This year, in the domestic 5G service quality assessment, SK Telecom maintained its first place, while the gap with second-place KT slightly narrowed.
The Ministry of Science and ICT announced the communication quality assessment results on the 30th, stating that this year's average 5G download speed improved by 9.2% from last year to 1025.52 Mbps.
By telecom company, SK Telecom ranked first with 1064.54 Mbps, KT came in second with 1055.75 Mbps, and LG Uplus recorded third place with 956.26 Mbps. KT achieved the highest speed in major cities like Seoul, proving its competitiveness in urban markets. However, in Incheon, LG Uplus recorded the fastest speed. Nonetheless, the download speed gap between urban and rural areas remains substantial.
Areas with inadequate 5G quality primarily consisted of KTX and SRT high-speed rail sections, with LG Uplus marking 12 locations, KT 7 locations, and SK Telecom 6 locations. Of the 31 locations identified last year for poor quality, 30 have improved; however, the Gwangmyeong-Osong section of LG Uplus has not yet been enhanced.
The average download speed for LTE services dropped by 0.49% from last year to 178.05 Mbps, and areas with inadequate quality were also concentrated in high-speed rail sections. The average download speed for wired internet 1Gbps products was recorded at 983.25 Mbps.
The Ministry of Science and ICT stated that Korea's 5G speed is approximately 1.8 times better than Norway's (584.14 Mbps), the fastest among the G7 countries, and urged telecom companies to continue their investments to address indoor coverage and rural gaps.