Which operator has the fastest 4g internet? Which mobile operator is better for the Internet?

It's amazing how much the world has changed in just a quarter of a century. Just a few years ago, people received information from newspapers, books, and radio and television broadcasting networks. Nowadays, all you have to do is walk to your computer and click on the browser icon to open a window as wide as the entire world. Moreover, even computers are no longer required to access the Internet. They are successfully complemented (and for some, replaced) by a smartphone.

What providers in Russia provide their users with Internet access using the latest science and technology? The answer to this vital question is provided by the Speedtest web service from Ookla. The service has a rich database - to date it has conducted 21601897000 tests.

To determine the fastest mobile Internet operators in Russia The company used the following method.

  • First, the most influential mobile Internet providers on the market were determined (from 3% and above market share).
  • Then statistics on download speed and upload speed were compiled for them. Weighted averages of 10%, 50% and 90% traffic speeds were taken and then combined in a 1:2:1 ratio.

Here's how speeds are distributed among the four largest Russian mobile operators.

Download speed— 11.63 Mbit/sec.

Data upload speed— 6.27 Mbit/sec.

With the “yellow-striped” operator, data moves over mobile networks as if they are in no hurry. We don’t know the reasons for this, but the result is obvious - according to the rating, mobile Internet from Beeline lags behind the leader by more than two times. Interestingly, the latency of all four providers is approximately the same. Beeline is practically no different from either MTS or MegaFon and even shows better results than Tele2 (49, 49, 50 and 57 ms, respectively).

Recently, Beeline entered into partnership agreements to modernize networks with one of the largest telecommunications companies in the world, Huawei, so perhaps the situation will change for the better.

3. Tele2


Download speed
— 13.83 Mbit/sec.

Data upload speed— 6.50 Mbit/sec.

Tele2 is constantly improving both its tariffs and data transfer capabilities. About a year ago, the operator began using several of the latest technical solutions, such as a self-optimizing network and the latest generation public access network. And recently, together with Nokia Tele2, they tested 5G technology.


Download speed
— 15.49 Mbit/sec.

Data upload speed— 6.96 Mbit/sec.

While Tele2 is teaming up with Nokia to test 5G, MTS prefer Ericsson. Most recently, both companies conducted field tests that showed that it is quite possible to accelerate mobile Internet speeds to 25 GB per second. Not bad, right?

Moreover, by optimizing your software and using new technologies, you can not only increase the speed and coverage of the network, but also reduce energy consumption. And this is both cheap and environmentally friendly.


Download speed
— 24.68 Mbit/sec.

Data upload speed— 10.57 Mbit/sec.

And MegaFon receives gold from Speedtest in the 2018 speed rating of Russian mobile operators. His technicians managed to achieve an impressive result, almost double the next place on the list. MegaFon's average download speed reaches an impressive 24.68 Mbit/sec. It is surprising that MegaFon demonstrates this speed in old generation networks (2G, 3G and 4G). It’s scary to think what will happen in new networks (5G), but the company, like others participating in the rating, is testing new equipment. It is interesting that MegaFon is conducting this testing jointly with the same Chinese telecommunications company Huawei as Beeline.

Based on the results of Speedtest research, it is clear that mobile Internet works best in Moscow. There, MegaFon's average speed is 37.36 Mbit/sec. But in other cities the situation is not so brilliant. Even in St. Petersburg, which is considered one of the cities, the speed drops by almost a third and is only 23.18 Mbit/s.

Just 11 years ago, the number of mobile Internet users was a measly 3% of the total number of Internet users. Now the volume of traffic transmitted through mobile networks has reached an impressive 52.4%. Russia was no exception. Although the country’s overall Internet mobilization still leaves much to be desired (our country ranks modestly 78th, somewhere between Malaysia and Chile), it continues to grow and develop. The Internet is becoming not only more accessible, but also faster.

Looking for the best tariff for mobile Internet is like looking for a needle in a haystack. First, you need to decide on the requirements for the “best tariff” and only then start searching. In this review, we will discuss the most profitable tariff plans from Russian cellular operators and try to find the optimal solution. At the same time, we will clarify some issues regarding the coverage area.

