Emma Okonji
After maintaining market penetration lead with high subscriber utilisation across networks for close to four years, the market penetration of 4G suddenly dropped to 54.30 per cent in the month of May 2026, after attaining 54.41 per cent in April 2026, statistics released by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), has revealed.
Before recording a slight market penetration drop in May this year, 4G had maintained a steady lead in market penetration for close to four years, since the launch of 5G in Nigeria in 2022.
As at December 2025, 4G penetration was 52.95 per cent, 2G penetration was 37.37 per cent, 3G penetration was 5.91 per cent, while 5G penetration was just 3.77 per cent, according to the NCC’s statistics, which THISDAY obtained from its website.
The statistics showed that 4G continued to lead in January 2026 with an increased market penetration of 53.41 per cent, followed by 2G with a market penetration of 36.97 per cent and 3G with a market penetration of 5.67 per cent, while 5G had market penetration of 3.94 per cent.
In February 2026, 4G also maintained the lead position with a market penetration of 53.59 per cent, followed by 2G with a market penetration of 36.87 per cent and 3G with a market penetration of 5.49 per cent, while 5G had market penetration of 4.06 per cent.
In March 2026, 4G again, maintained the lead position with a market penetration of 53.76 per cent, followed by 2G with a market penetration of 36.74 per cent and 3G with a market penetration of 5.30 per cent, while 5G had market penetration of 4.20 per cent.
In April 2026, 4G market penetration reached its peak with 54.41 per cent, followed by 2G with a market penetration of 35.93 per cent and 3G with a market penetration of 5.32 per cent, while 5G had market penetration of 4.34 per cent.
In May 2026, 4G market penetration dropped for the first time since 2022 after the commercial launch of 5G, to 54.30 per cent, followed by 2G with a market penetration of 36.12 per cent and 3G with a market penetration of 5.10 per cent, while 5G had an increased market penetration of 4.49 per cent, up from 4.34 per cent market penetration it had in April 2026.
During the commercial launch of the fifth-generation technology (5G) in September 2022 by MTN and in June 2023 by Airtel, both operators had boasted that 5G would overtake the existing 2G, 3G and 4G technologies within a space of one year because it would enable much faster speeds and lower latency, giving customers near-instant access to connectivity and downloads that would take seconds, instead of minutes.
But contrary to the operators’ views, 4G remained the most widely utilised technology among telecoms subscribers, a feat it maintained for close to four years, before its market penetration and utilisation dropped for the first time in May 2026.
This was just as telecoms operators intensified efforts to boost the utilisation of 5G among telecoms subscribers.
Airtel Nigeria, on its part, accelerated its 5G expansion across the country, integrating more than 1,000 new 5G sites in the last one year in a network build-out that is rapidly extending high-speed connectivity across Nigeria’s major cities and urban centres.
The expansion, which has increased in pace, has seen Airtel integrate 759 5G sites since December alone. The rollout extends the reach of the fifth-generation network beyond its initial deployment areas, bringing faster, higher-capacity mobile connectivity to a growing number of consumers and businesses.
The company’s latest network push comes amid rapidly rising demand for data services as smartphones, cloud applications, artificial intelligence tools, video platforms, digital commerce and other bandwidth-intensive services become increasingly embedded in everyday life and business.
Airtel’s Chief Technology Officer, Harmanpreet Singh Dhillon, said the expansion was designed to ensure that the company’s network kept pace with the changing requirements of Nigerian consumers and businesses.
“The scale of our 5G deployment reflects the pace at which Nigeria is becoming a digital economy. Customers are using more data, businesses are moving more of their operations online, and new technologies such as artificial intelligence are creating entirely new demands on connectivity,” Dhillon said.
MTN Nigeria said it had rolled out its expansion plan in line with its 25 years anniversary that would further enhance customer experience in 5G and 6G technologies.
General Manager, Network Access Planning and Optimisation at MTN Nigeria, Nasiru Hayatu, said: “For 25 years, MTN Nigeria has been investing in network expansion and optimisation and the company will continue to expand its network to boost customers’ 5G experience.”
Chief Financial Officer, MTN Nigeria, Modupe Kadri said MTN was the first to roll out 1G, 2G, 3G, 4G and 5G technologies in Nigeria and that some customers in other climes have started testing 6G and 7G technologies as technologies evolve.