A real-world test of Verizon’s standalone 5G network found that it carried upload traffic more than twice as efficiently as the carrier’s older 5G architecture. The result points to a meaningful capacity improvement for video uploads, livestreaming and other upstream-heavy uses, although it does not mean every Verizon customer will suddenly see upload speeds double.
Signals Research Group’s report, published by the Global mobile Suppliers Association, compared standalone and non-standalone 5G connections on Verizon infrastructure in St. Paul, Minnesota. The standalone connection delivered 2.2 times the uplink spectral efficiency of the non-standalone connection.
Spectral efficiency measures how effectively a network carries data with a given amount of radio spectrum. Better efficiency lets a carrier handle more traffic without acquiring additional frequencies. For customers, that can eventually translate into steadier uploads and less congestion where Verizon enables the necessary network and device features.
How the test worked
Researchers conducted simultaneous walking tests with two Motorola Razr Fold 2026 handsets. One was configured for standalone 5G on a 10 MHz channel of band n2, while the other used non-standalone 5G on band n2 together with a 20 MHz LTE band 66 connection. Both uploaded data continuously over Verizon’s network using Ericsson 32T32R massive-MIMO radios.
The architectural difference matters. Non-standalone 5G, the format carriers used for many early deployments, connects 5G radio equipment to a 4G LTE core and relies partly on LTE during a connection. Standalone 5G uses a 5G core and removes that LTE dependency.
In the test, the standalone device could devote two transmission layers to 5G through uplink MIMO. The non-standalone device divided its transmission layers between 5G and LTE, and LTE carried data less efficiently. That combination accounted for much of the standalone network’s advantage.
The finding is about capacity per unit of spectrum, not a blanket promise of 2.2-times-faster uploads. Actual speeds still depend on signal strength, local traffic, the spectrum deployed at a particular site, network configuration and whether the subscriber’s equipment supports and enables the relevant standalone and uplink-MIMO features.
Why better uploads matter
Wireless marketing usually emphasizes download speeds because streaming video and loading large files consume far more downstream capacity. Upload performance becomes visible when customers send high-resolution video, join video calls, back up media or use a mobile connection for home internet. An overloaded uplink can make those activities stutter even when a speed test shows a strong download result.
Greater efficiency also gives Verizon another way to improve service without passing the cost of new spectrum directly into plan prices. The carrier can carry more upstream traffic through an existing channel, although realizing that benefit broadly requires compatible radios, a standalone core connection and supported subscriber equipment.
The test should not be read as a nationwide comparison of Verizon plans or coverage. It examined a specific configuration in one part of St. Paul and used equipment selected to expose the architectural difference. Signals Research Group also limited its analysis to the Ericsson 32T32R radios encountered during the test.
The result was not designed as a Verizon-sponsored demonstration. Fierce Network reported that researcher Mike Thelander walked 9.8 kilometers and transferred about 25.5 GB during the comparison. Thelander said Verizon and Ericsson did not know about the testing until after the report appeared, and that the underlying result was not specific to one carrier.
Standalone 5G still has practical limits
All three national carriers have deployed standalone 5G, but availability to individual customers remains uneven. A carrier can advertise a broad standalone footprint while still routing some devices or connections through non-standalone service. Device makers also decide which radio features to enable, so network capability alone does not guarantee that a subscriber will receive the tested benefit.
That gap helps explain why the finding is more significant as a network-capacity signal than as a shopping claim. Light Reading reported that only 29% of commercial 5G services worldwide used standalone architecture as of April. It also cited Omdia data showing 104 operators had deployed 5G core networks by the second quarter of 2026, up from 95 in the first quarter. Deployment therefore remains far from universal despite years of 5G advertising.
What Verizon customers should do
This test is not, by itself, a reason to move to a more expensive Verizon plan. Verizon has not announced a new consumer charge, plan requirement or guaranteed upload speed tied to the result. Customers comparing Verizon with Visible or another Verizon-based provider should continue to weigh total price, priority-data terms, hotspot limits and performance in the places they actually use service.
The near-term benefit is more modest: standalone 5G now has evidence of a substantial upload-efficiency advantage under a real network configuration. If Verizon expands that configuration and more compatible equipment uses it, crowded cells could carry additional upstream traffic without needing additional spectrum. Until then, local performance remains more useful to a plan decision than the 5G label printed beside it.