Not even the best tariff plan for mobile Internet can guarantee high access speed. This often happens - a subscriber buys a SIM card or modem, comes home and discovers that the quality of communication is below the limit. This is due to uneven network coverage. Remember that it is impossible to create perfect coverage - there will definitely be places where the coverage will be very weak.

Before looking for the best tariff, you should decide which operators are available in your home. It is expensive to purchase SIM cards from all operators at once. But you probably know whose signal is received best in your home. In general, the most important task is to test the quality of communication and speed of access to the mobile Internet. After this, you can start choosing a tariff plan.

Criteria for the “best tariff”

Let's see what it is - the most favorable tariff for mobile Internet. The criteria are:

  • Minimum subscription fee.
  • Maximum volume of included traffic.
  • No serious restrictions.

Let’s say right away that there will be restrictions in any case, as well as floating speed. If you want stability, look for wired providers.

Operator tariff plans

Let's go through the tariff plans of all major telecom operators in Russia - these are Tinkoff Mobile, MTS, Beeline, MegaFon, Tele2 and Yota. Here we will try to find the best internet rates.

Mobile Internet Tinkoff Mobile

Tinkoff Mobile has one favorable tariff plan. Let's consider the advantages of mobile Internet from Tinkoff Mobile:

  • Large 4G coverage area throughout Russia, which provides high speed access to network resources. The Tele2 operator, with which Tinkoff cooperates, is actively building fourth generation networks, increasing the number of base stations for greater coverage;
  • Independent choice of traffic packages – from 2 GB to unlimited. Select your preferred volume in your personal account or mobile application. If you have used up all your traffic, connect an additional gigabyte for 99 rubles or choose a larger package;
  • Possibility of distributing an unlimited package for 399 rubles (in modem mode). Connect to the service through the application or personal account. Limited internet packages are distributed free of charge;
  • Unlimited packages for popular social networks, instant messengers, music services and video hosting - no traffic limits when using official applications;
  • Possibility to connect unlimited data without the main Internet package. Connect only social networks and instant messengers if you do not need other services, surfing and mail. An excellent opportunity to save on communication services;
  • Mobile Internet Tinkoff Mobile operates throughout Russia without additional payments (with the exception of Crimea and Sevastopol);
  • Low tariffs in international roaming - traffic from 149 rubles per 100 MB, messengers from 49 rubles per day.

Connect to Tinkoff Mobile and get high-speed Internet access. The first month of service is free in the form of a maximum traffic package and all unlimited services as a gift.

MTS tariffs

The most favorable tariff for mobile Internet from MTS is the “For Laptop” tariff plan. It provides subscribers with real unlimited speeds of up to 4 Mbit/s. The subscription fee is 800 rubles/month. Tariff advantages:

  • The absence of paid subscriptions is happiness, gentlemen;
  • There are no unnecessary services - no packages of minutes or SMS;
  • Optimal speed for any need – including for watching video with a resolution of up to 720 p.

If at some point you want to “pump up the gas,” we recommend using the “Unlimited for 3 hours” turbo buttons for 95 rubles or “Unlimited for 6 hours” for 150 rubles. Torrents on the plan work, but with a speed limit of up to 512 kbit/sec (you can try to bypass it via VPN or traffic encryption).

We have found the best tariff for unlimited mobile Internet via a modem, now we will consider the best offer for a mobile phone. This is the “Hype” tariff, which appeared in 2017. It includes 7 GB of Internet for any resources, as well as unlimited for YouTube, Apple Music, Google Music, Yandex.Music, Skype, popular social networks and instant messengers, gaming resources and the Twitch video streaming service. In other words, this is the best tariff for those who actively use social and gaming services. Subscription fee – only 500 rubles/month.

If you need regular traffic, connect to the MTS Connect-4 tariff and add to it the Internet-VIP option with 30 GB of traffic for 1,200 rubles/month. For a tablet PC, the “For Tablet” tariff with 10 GB of Internet for 550 rubles/month is suitable. You can also choose from unlimited YouTube, traffic for TV, social networks and video calls.

