Telefónica has installed nodes in over 5,000 municipalities, with nearly 3,000 featuring high-performance nodes operating in the 3.5 GHz band
In sum – what to know:
Nationwide 5G – Telefónica’s 5G service now spans 5,700 municipalities, covering more than 94% of Spain’s population through a combination of 700 MHz and 3.5 GHz bands.
5G SA leadership – The operator’s 5G SA network enhances speed, latency, and features like network slicing and edge computing for business and public-sector applications.
Rural and urban strength – Telefónica’s dual-band strategy improves both high-speed performance and deep coverage, including rural and indoor environments.
Spanish telco Telefónica said its 5G network now covers more than 94% of the population across 5,700 municipalities in Spain. In a release, the telco noted its 5G network, which includes both 700 MHz and 3.5 GHz spectrum bands, marks the country’s most extensive 5G deployment to date.
At the beginning of the year, the telco provided 5G coverage in more than 90% of the country’s population.
The operator has installed nodes in more than 5,000 municipalities, with nearly 3,000 featuring high-performance nodes operating in the 3.5 GHz band — an increase of 1,000 since March. This frequency delivers ultra-fast speeds of over 2 Gbps and very low latency, supporting advanced services for residential and business users, the telco said.
Telefónica has also expanded its 700 MHz network, now active in 5,000 municipalities. This lower-frequency band enhances indoor and wide-area coverage, ensuring stronger connectivity in rural zones, highways, and enclosed spaces, it added.
The company’s 5G network now runs on 5G Standalone (SA) technology, which uses a fully native 5G infrastructure. This allows for faster data speeds, lower latency, and advanced capabilities such as network slicing and edge computing — key features for industries, logistics, and smart city applications.
Telefónica said it has been testing 5G SA capabilities for several years, including Spain’s first 5G network slicing service for enterprises.
Movistar, which is part of telecom group Telefonica, had launched 5G SA coverage in Spain in July 2023.
Movistar initially launched 5G SA in 11 Spanish cities: Madrid, Barcelona, Malaga, Seville, Palma de Mallorca, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Ávila, Segovia, Castellón, El Ferrol, and Vigo.