What Is C-Band 5G and Why Does It Matter to You?

Once used primarily by satellite TV operators, C-band is a spectrum of radio frequencies that cellular companies use to improve the performance and reach of 5G wireless networks. Long story short, it’s the stuff that gives your 5G phone a massive speed boost on a regular basis.

But what is C-band spectrum, exactly? And what makes it so special? Keep reading to learn the ins and outs of C-band and how you can get the most out of it on your phone or mobile device.

Why Is C-band 5G important?

C-band is a form of radio spectrum that enables fast speeds on a wide scale for cell phones and 5G home internet.

Wireless companies use radio waves to provide internet access on your cell phone. And C-band falls in the middle of the radio spectrum used for 5G networks—specifically, it refers to the frequency bands of 3.7–3.98 GHz.¹  It’s slower than mmWave 5G (the much-hyped 5G that can hit gigabit speeds), but it’s still fast. And it’s much easier for cellular companies to deploy it across cities and towns.

The introduction of C-band is a major step in the years-long deployment of 5G wireless networks. In recent years, AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, and a handful of other US telecom companies collectively invested more than $95 billion to obtain licenses to use a chunk of this coveted radio spectrum in their 5G networks. The federal government gave the green light for C-band to be rolled out in dozens of American cities beginning in January 2022.

 Benefits of C-band 5G:

• C-band can deliver fast speeds, upwards of 100 Mbps on phones.
• C-band can work over long ranges without requiring too many cell towers.
• There’s a lot of C-band spectrum available for wireless use by telecom companies.

How can you get C-band 5G?

Verizon and AT&T are the two main cell carriers using C-band 5G right now. So if you have a cell phone plan with either, you’re golden. Of course, you’ll also need a 5G phone with C-band capability to access any C-band networks.

C-band 5G is currently available in 46 major cities, reaching 60% of the US population. Verizon and AT&T still have to build up their cell sites to make sure C-band is available in all of these places, but there will be much wider availability starting in 2022.4

Another portion of C-band spectrum will be available in 53 more major markets beginning in December 2023. That includes a lot of C-band spectrum controlled by T-Mobile, which has focused on building up lower-band versions of 5G with slightly slower speeds.

Where can you find C-band 5G, exactly?

Allnet Insights & Analytics put together a list of where C-band 5G is available as of January 2022. It also has listed where C-band will be made available beginning in December 2023. Take a look below to see if you can get C-band 5G in your city or town.⁴

Which cellular carriers have C-band 5G?

Verizon and AT&T are the main cellular carriers with C-band 5G right now. Verizon controls about 60% of the currently available C-band 5G spectrum, while AT&T has licenses to operate 40% of it.²

AT&T and Verizon deployed their C-band spectrum across their 5G networks throughout 2022.

T-Mobile also has C-band, but it isn’t cleared to make its C-band 5G networks live until December 2023, as per government regulations.

Even without C-band (for now), T-Mobile remains the leader in 5G

Data from Opensignal’s 5G Experience Report, January 2023.

*% of time phone users access 5G networks while using a 5G device. Phones revert to 4G LTE when 5G isn’t available.

T-Mobile is the dominant force in 5G, even without C-band. According to a report from analytics firm Opensignal, T-Mobile had the fastest 5G speeds and the greatest 5G availability of the three major cellular carriers as of January 2023.³

Reportedly, T-Mobile hopes to stay the lead 5G player throughout 2023 by increasing its investments, expanding its wireless reach, and bringing on more customers in mobile and with its fixed-wireless T-Mobile Home Internet service.

Which 5G phones have C-band?

You can get C-band on numerous 5G phones, including iPhone 12, iPhone 13, Samsung Galaxy S21 phones, Google Pixel 5, and Google Pixel 6.

To make sure a phone can use C-band 5G, go to the list of tech specs on the package or the manufacturer’s website and look in the wireless section to see if it supports the frequency bands called n77 and n78. N77 is the code for the frequencies 3.3–4.2GHz, making it the main frequency that we know as C-band. N78 also covers frequencies that fall within C-band spectrum.⁶

Best phones with C-band 5G

Amazon.com Price (as of 3/2/23 10:15 MST). See full disclaimer.

Which 5G phones are NOT compatible with C-band 5G?

Any 5G phone that does not support n77 and n78 bands will not be compatible with C-band 5G. Many of the early 5G phones don’t have C-band support. Many low-end phones currently on the market don’t have C-band either. If you’re not sure whether your phone supports C-band, contact your cell carrier to double check.