Beeline tariffs

The best tariff for mobile Internet from Beeline is “Internet for Computer”. It provides 25 GB of traffic for 1200 rubles/month. From the fourth month, the amount of traffic grows to 30 GB. Once the package is exhausted, the speed is limited to 64 kbit/sec; it is also possible to activate the “Auto-renewal speed” option. The available modifier option is “#EVERYTHING is possible,” which opens up unlimited access to social networks and music services. There is a similar tariff for tablet PCs “Internet for Tablet” - 10 GB for 550 rubles/month (15 GB from the fourth month).

For the phone, you can offer tariff plans “All 3” – 10 GB for 900 rubles/month, “All 4” – 15 GB for 1500 rubles/month and “All 5” – 15 GB for 2500 rubles/month. This also includes impressive amounts of minutes and SMS.

MegaFon tariffs

This operator has literally every tariff that is beneficial. We recommend that you carefully familiarize yourself with the tariff plans of the “Turn On!” line. for smartphones - here are traffic packages from 2 to 20 GB, as well as included unlimited options for social networks and instant messengers. Subscription fee – from 400 to 3000 rubles/month. The most powerful offer is the “Turn On! Premium". It includes 20 GB of total traffic, unlimited traffic for social networks, instant messengers, video hosting and music services, as well as over a hundred TV channels and 4 movies. The same line is suitable for tablet PCs.

  • “Internet M” – 16 GB for 590 rubles/month.
  • “Internet L” – 36 GB for 590 rubles/month.
  • “Internet XL” – 30 GB and unlimited at night for 1290 rubles/month.

In the first two options, traffic is divided equally into day and night. Daytime is available from 7:00 to 00:59, night - from 01:00 to 06:59. This was probably done to prevent subscribers from consuming all the traffic.

Tele2 tariff plans

Let's highlight the three most advanced tariffs:

  • For a smartphone, the “My Online+” tariff for 30 GB for 799 rubles/month is suitable. The 1500 minutes included in it can be exchanged for traffic and get another 15 GB (total 45 GB - in our review the leader of pseudo-unlimited ones emerged).
  • For a tablet – “Internet to Tablet”, including 15 GB of traffic, night unlimited, free traffic for social networks, movies, navigation and TV for 499 rubles/month.
  • For a modem – “50 GB” with night unlimited for 999 rubles/month.

Please note that the last two points are not tariffs, but options available on the Internet for Devices tariff plan.

Yota tariffs

  • For a smartphone - any of the line for smartphones, with traffic from 2 GB for 370 rubles to 30 GB for 650 rubles. Social networks (25 rubles/piece) and instant messengers (15 rubles/piece) are connected separately.
  • For a tablet, this is the only tariff plan with full unlimited data. A day – 50 rubles, a month – 590 rubles, a year – 4500 rubles.
  • For a modem - adjustable unlimited, from 0 rubles for 64 kbit/sec to 1400 rubles for the highest possible speed.

Please note that all Iota tariff plans limit the distribution of torrents.

For the first half of 2018, Megafon received the “Fastest Network” award as part of the Speedtest Awards. Let's take a look at the report...

In total, in the first half of the year, there were almost 8 million requests for speed checks in the application. Of these, almost 3 million are from Megafon subscribers, a little more than 2 million from MTS, a little more than 1.5 million from Beeline, almost 1.3 million from Tele2. At the same time, many users checked the Internet speed more than once - with 8 million checks, less than 1.5 million devices were registered.

  • Average download speed in Russia – 17.49 Mbit/s
  • Average download speed – 7.95 Mbps

Megafon is the leader in download speed - 24.68 Mbit/s, as well as in upload speed - 10.57 Mbit/s.

Megafon’s superiority can also be seen in two capitals:

In Moscow, Megafon's average download speed is 41.93 Mbit/s; MTS is in second place with 21.5 Mbit/s, which is almost 2 times slower. In St. Petersburg, the difference is slightly less: 25.74 Mbit/s for Megafon versus 15.45 Mbit/s for Tele2 and 15.43 Mbit/s for MTS.

The indicators are quite serious. But there are several nuances.

Firstly, a certain closest server is always selected, which allows us to obtain an extremely high speed and response time. You are unlikely to get the speed stated as a result of the measurement when downloading a file or watching a video.

Secondly, mobile operators have traffic priorities. And there is a rumor that Megafon has Speedtest as its main priority. Let me emphasize once again that this is just a rumor, but it is quite possible.

