Kuwait
Opensignal is the independent global standard for analyzing consumers' connectivity experiences. Our industry reports are the definitive guide to understanding what happens when people use their mobile and broadband connections in their daily life.
Kuwait
Opensignal is the independent global standard for analyzing consumers' connectivity experiences. Our industry reports are the definitive guide to understanding what happens when people use their mobile and broadband connections in their daily life.
Key Findings
Zain is the Best Network
Zain has been named Kuwait’s Best Network, delivering the strongest overall mobile experience across reliability, quality and coverage. Opensignal’s measurements collected from real world users show Zain outperforming its rivals where it matters most — winning Reliability Experience, Consistent Quality and Coverage Experience.
Zain extends lead in Coverage Experience and 5G Coverage Experience
Zain maintains its dominance in coverage, winning both the Coverage Experience and 5G Coverage Experience awards. It scores eight points on a 10-point scale for overall Coverage Experience — over one point ahead of Ooredoo — and 4.4 points in 5G Coverage Experience, retaining a narrow edge over Ooredoo’s 4.1. Since the last report, Zain’s coverage metrics have seen modest gains, while Ooredoo remains stable and stc slightly declines, confirming Zain’s strong lead in network reach.
Ooredoo drops to third as Zain reclaims Reliability Experience leadership
Zain earns recognition as the Best Network in Kuwait, regaining the Reliability Experience award with a score of 878 points on a 100–1000 scale. Ooredoo, which previously led this category, drops sharply to third place after a 277-point decline, while stc takes second with a stable performance. Zain’s reliability improvement of 14 points cements its position as the most dependable network, though Ooredoo continues to perform strongly in other experience categories.
Ooredoo holds both speed awards, while Zain continues to dominate 5G Download Speed
Ooredoo remains the outright winner of the Download Speed Experience award, averaging 104.6Mbps — maintaining a 4Mbps lead over Zain and a 21Mbps advantage over stc. It also secures the Upload Speed Experience award with an average speed of 15.9Mbps, ahead of Zain and stc, which are tied at 14.8Mbps. In 5G metrics, Zain continues to lead for 5G Download Speed at 316.6Mbps, while Ooredoo wins 5G Upload Speed with 26.4Mbps — edging ahead of stc by just over 1Mbps.
Mobile Experience Awards
Market Overview
In Opensignal’s latest report on Kuwait’s mobile network experience, Zain has taken the crown as the country’s Best Network. Zain now holds eight of 13 category titles — six outright and two shared — led by dominant user experience in Coverage and Consistency categories of network performance. Ooredoo remains the fastest network overall, securing Download Speed Experience and Upload Speed Experience outright, while also sharing in Video and Games Experience awards. In total, Ooredoo collected seven titles, four outright and three shared. Stc, though not securing any outright wins this cycle, matches competitors on Availability and Games Experience, having also narrowed experience gaps in several other metrics. The results mark a reversal of April 2025’s standings, when Ooredoo led the field with the Best Network title.
Two developments in Kuwait’s telecoms market help explain some of the shift observed since the last report. On June 1, 2025, the country formally retired its 3G network, releasing valuable low- and mid-band spectrum to bolster 4G and 5G services, in line with CITRA Decision 2024/278. Simultaneously, all three operators advanced towards 5G-Advanced. Zain launched its nationwide 5G-Advanced network on June 30, 2025, followed by stc on July 3, 2025. Ooredoo, for its part, pursued network modernization and introduced new 5G charging systems with Ericsson, along with consumer-facing 5G-Advanced services. These rollouts have led to higher 5G usage intensity, and in some cases, slightly lower average 5G speeds — a common occurrence seen from rapid adoption.
Ahead of the 5G-Advanced upgrades, the national regulator introduced new frequencies to support the technology and previously banned imports of 2G/3G-only devices, as outlined in CITRA 297/2023. Kuwait’s 5G deployment remains anchored in the 3.5 GHz band — the preferred spectrum across the Gulf for its balance of speed and reach, as we have priorly discussed in our MENA analysis from last year.
Kuwaiti operators have also gained recognition on the global stage. In Opensignal’s Global Awards 2025 we named Ooredoo Kuwait a Global Leader for Upload Speed Experience in the small-land-area group, while stc Kuwait was honored as a Global Rising Star for Download Speed improvements.