Do you need a 5G phone with C-band?

You need a 5G phone to access any type of 5G service, including C-band. But you don’t necessarily need C-band on a phone right now—unless you have Verizon or AT&T and hope to get the most out of your 5G experience. While C-band isn’t fully deployed yet, availability will expand in 2022, and the right 5G phone will ensure you get the best speeds in the widest coverage area.

If you’re on T-Mobile, don’t worry about investing in a pricey phone just for the C-band. T-Mobile won’t deploy C-band until late 2023—and likely by then, a lot more 5G phones will be on the market, and most (if not all) will have C-band capability.

As you shop around for 5G phones and networks, it’s also important to see what you can get for your home internet. Run a search below to see what’s available in your area—and how it compares to 5G capabilities.

If C-band is so great, then why doesn’t everyone have it now?

European and Asian telecommunications companies have already deployed C-band in their 5G markets, but the United States is late in hopping on the C-band bandwagon.

The build-up to 5G in the late 2010s came with a lot of hype. Commentators and telecom experts bandied about a lot of buzzwords and made promises that 5G will soon pave the way for everything from gigabit phone speeds to self-driving cars to robot brain surgeries.

Alas, that bright future has not become a reality. Throughout 2020 and 2021, 5G was only intermittently available on peoples’ phones. For the most part, 5G speeds were only a nudge or two faster than 4G.³

5G’s lackluster performance has a lot to do with the radio spectrum that federal regulators made available for commercial use. Cellular companies need to purchase licenses from the Federal Communications Commission in order to use certain airwaves for their wireless networks, and initially, the FCC emphasized millimeter-wave channels (24–47 GHz) over C-band channels, since millimeter-wave had little commercial use and a lot of potential to deliver fast speeds.

Millimeter-wave looks fantastic on paper—it’s capable of delivering gigabit-plus speeds and significantly lower latency. But there are some big downsides to millimeter-wave, too, which put a damper on cellular companies’ abilities to roll out the fastest form of 5G quickly across the country.

 Downsides to millimeter wave 5G:

• Millimeter-wave signals have an extremely limited, “line of sight” range.
• A millimeter-wave signal can be knocked out by inclement weather or even trees and hills.
• Widespread access to millimeter-wave requires a massive buildup of infrastructure (think a radio tower on every city block).

For these reasons, 5G’s progress lagged during the initial two years of deployment, and now cellular companies are eager to deploy C-band to really get 5G going.

More about 5G

• Best 5G Phones
• Best 5G Hotspots
• Verizon 5G Home Internet
• AT&T 5G Network Availability and Coverage
• T-Mobile 5G Network Availability and Coverage

Sources

1. Federal Communications Commission, “Auction 107: 3.7 GHz Service Fact Sheet,” undated. Accessed January 12, 2022.
2. Mike Dano, Light Reading, “Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile: Here Are the C-Band Auction Results,” February 24, 2021. Accessed January 27, 2022.
3. Francesco Rizzato, Opensignal, “5G Experience Report—January 2023,” January 2023. Accessed March 2, 2023.
4. Mike Dano, Light Reading, “T-Mobile Increases 2022 Capex to Maintain 5G Position Against Rivals,” January 6, 2022. Accessed January 11, 2022.
5. Allnet Insights & Analytics, “C-Band Auction: Markets and When the Spectrum Will Be Available,” November 20, 2020. Accessed January 11, 2022.
6. Sascha Segan, PC Mag, “What Is C-Band, and What Does It Mean for the Future of 5G?,” July 6, 2021.

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1. Federal Communications Commission, “Auction 107: 3.7 GHz Service Fact Sheet,” undated. Accessed January 12, 2022.
2. Mike Dano, Light Reading, “Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile: Here Are the C-Band Auction Results,” February 24, 2021. Accessed January 27, 2022.
3. Francesco Rizzato, Opensignal, “5G Experience Report—January 2023,” January 2023. Accessed March 2, 2023.
4. Mike Dano, Light Reading, “T-Mobile Increases 2022 Capex to Maintain 5G Position Against Rivals,” January 6, 2022. Accessed January 11, 2022.
5. Allnet Insights & Analytics, “C-Band Auction: Markets and When the Spectrum Will Be Available,” November 20, 2020. Accessed January 11, 2022.
6. Sascha Segan, PC Mag, “What Is C-Band, and What Does It Mean for the Future of 5G?,” July 6, 2021.