Thirdly, no matter how many times I check the mobile Internet speed through Speedtest, Megafon is always advertised there. It’s always there, on all pages of the application. Before, during and after the measurement. Of course, if Speedtest considers Megafon the fastest operator, then why not advertise the company’s services, it’s not shameful.

Checking MTS mobile Internet speed in the SpeedTest application

Personal opinion

Personally, I am skeptical about such tests. There are a number of reasons for this. In addition to the above, I would call “average indicators”. For example, my MTS never showed less than 20 Mbit/s, most of the measurements were more than 50 Mbit/s. Megafon demonstrated from 15 to 40 Mbit/s. This is all from three different points in the city. I personally have not tested Beeline and Tele2. In general, of the two operators, specifically for me, MTS shows the best results. The same may happen with other mobile operators. It is possible that “on average” Megafon is really better, but not in my case.

There are many more different indicators, for example, the load on base stations. For example, at night you can get 100 Mbit/s, and in the evening – 20 Mbit/s.

I would advise when choosing a mobile operator to start from the reviews of your friends and acquaintances who use the mobile Internet in your area - not far from your home, work, places of hanging out.

In the era of mobile gadgets and complete immersion in the Internet, the quality and speed of the connection has become an extremely important issue. There are many opinions, stereotypes and facts about this. So, in order to determine which Internet is currently the fastest, the editors of our site conducted an entire investigation, which should objectively dot the i’s or i’s, as you prefer.

Is wireless Internet no longer a myth?

New generations cannot imagine themselves without fast Internet. Check the weather, class schedule, buy concert tickets or order pizza - all this can be done today without letting go of your tablet.

The desire to connect to fast Internet has long ceased to be something of an unnecessary luxury and smartness. The owners of the fastest Internet are people who simply value their time and nerves. Agree, it’s much more pleasant to surf interesting content or work on the Internet when moving at the speed of a click than to constantly roll your eyes while waiting for the next page of text to load.

Now students, students, freelancers and people of low income can afford to connect to fast Internet.

Fast Internet on a tablet is real

The twenty-first century can easily be called the century of the Internet! And the second decade, the century of the wireless Internet. Over the past few years, the desire of users to “get rid of” the already rather annoying wires that keep active network users “on a leash” has been clearly visible. Is wireless Internet today always the fastest Internet? Which option to choose: fast or wireless? Or, after all, such a question is not worth it. Let's figure it out. At the same time, we’ll find out which is the fastest Internet you can connect to your tablet.

Connecting the Internet on a tablet: whose is faster?

We find out which one you can afford today? Our editors decided to organize an “Internet race” of mobile operators and analyze whose speed is faster. Let's go!

We analyzed the proposals of the country's main operators in order to find out which Internet is faster for a tablet today. We chose three mobile Internet giants as subjects: MegaFon, Beeline and MTS. Only offers valid throughout Russia for a period of at least one month were taken into account.

Beeline

Yellow-black offer to use their tariff on a tablet for 600 rubles per month. The traffic limit for the reporting period is 6GB, the speed limit is 2Mbit/second.

Upon reaching the traffic limit of 6GB, the access speed will be automatically reduced to 64Kbps, which is clearly not serious and is only suitable for slowly, slowly checking mail and drifting on social networks (there’s no talk of surfing). No additional payments or persuasions from employees will help here; it says 64, which means it will be 64 by the end of the month, be patient!

As a consolation, the tariff includes free use of the Beeline wi-fi network. It has more or less impressive coverage in Moscow. In the cities of the periphery, there is no point even mentioning a wi-fi network as a serious alternative for every day.

MTS

The “first” mobile company has provided a special “Tablet” option. When you select it, a quota of 3GB of monthly traffic opens. On paper there is no speed limit, however, everyone understands that everything will depend on the network reception conditions in each specific region.

It is quite possible to count on an average of 1Mbit/second. For the fast Internet option provided by MTS, you will have to pay 400 rubles monthly.

A bonus for TV lovers will be a free television package from MTS, which comes with the tariff.

Megaphone

Megafon has fairly clearly distributed tariffs. Here, as they say, everything is on the shelves: for a tablet, for a phone, for a modem, for a router. We are interested in the tablet, after clicking we see four pricing options: X, M, L and XL. They, as you may have guessed, differ in the size of the total traffic: 3GB, 6GB, 20GB and 40GB, respectively.