In this report we examine the mobile network experience of the three main mobile network operators in Kuwait — Ooredoo, stc and Zain — over a period of 90 days starting on July 1, 2025, and ending on September 28, 2025, to see how they fared.
Overall Experience
National Analysis
Ooredoo and Zain share the Video Experience award, achieving statistically tied scores of 69.1-69.3 points on a 100-point scale — a lead of around 1 points over stc, which scores 68.0 points.
Scores for all three operators — Ooredoo, stc, and Zain — fall within the Very Good (68-78) category. A Very Good rating means users can generally stream video at 1080p resolution or higher, with fast loading times and minimal stalling.
Video Experience scores incorporate adaptive bitrate streaming (ABR) technology, which enables Opensignal to more accurately reflect real-world user experiences, including video playback up to 4K quality.
Definitions
Opensignal’s Video Experience quantifies the quality of video streamed to mobile devices by measuring real-world video streams over an operator's networks. The metric is based on an International Telecommunication Union (ITU) approach, built upon detailed studies which have derived a relationship between technical parameters, including picture quality, video loading time and stall rate, with the perceived video experience as reported by real people. To calculate video experience, we are directly measuring video streams from end-user devices and using this ITU approach to quantify the overall video experience for each operator on a scale from 0 to 100. The videos tested include a mixture of resolutions — including Full HD (FHD) and 4K / Ultra HD (UHD) — and are streamed directly from the world’s largest video content providers.
In addition to Video Experience, we report on the following metrics related to video experience:
- 5G Video Experience: The average Video Experience of Opensignal users when they were connected to an operator’s 5G network.
- Video Experience – 5G Users: The average Video Experience of Opensignal users with a 5G device and a 5G subscription across an operator's networks. It factors in 2G, 3G, 4G and 5G video experience along with the availability of each technology.
- 4G Video Experience: The average Video Experience of Opensignal users on an operator's 4G network.
- 3G Video Experience: The average Video Experience of Opensignal users on an operator’s 3G network.
National Analysis
Ooredoo and stc jointly win the Games Experience award, each earning statistically tied scores of 75.5-76.1 points on a 100-point scale. They lead Zain by roughly four points, as Zain scores 71.8 points.
Since the previous report, Zain’s score has dropped by two points and Ooredoo’s by one, while stc’s performance remains relatively unchanged.
Both Ooredoo and stc are rated Good (75-85), while Zain falls into the Fair (65-75) category.
A Good rating means most users find gameplay acceptable, with responsive controls and minimal lag between their actions and in-game outcomes. A Fair rating indicates the experience is average — users generally feel in control, but noticeable delays between actions and game responses are more common.
Definitions
Opensignal’s Games Experience measures how mobile users experience real-time multiplayer mobile gaming on an operator’s network. Measured on a scale of 0-100, it analyzes how our users’ multiplayer mobile gaming experience is affected by mobile network conditions including latency, packet loss and jitter.
Games Experience quantifies the experience when playing real-time multiplayer mobile games on mobile devices connected to servers located around the world. The approach is built on several years of research quantifying the relationship between technical network parameters and the gaming experience as reported by real mobile users. These parameters include latency (round trip time), jitter (variability of latency) and packet loss (the proportion of data packets that never reach their destination). Additionally, it considers multiple genres of multiplayer mobile games to measure the average sensitivity to network conditions. The games tested include some of the most popular real-time multiplayer mobile games (such as Fortnite, Pro Evolution Soccer and Arena of Valor) played around the world.
Calculating Games Experience starts with measuring the end-to-end experience from users’ devices to internet end-points that host real games. The score is then measured on a scale from 0 to 100.
In addition to Games Experience, we report on the following metrics related to games experience:
- 5G Games Experience: The average Games Experience of Opensignal users when they were connected to an operator’s 5G network.
- Games Experience – 5G Users: The average Games Experience of Opensignal users with a 5G device and a 5G subscription across an operator's networks. It factors in 2G, 3G, 4G and 5G games experience along with the availability of each technology.
- 4G Games Experience: The average Games Experience of Opensignal users on an operator's 4G network.
- 3G Games Experience: The average Games Experience of Opensignal users on an operator's 3G (e.g. UMTS/HSPA or CDMA 1X EV-DO) network.
