2025 Capex outlook: financing the 5G era
Access this insight with a Standard plan. Contact our sales team to get started.
GSMA Intelligence has expanded its coverage of operator capex, with a complete set of country-level capex projections now available from 2000 to 2025, available via our platform. The extended dataset incorporates our assumptions on the investment required to support the rollout of 5G networks, as well as continued spending on 4G, which will remain the dominant access technology globally over the forecast horizon.
We forecast that between 2019 and 2025 inclusive, mobile operators across the world will spend $1.3 trillion on capex, with more than three quarters of that 5G-related. We predict a more stable capex trend relative to previous generations across the seven-year forecast period, as operators will try to maintain the capex-to-revenue ratio below a certain threshold. 5G investment timing remains critical for those in the mobile industry. Our insight into the capex profile of each country over the next seven years, backed up by rigorous analysis of spectrum awards and planned commercial 5G launches, provides valuable insight for all those with a stake in the 5G ecosystem.
Report details
2025 Capex outlook: financing the 5G era
Report details
2025 Capex outlook: financing the 5G era
Related research
Telcos and sovereignty: state of the market
Sovereignty has moved from being a strategy position on paper to actual deployment plans. Most operators are building selectively at the data and infrastructure layers, where they already have assets. As well as outlining why sovereignty matters now and presenting global and regional landscapes, this research examines telco approaches to sovereignty so far and the priorities ahead for both operators and governments.
North America enterprise survey: navigating the digital transformation of industries and the B2B opportunity
B2B has emerged as a strategic growth area for operators and the wider tech/digital ecosystem. As the digital transformation of vertical sectors accelerates, gaining insights directly from enterprises is key. GSMA Intelligence surveyed more than 500 enterprises from 10 vertical sectors across the US and Canada to gain insight into their digital transformation. The research focused on strategic objectives, investment plans, use of technology, deployment challenges, supplier decisions, tech sovereignty, and policy and regulation.
5G in Context, Q2 2026
This quarterly review of global 5G developments provides a concise, tracker-style deliverable, presenting key metrics and forecasts in an easy-to-access and engaging way. GSMA Intelligence has aggregated the latest data on 5G connections, adoption and coverage, as well as information on network trials/launches and spectrum assignments.
Authors
How to access this report
Annual subscription: Subscribe to our research modules for comprehensive access to more than 200 reports per year.
Enquire about subscriptionContact our research team
Get in touch with us to find out more about our research topics and analysis.
Contact our research teamMedia
To cite our research, please see our citation policy in our Terms of Use, or contact our Media team for more information.
Learn more- 200 reports a year
- 50 million data points
- Over 350 metrics
How can we support you?
Get in touch
Contact the GSMA Intelligence support team for help with your account, subscriptions, or access to reports and insights.
Newsletter
Subscribe to the GSMA Intelligence newsletter for the latest industry news and insights, delivered to your inbox.
