The 2025 Ookla Speedtest Global Index reveals that Kenya remains a critical player in the Sub-Saharan African (SSA) telecommunications landscape.
Despite stiff competition and the rapid emergence of 5G in North Africa, Kenya has solidified its position in the global top 100 for mobile speeds, driven by consistent infrastructure investment and a growing appetite for high-speed data.
While the broader MEA region saw varied results, Kenya stood out as one of only three African countries to crack the global top 100 list for mobile performance by the end of 2025.
- Mobile Performance: Kenya ranked 80th globally with a median download speed of 45.37 Mbps. This places Kenya ahead of its regional peer, Nigeria (85th), though it trails South Africa (64th), which remains the sub-region’s leader.
- Resilience Amid Change: Unlike many of its neighbors who saw their rankings slip due to infrastructure bottlenecks or electricity shortages, Kenya’s network performance remained stable. This stability is largely attributed to the continued maturation of 4G networks and the strategic, albeit gradual, expansion of 5G services by leading telcos.
The report highlights a significant usage gap between urban and rural areas. Kenya is no exception, where high-speed connectivity is concentrated in major hubs like Nairobi, Mombasa, and Kisumu.
Interestingly, the report points to Côte d’Ivoire and Mauritania as surprise contenders in the fixed broadband space. While Kenya continues its fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) rollout, it faces a diversifying market where regional neighbors are aggressively expanding their fiber backbones to improve affordability and speed.
The 2025 Index was dominated by the 5G effect in North Africa. Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia saw massive jumps in their rankings. Morocco leaped 22 places to 39th globally, following their 5G launches.
While Kenya’s current speeds are respectable, the report implies that further spectrum access and network densification will be required to break into the higher tiers of the index currently occupied by Gulf nations like the UAE and Qatar.
Ookla identifies several factors that will determine Kenya’s digital trajectory in the coming year:
- Spectrum Access: The timeline for releasing additional spectrum will be critical for operators to increase 5G capacity.
- Infrastructure Reliability: Unlike some SSA peers plagued by power instability, Kenya’s relatively stable energy sector provides a better foundation for network uptime.
- Urbanization: While Kenya’s urban concentration helps delivery, the report warns that urbanization alone isn’t enough; constant modernization is required to keep pace with rising consumer demand.
Read the full report HERE.