Americans are covered by one or more 5G networks.

2024 Annual Wireless Industry Survey Highlights

• Wireless Networks Continue to Support Skyrocketing Data Demand. Americans used more than 100T MB in 2023-the largest single-year increase in wireless data ever. This is nearly double the amount of data used just two years ago, and more data than was used from 2010 to 2018 combined.
• More Wireless Connections and 5G Devices. In 2023, nearly 40% of all wireless devices had a 5G connection, a 34% increase over the previous year. This growth helped propel the total number of wireless connections to 558M, more than 1.6 wireless connections for every American.
• Wireless Investment Tops $700B. Wireless carriers have invested $705B to date, including $30B in the last year alone and $190B since 2018, the year 5G was launched. Over its lifetime, the wireless industry has also invested $233B at auction for licensed spectrum, the fuel wireless networks run on.
• Wireless Costs Less While Consumers Use More. The cost per MB of wireless data decreased 50% since 2020, bucking the overall upward trends in pricing for other consumer goods and services over the same period. At $.002 per MB today, wireless data prices have decreased 97% compared to a decade ago.
• 5G Home Broadband Continues to Bridge the Digital Divide. Over the past two years, 95% of net new broadband subscribers chose 5G home service-and importantly, one out of five net 5G home adds were entirely new home broadband subscribers, underscoring 5G's role in helping to close the digital divide.
• More Cell Sites Support Unprecedented Wireless Demand. By the end of 2023, there were 432,469 operational cell sites, the physical backbone of our wireless networks, across the nation-a 24% increase since pivotal wireless siting reforms were enacted in 2018.