[Update of November 19, 2021] Each year, ARCEP, the telecoms regulator publishes its observatory for the quality of mobile services, the results of which come from more than a million measures in 2G, 3G, 4G and5G, for the first time in 2021. Cover, calls, SMS reception, Internet debit, Web navigation, online video ... Everything goes there.And, once again, all criteria combined, it is Orange which has the best mobile network.

The attractive mobile offers follow one another, promising Gigas Avalanche and unlimited communications at a lower cost.But to take full advantage of your telephone subscription, you still have to have a good network!This is why it is essential to find out about the mobile coverage and the quality of the mobile services of each operator. It is one of the essential criteria to study to choose its mobile package.

How to find the best operator to be able to call and benefit from 4G or 5G at home, at work or in transport?How to know which mobile network to choose to have the best quality of service?Which operators use the four French networks - Orange, SFR, Bouygues Telecom and Free?Here is everything you need to know so as not to be mistaken about the mobile network when you choose its package.

Which operator has the best mobile coverage?

There is not really a good answer to this question.It all depends on the location of your home and your places of life.Or your mobility habits if you travel a lot.To verify which best operator at home for calls and 4G or 5G, you can refer to our mobile network test.

This tool is based on coverage cards communicated by operators at ARCEP, the telecoms regulator.But beware: this information remains theoretical.All operators announce an almost full coverage of French users for calls and SMS.Whether it is the Orange network, that of SFR or Bouygues Telecom, or even Free, these figures announce 99% of the population coverage in 4G.Note that on this point, and for the first time in 2021, the Free Mobile Network displays a 4G coverage rate equivalent to that of other operators.But in the field, reality is sometimes quite different.Indeed, 4G coverage of the territory is 94% for SFR, 93% for Orange, 92% for Bouygues and 90% for Free.

As for 5G, launched in November 2020, its deployment is just beginning.As of September 30, 2021, it was Free who had deployed the largest number of 5G antennas (12,000), very largely in front of Bouygues (5.003), SFR (3.160) and Orange (2.473).Nevertheless, in the 3.5 GHz band, the heart strip of 5G, that which allows a significant rise in flow, it is Orange which activated the largest number of 5G sites (1,597), in front of Free (1.297), Bouygues Telecom (1.008) and SFR (1.005).

To ensure the coverage of the network of four operators at home, it will therefore not be useless to learn with your loved ones.Their feedback will be precious to be sure to choose the right mobile network.Another solution to learn: consult our mobile phone branch map, regularly updated on the basis of the data communicated by the National Frequencies Agency (ANFR) and ARCEP, the telecoms regulator.This will allow you to check which operator has 2G (voice) or 3G/4G/5G relay (mobile internet) at home and in the places you frequent regularly.

Which mobile network for the best internet speed in 4G/5G?

By consulting this card, you can also check whether one or more operators offer 4G+at home.These technologies based on the aggregation of several frequencies can allow you to benefit from better flows.On condition, of course, to have a phone compatible with two or more of the five French 4G frequency bands: B1 (2100 MHz), B3 (1800 MHz), B7 (2600 MHz), B20 (800 MHz) and B28(700 MHz).

With a phone allowing to take full advantage of frequency aggregation, in areas where operators have activated them, you can hope for a maximum flower flow than with the only 4G.The maximum in 2020 is placed at 440 MB/s at Free, 655 MB/S at Orange, 593 MB/S on the SFR mobile network and 900 MB/S at Bouygues Telecom.Figures that remain all theoretical and depend, in particular, on the number of users who request the network at an instant T. In practice, the available flows will therefore be lower than these ceilings, especially if you connect to the mobile internet in the areaurban.You can also check your connection speed thanks to our mobile internet flow test.

Same thing with a phone compatible with the new 5G mobile network.Indeed, the orange flow is up to 2.1 Gb/s in the areas covered in 3.5 GHz and up to 615 Mb/s for areas covered in 5G in the 2.1 GHz strip used, alsoFor 4G.At SFR, the maximum theoretical flow is 2 GB/s in the 3.5 GHz and 995 Mb/s in the 2.1 GHz while on the Bouygues Telecom network, it is 1.5 GB/s in the3.5 GHz and 890 Mb/s in 2.1 GHz.For its part, Free simply evokes flows in 5g up to three times higher than the flows of 4G Free.Again, these are theoretical flows.

Internet, calls: What is the best mobile network?

It may also be instructive to be interested in the quality of service provided on the different mobile networks.And in this game there, it is an undivided domination of the Orange mobile network for several years, according to Arcep's surveys.On average, it is the operator who provides the best 4G speeds (110 MB/s in 2021) and 5G (142 MB/s) in mainland France, but also the best performance in web and streaming.Finally, Orange is also n ° 1 on the quality of service in transport, especially on road axes and in trains.

Source: Arcep - Quality of mobile service quality 2021

The findings of the telecoms regulator are corroborated by other surveys based completely or partially on crowdsourcing.That is to say the experience of users in the field, collected via actors like NPERF or QOSI.For the year 2020, there too, we often find the orange network in mind on almost all of the indicators.Behind the best operator, we find Bouygues Telecom, SFR and Free almost equal.

Four mobile networks but a wide choice of operators

Finally, note that the Orange mobile network, just like that of SFR and Bouygues Telecom are used by other suppliers, virtual operators also called MVNO.Choosing another operator than the four "big" will sometimes allow you to take advantage of a good quality network without having to pay the high price ... In return, however, we will not always benefit from 4G+ or 5G, synonymousBetter speeds.It will sometimes be necessary to be satisfied with 4G, that is to say flows not exceeding 150 Mb/s.

En souscrivant un forfait mobile chez un grand opérateur national, on pourra espérer un Internet mobile plus rapide. Avec un abonnement Orange ou Sosh, SFR ou RED, Free ou Bouygues Telecom, ainsi que chez Prixtel, Réglo Mobile ou La Poste Mobile, les débits en 4G ou 4G+ pourront ainsi atteindre plusieurs centaines de Mb/s. Sans parler de la 5G : lancé en 2020, le réseau mobile de 5^ème génération permet aux opérateurs de promettre plus de 1 Gb/s dans certaines zones couvertes...

Bad mobile coverage: What are the solutions?

You may also not benefit from mobile coverage worthy of the name at home.This may improve soon: operators have made several legally binding commitments to the government.This agreement called New Deal provides, among other things, that they generalize 4G throughout the territory and significantly improve their coverage by setting up thousands of additional antennas, especially in places identified as poorly covered by communities.It is possible to follow respect for these commitments on a dashboard published by ARCEP.

In the meantime, if we suffer from poor mobile coverage on the four national networks, some alternative solutions exist.Especially at home, thanks to the Femtocell, which recreates a domestic mobile network from the fixed internet connection.Another track: calls via Wi-Fi. This solution intended for users who do not capture the network at home to make or receive calls is currently activated on the Orange and Sosh, SOSH and Red packages, as well as Bouygues Telecom.