National Analysis
Ooredoo wins the Download Speed Experience award outright with an average speed of 104.6Mbps — maintaining a 4Mbps lead over second-placed Zain at 100.4Mbps. Stc ranks third with a score of 83.3Mbps.
Compared to the previous report, Zain’s average download speed has increased by 23Mbps, Ooredoo’s by 20Mbps, and stc’s by 8Mbps.
Definitions
Measured in Mbps, Download Speed Experience represents the typical everyday speeds a user experiences across an operator’s mobile data networks.
In addition to Download Speed Experience, we report on the following metrics related to download speeds:
- 5G Download Speed: The average download speed observed by Opensignal users with active 5G connections.
- Download Speed Experience – 5G Users: The average download speeds experienced by Opensignal users with a 5G device and a 5G subscription across an operator’s networks. It factors in 2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G download speeds along with the availability of each technology.
- 4G Download Speed: The average downlink speed observed by Opensignal users when they were connected to 4G.
- 3G Download Speed: The average downlink speed observed by Opensignal users when they were connected to 3G (e.g. UMTS/HSPA or CDMA 1X EV-DO).
National Analysis
Ooredoo secures the Upload Speed Experience award with an average upload speed of 15.9Mbps — a 1Mbps lead over both Zain and stc, which are statistically tied at 14.8Mbps.
Since the previous report, stc’s upload speed has improved by 1Mbps, Ooredoo’s has decreased by 1Mbps, and Zain’s remains largely unchanged.
Definitions
Upload Speed Experience measures the average upload speeds for each operator observed by our users across their mobile data networks. Typically upload speeds are slower than download speeds, as current mobile broadband technologies focus resources on providing the best possible download speed for users consuming content on their devices. As mobile internet trends move away from downloading content to creating content and supporting real-time communications services, upload speeds are becoming more vital and new technologies are emerging that boost upstream capacity.
In addition to Upload Speed Experience, we report on five supporting metrics related to upload speeds:
- 5G Upload Speed: The average upload speed observed by Opensignal users with active 5G connections.
- Upload Speed Experience – 5G Users: The average upload speeds experienced by Opensignal users with a 5G device and a 5G subscription across an operator’s networks. It factors in 2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G upload speeds along with the availability of each technology.
- 4G Upload Speed: The average uplink speed observed by Opensignal users when they were connected to 4G.
- 3G Upload Speed: The average uplink speed observed by Opensignal users when they were connected to 3G (e.g. UMTS/HSPA or CDMA 1X EV-DO).
5G Experience
National Analysis
Zain wins the 5G Video Experience award, achieving score of 76.7 points on a 100-point scale.
5G Video Experience for all operators is in the Very Good (68-78) category, which means that users can usually stream video in 1080p or higher with smooth playback and minimal interruptions. A Good rating means users can generally stream at 720p or better with acceptable loading times and little stalling.
The 5G Video Experience metric uses adaptive bitrate streaming (ABR) to capture realistic viewing experiences, including playback up to 4K quality.
Definitions
5G Video Experience quantifies the quality of mobile video experienced by Opensignal users on real-world video streams when they were connected to 5G. The metric is based on an International Telecommunication Union (ITU) approach, built upon detailed studies which have derived a relationship between technical parameters, including picture quality, video loading time and stall rate, with the perceived video experience as reported by real people. To calculate 5G Video Experience, we are directly measuring video streams from end-user devices and using this ITU approach to quantify the video experience observed by our users on each operator’s 5G network on a scale from 0 to 100. The videos tested include a mixture of resolutions — including Full HD (FHD) and 4K / Ultra HD (UHD) — and are streamed directly from the world’s largest video content providers.
National Analysis
Ooredoo wins the 5G Games Experience award with a score of 81.6 points on a 100-point scale — around two points ahead of Zain and stc, which are statistically tied at 79.1-79.8 points.
Since the previous report, stc’s score has improved by two points, Ooredoo’s has declined by one, and Zain’s remains largely unchanged.
All three operators fall within the Good (75-85) category.
A Good rating indicates that most users find the gaming experience smooth and responsive, with immediate feedback between actions and game outcomes and minimal noticeable lag.
