Ericsson Predicts 6.4B 5G Subscribers by 2031
Ericsson's latest mobility report forecast more than 2.9 billion 5G subscriptions by the end of this year and 6.4 billion by the end of 2031, or two-thirds of mobile subscriptions at that time. 6G subscriptions are expected to reach 180 million by the end of 2031, said the report, released Thursday. It also predicted that about 1.4 billion people will be served by fixed wireless during the same period.
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In addition, Ericsson highlighted the growing movement to 5G stand-alone (SA) networks. More than 90 carriers have “launched/soft-launched” 5G SA, an increase of about 30 in a year and up 20 from June, the company said. Researchers also identified 118 cases across 56 carriers where 5G network slicing is being used “to provide differentiated connectivity services.”
“We see that service providers around the world are keen to embrace and deploy 5G SA to offer differentiated connectivity based on value services and not just data volume packages,” said Ericsson Chief Technology Officer Erik Ekudden, author of the report. 5G SA is “already enabling differentiated connectivity opportunities,” he added. “We’ve seen many service providers go from proof-of-concept to commercial deployment in 2025 alone, and we expect to see that trend continuing.”