Nigeria's fixed broadband market is highly concentrated, with five operators accounting for 83.84 per cent of the country's fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) subscriptions. According to data from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), 99 licensees collectively had 319,735 FTTH subscriptions in the second quarter of 2026. MTN, FibreOne, ipNX, Broadbase, and NgCom accounted for 268,371 of the connections. This concentration of market share among a few operators raises concerns about competition and the pace of infrastructure development.
The subscriptions are largely concentrated in urban centres, reflecting the limited reach of fixed broadband infrastructure beyond major cities. The NCC data analysed by The Guardian showed that the fibre market is dominated by a handful of providers, with little room for smaller players. This has significant implications for the development of Nigeria's digital economy, which relies heavily on robust and widespread internet connectivity. The urban-rural divide in internet access remains a significant challenge for the country.
Despite the concentration in the fibre market, Nigeria's mobile market is facing a different challenge: growing consumer dissatisfaction despite the expansion of 5G services and increases in mobile tariffs. Fresh data from Ookla Speedtest Intelligence showed that consumer rating scores for internet service providers declined from 3.4 in 2022 to 3.0 in 2026. Its Net Promoter Score (NPS), which measures customers' willingness to recommend their service provider, also fell from -15.6 to -34.3 over the period.
Ookla attributed the decline partly to increased customer frustration following higher mobile tariffs. The development followed the government-approved 50 per cent increase in mobile tariffs in early 2025, which raised concerns about affordability, particularly among lower-income users. The increase in tariffs has had a ripple effect on the entire industry, with consumers becoming increasingly dissatisfied with the services they receive. This has significant implications for the future of Nigeria's mobile market.
Despite the expansion of 5G coverage, adoption remains low. Ookla data showed that median 5G download speeds fell from 329 Mbps in 2022 to 155 Mbps in 2026, while 5G accounted for only 4.6 per cent of mobile connections. At the same time, the proportion of scanned locations with 5G coverage increased from 11.3 per cent in 2023 to 28.9 per cent in 2026. The slow adoption of 5G services has raised concerns about the future of Nigeria's digital economy.
Ookla noted that the network remained largely under-utilised, citing the high cost of 5G-enabled devices and data. The affordability challenge has also encouraged some consumers with 5G-capable devices to remain on 4G, which has a significantly wider coverage footprint. This has significant implications for the development of Nigeria's digital economy, which relies heavily on robust and widespread internet connectivity. The high cost of 5G devices and data remains a significant barrier to adoption.
Overall mobile internet performance, however, has improved. Median mobile download speeds increased from 18.94 Mbps in 2022 to 26.22 Mbps in 2026. The data also showed a persistent urban-rural divide, with urban users recording download speeds of between 17 Mbps and 24 Mbps, compared with 14 Mbps to 21 Mbps in rural areas. This underscores the infrastructure gap facing communities outside major cities. Nigeria's 5G rollout began with MTN Nigeria and Mafab Communications, which emerged as winners of the 3.5GHz spectrum auction in December 2021.
Key points
- Five operators dominate Nigeria's fibre market with 83.84 per cent of FTTH subscriptions.
- 5G adoption remains low due to high device costs and limited infrastructure.
- Mobile internet performance has improved, but urban-rural divide persists.