Definitions
5G Games Experience measures how mobile users experience real-time multiplayer mobile gaming on an operator's 5G network. It analyzes how our users’ multiplayer mobile gaming experience was affected by mobile network conditions including latency, packet loss and jitter. 5G Games Experience for each operator is calculated on a scale from 0 to 100.
5G Games Experience quantifies the experience when playing real-time multiplayer mobile games on mobile devices connected to servers located around the world. The approach is built on several years of research quantifying the relationship between technical network parameters and the gaming experience as reported by real mobile users. These parameters include latency (round trip time), jitter (variability of latency) and packet loss (the proportion of data packets that never reach their destination). Additionally, it considers multiple genres of multiplayer mobile games to measure the average sensitivity to network conditions. The games tested include some of the most popular real-time multiplayer mobile games (such as Fortnite, Pro Evolution Soccer and Arena of Valor) played around the world. Calculating 5G Games Experience starts with measuring the end-to-end experience from users’ devices to internet end-points that host real games.
National Analysis
Zain continues its leadership by winning the 5G Download Speed award with an average speed of 316.6Mbps — maintaining a strong 60Mbps advantage over Ooredoo’s 256.5Mbps. Stc follows in third place with 200.1Mbps.
Since the previous report, Zain’s 5G download speed has increased by 21Mbps, Ooredoo’s by 16Mbps, while stc’s remains largely unchanged.
Definitions
5G Download Speed shows the average download speed experienced by Opensignal users across an operator’s 5G network. 5G Download Speed for each operator is calculated in Mbps (Megabits per second).
National Analysis
Ooredoo wins the 5G Upload Speed award with an average speed of 26.4Mbps — just 1Mbps ahead of second-placed stc at 25.2Mbps. Zain ranks third with 22.3Mbps.
Compared with the previous report, stc’s upload speed has increased by 2Mbps, Ooredoo’s has declined by 3Mbps, and Zain’s has fallen by 2Mbps.
Definitions
5G Upload Speed measures the average upload speeds experienced by Opensignal users across an operator’s 5G network. 5G Upload Speed for each operator is calculated in Mbps (Megabits per second).
Coverage
National Analysis
Zain wins the Coverage Experience award with a score of eight points on a 10-point scale, leading Ooredoo by more than one point (6.7 points). Stc follows with 6.3 points.
Compared to the previous report, Zain’s score has risen slightly by less than one point, stc’s has dipped slightly, and Ooredoo’s remains stable.
Definitions
The Opensignal Coverage Experience metric measures the extent of mobile networks in the places people live, work and travel. The metric represents the experience users receive as they travel around areas where they would reasonably expect to find coverage.
Traditional coverage metrics typically estimate either a percentage of land area covered, or a percentage of population covered; often neither will be an accurate measurement of the true user expectation and experience. In many markets there are areas where neither population density nor geographic area reflect the importance of coverage to users. For example, in a large mountain range most users will not expect coverage in the wilderness, but poor coverage in the relatively small area of a ski resort is critical for the enjoyment of a holiday. Estimates based purely on population give undue significance to coverage in the most densely populated areas.
Coverage Experience measures geographic coverage of populated areas and therefore more accurately reflects the coverage expectations and experience of typical users. It can give a result that is somewhat different to traditional estimates based on either geographic or population measures. The metric uses a scale from 0 to 10.
National Analysis
Zain takes the 5G Coverage Experience award with a score of 4.4 points on a 10-point scale — maintaining a narrow lead over Ooredoo’s 4.1 points. Stc ranks third with 3.8 points.
Since the previous report, Zain and Ooredoo have both seen marginal increases of less than one point, while stc’s score has stayed steady.
Definitions
The Opensignal Coverage Experience metric measures the extent of mobile networks in the places people live, work and travel. The metric represents the experience users receive as they travel around areas where they would reasonably expect to find coverage.
Traditional coverage metrics typically estimate either a percentage of land area covered, or a percentage of population covered; often neither will be an accurate measurement of the true user expectation and experience. In many markets there are areas where neither population density nor geographic area reflect the importance of coverage to users. For example, in a large mountain range most users will not expect coverage in the wilderness, but poor coverage in the relatively small area of a ski resort is critical for the enjoyment of a holiday. Estimates based purely on population give undue significance to coverage in the most densely populated areas.
