€475 billion required for Europe to complete its 5G journey and regain digital leadership, new GSMA study finds

While mobile network operators are forecast to invest €270 billion in networks by 2035, around €205 billion more is still required to underpin Europe's industry, resilience and innovation

Brussels, 6 May 2026: Europe's mobile operators need to invest almost half a trillion euros over the next decade to upgrade networks to levels comparable with the world's best, according to new analysis from the GSMA.

The report, Mobile investment needs in Europe, conducted by GSMA Intelligence, found that while €475 billion is needed to bring best-in-class connectivity to the continent, only around €270 billion is expected to be accessible to operators - leaving an investment gap of around €205 billion.

It comes as Europe's digital capabilities continue to lag leading global standards. While 5G standalone - essentially "full" 5G, with faster speeds, lower latency, and innovative services and features deriving from network slicing - is already available to 80% of the population in Greater China and almost 50% in India, in Europe it reaches only 2% of citizens.

Falling behind

Much of this is due to the more favourable investment conditions in these non-European markets.

Capex per connection in Europe is just €35 compared to €70 for global connectivity leaders, meaning the bloc remains unable to keep pace and compete.

While mobile internet usage has increased every year since 2018 by an average of 27%, operator revenues have fallen by an average of 3% per year over the same period, further restricting available investment capital.

And the financial burden currently sits with the industry itself - operators themselves put up 85% of the investment into network infrastructure.

A €205 billion shortfall

The new analysis is a timely update on the European Commission's own 2023 research into the likely cost of achieving the Digital Decade targets. This estimated around €174 billion, rising to more than €200 billion, of digital investment was needed by 2030.

However, operators have already invested €141 billion since 2021 and Europe has not yet met those targets, while trailing further behind global 5G leaders. Today's report finds that of the current €475 billion investment need to 2035, only 57% is currently forecast to materialise.

Of the €205 billion, or 43%, deficit, around half is needed to provide 5G coverage across Europe's main transport routes (road, rail and waterways). A further €35 billion is required to extend 5G coverage to the entire European population, while €38 billion will build greater network resilience and €28 billion will underpin AI-based services and innovation.

Closing the gap

To create the required investment conditions to unlock the remaining 43%, the report outlines three areas of major potential regulatory reform:

• In-market consolidation - since 2015, three-player markets in Europe have experienced higher investment levels as a proportion of revenues and per connection relative to four-player markets, while also improving service quality by comparison.

• Effective spectrum management - spectrum costs in Europe have almost tripled over the past decade. Applying measures such as low-cost renewals could free up to €30 billion in capital, with more than 500 licences due for renewal by 2035. The long-term certainty offered by indefinite licences, such as those proposed in the European Union's draft Digital Networks Act, would also lead to improved investment incentives.

• Addressing asymmetrical regulation - a range of current regulations, including around open internet access and net neutrality, the Cyber Resilience Act, and the European Electronic Communications Code, impose additional costs and reduce revenue growth opportunities. A more balanced relationship between mobile operators and other players in the digital ecosystem would encourage investment in networks and ultimately drive industry and innovation.

Realigning Europe's investment environment through these policy reforms will allow Europe's capex per connection potentially to double over the coming decade and reach similar levels to those in North America and East Asia. This in turn will help deliver the real user and market benefits of 5G SA and ultimately 6G connectivity, and to underpin Europe's economy, resilience and innovation in the digital age.

Vivek Badrinath, Director General of the GSMA, comments: "The numbers are clear: to support Europe's digital ambitions and expectations, almost €0.5 trillion in investment into mobile networks is needed over the next ten years and only around half of that is currently likely to come through. Europe needs a significantly more pro-investment regulatory environment to secure the continent's digital future and enhance global competitiveness.

"There are encouraging opportunities for policymakers, both in the ongoing Review of the Merger Guidelines, and in delivering on the promise of the Digital Networks Act proposals, correcting for its known shortcomings without watering down its more ambitious aspects. Inaction now is not an option with Europe's digital future on the line."

ENDS

About the GSMA

The GSMA is a global organisation unifying the mobile ecosystem to discover, develop and deliver innovation foundational to positive business environments and societal change. Our vision is to unlock the full power of connectivity so that people, industry, and society thrive. Representing mobile operators and organisations across the mobile ecosystem and adjacent industries, the GSMA delivers for its members across three broad pillars: Connectivity for Good, Industry Services and Solutions, and Outreach. This activity includes advancing policy, tackling today's biggest societal challenges, underpinning the technology and interoperability that make mobile work, and providing the world's largest platform to convene the mobile ecosystem at the MWC and M360 series of events.

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