All tariffs are valid within the 4G network. Undoubtedly, 4G today is the fastest possible wireless Internet, here speeds reach 100 Mbit/sec. Of course, the Internet speed is unlikely to reach the speed stated by the operator, but all the same, it will be much faster than that of competitors. One more question remains: how is the sensational 4G developing? Let's see: Megafon's 4G zone currently covers more than 160 cities in Russia. If your city has it, rejoice.

Subscription fee: 390, 690, 990 and 1290 rubles per month. And here, those who like to save money are in for a pleasant surprise. Depending on the connection period, a progressive system of discounts applies: 3 months – 10%, 6 months – 20%, 12 months – 30%. With an annual connection, the cheapest option will cost 273 monthly rubles, and the premium one will cost 903.

So, based on the results of the review, the prize for the fastest Internet is awarded to Megafon. We will talk more about the possibilities and prospects of 4G and what is the fastest Internet for a phone in the following articles.

Mobile Internet speeds in Russia. It is through this service that operators determine the throughput of their hardware.

During the first half of 2019 it was produced 8.438 million speed measurements. Ookla's SpeedTest service tested 1.64 million unique devices. It turned out that it takes only 3 minutes to download a 700 MB movie using MegaFon.

It turned out that although our connection is cheap, it is far from the fastest in the world.

What is the average mobile internet speed in the world?

The fastest Internet is available in South Korea - up to 77 Mb/sec. At the end of 2018, this is the best indicator among all countries in the world. In Korea, regardless of location, there is a high-quality Internet connection everywhere: in catering establishments, offices, hotels, and so on.

The TOP 10 included:

1 . South Korea: 77 Mb/s
2 . Norway: 68 Mb/s
3 . Canada: 64 Mb/s
4. Qatar: 63 Mb/s
5 . Australia: 62.38 Mb:/sec
6 . Netherlands: 62.01 Mbps
7 . UAE: 58.82 Mb/s
8 . Singapore: 53.87 Mbps
9 . Croatia: 52.85 Mbps
10 . Switzerland: 52.65 Mbps


Left Megaphone, right MTS. Measured near Myakinino metro station

The national average was 20.12 Mb/sec. But this does not mean that all operators work at such speed.

Which operator is the leader in Russia in terms of speed?

Not long ago I personally measured the Internet speed in Moscow and the Moscow region. And then the leader is often the Yota operator, working on MegaFon’s networks. But this applied only to two relatively small zones across the entire country.

All measurements were carried out through SpeedTest, which guaranteed impeccable results.

Throughout Russia, according to Ookla, the leader in data transmission quality was MegaFon. The average speed of this operator in the country was 27.31 Mb/sec, which is 7.19 Mb/sec higher than the average for all operators in Russia.

For the third year in a row, MegaFon has been considered the leader in data transfer speeds in Russia.

According to Roskomnadzor, the operator uses more than 235 thousand base stations. This is the best indicator in the country. The closest competitor, MTS, has 180 thousand stations.

▸ 238,527 base stations at MegaFon
▸ 183,250 base stations at MTS
▸ 167,654 base stations at Tele2
▸ 156,977 base stations at Beeline

In terms of growth rates since the beginning of the year, Tele2 (+13%) and Beeline (+7%) are leading.

It is the base stations that are responsible for the coverage and quality of signal transmission. And the more there are, the better it will be to “catch” the network with the highest speed.

Vlad Volfson, commercial director of MegaFon, commented:

Today, a MegaFon client downloads on average over 10 GB per month, and to ensure the highest speed of mobile Internet and the best quality of communication for our clients, MegaFon annually invests significant financial and intellectual resources in the development and configuration of the network.

What does Roskomnadzor think about this?

Roskomnadzor constantly monitors cellular companies and publishes the data obtained.

Thus, since the beginning of the year, the number of distribution networks of the Big Four operators has grown by 7% and amounted to 746,408 units as of June 19, 2019.


Roskomnadzor statistical graph

Operators place their main emphasis on 4G (LTE) networks, since it is now rare to see a smartphone or tablet without support for 4th generation networks.