Coverage Experience measures geographic coverage of populated areas and therefore more accurately reflects the coverage expectations and experience of typical users. It can give a result that is somewhat different to traditional estimates based on either geographic or population measures. The metric uses a scale from 0 to 10.
5G Coverage Experience shows the proportion of places Opensignal users with a 5G device and a 5G subscription had an active 5G connection.
National Analysis
All three operators — Zain, Ooredoo, and stc — share the Availability award, with statistically tied scores ranging from 97.2% to 98.1%.
Availability levels for all operators remain consistent with those observed in the previous report.
Definitions
Our availability metrics are not a measure of a network’s geographical extent. They won’t tell you whether you are likely to get a signal if you plan to visit a remote rural or nearly uninhabited region. Instead, they measure what proportion of time people have a network connection, in the places they most commonly frequent — something often missed by traditional coverage metrics. Looking at when users have a connection rather than where, provides us with a more precise reflection of the true user experience.
We also keep track of the instances that leave mobile users most frustrated: when there is no signal to connect to at all. The most common dead zones users struggle with occur indoors. As most of our availability data is collected indoors (as that’s where users spend most of their time), we’re particularly astute at detecting areas of zero signal.
Our availability metrics take a user-centric, time-based approach that complements the user-centric and geographical-based methodology used by our reach metrics.
Availability shows the proportion of time all Opensignal users on an operator’s network had either a 3G, 4G or 5G connection.
Consistency
National Analysis
Zain wins the Consistent Quality award with a score of 65.8%, outperforming stc by 12 percentage points (53.6%), while Ooredoo trails in third place with 34.7%.
This metric evaluates whether a network consistently meets the requirements for typical mobile applications, ensuring performance is sufficient to maintain demanding tasks. It assesses key experience indicators such as download and upload speed, latency, jitter, packet loss, and time to first byte.
Definitions
Consistent Quality measures if the network is sufficient to support common mobile application requirements at a level that is ‘good enough’ for users to maintain (or complete) various typical tasks on their devices.
We combine different experience indicators such as download throughput, upload throughput, latency, jitter, packet discard, and time to first byte to calculate Consistent Quality. These components are evaluated against thresholds recommended by various more demanding common applications used for a range of common tasks.
To calculate the metric value, the proportion of tests that pass the requirements of Consistent Quality is multiplied by the test success ratio, which is the proportion of completed tests to all tests conducted. Tests that pass indicate that activities such as video calling, uploading an image to social media, or using smart home applications will be possible without noticeable lag or slowdown.
National Analysis
Zain wins the Reliability Experience award with a score of 878 points on a 100-1000 point scale, leading stc by 46 points (832), while Ooredoo places third with 620 points.
Opensignal’s Reliability Experience measures users’ ability to connect and successfully complete basic tasks on mobile networks. It includes four key components:
% time connected — the share of time users can connect to a mobile network
Data connectivity — how often the device can access the internet
Task completion — whether initiated tasks finish successfully
Sufficiency — the likelihood that basic tasks are executed smoothly and reliably.
Definitions
Opensignal’s Reliability Experience measures the ability of Opensignal users to connect to and successfully complete (basic) tasks on communication service providers’ (CSP) networks. It analyzes how much Opensignal users’ experience is affected by the radio access and core network, along with issues that prevent them from connecting to the internet even if they have a connection to their CSP’s network. It also factors in users’ ability to successfully use lower performance applications including SD video, over-the-top voice calls and web browsing.
Related Analysis
Our Methodology
Collecting billions of individual measurements daily from over 100 million devices globally, Opensignal independently analyzes mobile and broadband user experience on every major network operator around the globe.
About Opensignal
Opensignal is the leading global provider of independent insights into consumers' connectivity experiences and choice of carrier. Our proprietary insights into mobile and broadband networks give operators the solutions they need to profitably compete and win, from executive level scorecards and public validation to pin-point level engineering analytics and consumer decision dynamics.
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Confidence Intervals
For every metric we calculate statistical confidence intervals indicated on our graphs. When confidence intervals overlap, our measured results are too close to declare a winner. In those cases, we show a statistical draw. For this reason, some metrics have multiple operator winners.
In our bar graphs we represent confidence intervals as boundaries on either sides of graph bars.
In our supporting-metric charts we show confidence intervals as +/- numerical values.
Why confidence intervals are vital in analyzing mobile network experience