RootMetrics tests tech hubs’ mobile coverage
The top technology-hub cities with the best mobile coverage are Washington, D.C. and Seattle, Washington, according to the latest testing from RootMetrics.
As part of the data analysis from the network benchmarking firm’s its latest round of testing of 125 metropolitan areas around the country, RootMetrics looked at how cities with major technology centers ranked compared to one another. Tech hubs overall were not the top markets for network performance — D.C., which earned the top tech hub ranking, came in 18 out of 125 in RootMetrics’ overall testing, and Seattle ranked 29th overall. Other tech hubs that did comparatively well were Austin, Texas; Denver, Colorado; and San Jose, California.
Markets with notable improvements include Dallas, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.
Bigger doesn’t always mean better — at least when it comes to mobile network performance.
As in years past, RootMetrics’ analysis of 125 large and small metropolitan areas around the country found that the best mobile network performance is found in small- and mid-sized cities around the country. Knoxville, Tennessee had the best overall score for carrier network performance, followed by St. Louis, Missouri; Minneapolis, Minnesota; Allentown, Pennsylvania; and Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Knoxville’s networks showed “strong improvement” since RootMetrics’ last round of testing, the company noted, when the city didn’t have any top-five finishes in the categories of reliability, speed, call performance, text performance and data performance that RootMetrics tests.
Cleveland, Ohio, ranked at the top in network speeds (Knoxville had the number five spot in that category). Allentown, Pennsylvania had particularly good improvements, RootMetrics said: “In second-half 2017 testing, Allentown’s highest ranking was a below-average 69th for network speed performance. In the first half of 2018, however, Allentown finished among the top 5 in three categories and narrowly missed doing so in a fourth. Why the rise in our rankings? All four carriers registered improved call and data reliability in Allentown, and three out of four networks delivered faster median download speeds since our last report.”
The large metro area with the best overall performance was Chicago, Illinois — and it ranked 12th overall. The two largest U.S. metro areas by population — New York and Los Angeles — were ranked 54 and 67, respectively, although RootMetrics noted that New York has seen a “modest” improvement in network speeds.
“With the notable exception of Chicago, the country’s ten most populated markets failed to crack the top-tier of our performance rankings,” RootMetrics said.
Dallas, Texas earned two top-20 finishes, coming in 19th for in call performance and 14th in reliability. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Washington, D.C. both had three top-20 finishes in overall performance, network reliability, and data performance.
“Fast speeds and excellent reliability from all four carries helped improve each city’s ranking,” RootMetrics said of Philly and D.C.
Lowest-ranked cities include Santa Rosa, California and Hudson Valley, N.Y.
On the other end of the spectrum, RootMetrics found that Santa Rosa, California had among the poorest scores in all six testing categories, putting it in the #125 spot out of #125.
“The carriers’ speeds and reliability results in the market, while generally satisfactory for most consumer mobile activities, were relatively poor compared to those in other cities,” RootMetrics said.
Ranked just above Santa Rosa were Hudson Valley, New York (124); El Paso, Texas (123); Bridgeport and Stamford, Connecticut (122); and Springfield, Massachusetts (121).
Get RootMetrics’ full metropolitan rankings here.
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