Vietnam’s 5G speeds surge at start of 2026

The rapid improvement is laying the foundation for Vietnam's ambition to achieve nationwide 5G coverage by the end of 2026.

Viettel and Da Nang lead the country

According to data from the i-Speed measurement platform operated by the Vietnam Internet Center under the Ministry of Science and Technology, the average nationwide 5G download speed reached 594.81 Mbps in January, representing a 52-percent jump from December.

Average upload speeds also rose to 123.71 Mbps, up 29.5 percent month on month.

The jump suggests that telecom operators are rapidly expanding network coverage while simultaneously optimizing infrastructure performance.

Regionally, Da Nang recorded the fastest 5G performance among major cities, with an average download speed of 677.23 Mbps.

Ho Chi Minh City followed at 632.02 Mbps, representing an 86-percent increase, while Can Tho reached 595.88 Mbps, up 83.9 percent from December 2025, the two sharpest gains among Vietnam's major urban centers.

Among telecom operators, Viettel maintained its leading position, recording an average download speed of 616.99 Mbps and upload speeds of 127.09 Mbps, representing a 53.2-percent increase in download performance.

The improvement follows the deployment of 23,500 additional 5G base stations, bringing Viettel's total to more than 30,000 active stations and extending coverage to around 90 percent of Vietnam's outdoor areas.

VNPT ranked second, recording a download speed of 311.11 Mbps and an upload speed of 52.7 Mbps, while MobiFone placed third with 187.57 Mbps download speed and 35.33 Mbps upload speed.

Toward nationwide 5G connectivity

Vietnam's fixed broadband speed reached 261.8 Mbps in August 2025, placing the country among the world's top 10 markets for broadband performance.

In this segment, Viettel leads domestic providers with an average speed of 272.9 Mbps, surpassing Iceland, which ranks eighth globally.

Overall, Vietnam now ranks among the strongest developing economies in broadband infrastructure, trailing only advanced markets such as Singapore, South Korea, and the United States.

At a meeting of the National Steering Committee for Science, Technology, Innovation and Digital Transformation on February 25, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh called for accelerating the commercial roll-out of low-Earth-orbit (LEO) satellite Internet while expanding nationwide 5G coverage.

The goal, he emphasized, is to ensure that "everyone has access to the Internet," including people living in remote, border, and island areas.

LEO satellite Internet, which offers low latency and extensive coverage, is expected to complement 5G in areas where traditional infrastructure is difficult to deploy.

When deployed in tandem, the high-speed and low-latency capabilities of 5G are expected to support the development of Industry 4.0 applications, smart cities, telemedicine, and digital education, strengthening the foundation for Vietnam's digital economy.