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Mobile networks have seen major upgrades in recent years—from 5G rollouts to expanded spectrum to denser infrastructure—but indoor coverage is still a major weak spot. Whether in office towers, schools, hospitals, or transportation hubs, buildings often block or weaken cellular signals, creating a frustrating experience for users and a missed opportunity for mobile network operators (MNOs). In many cases, indoor coverage gaps pose more than an inconvenience; they create real risks for public safety and limit economic potential for property owners.
This problem is nothing new, but in many developed markets, it’s actually getting worse. Our earlier research explored how a combination of higher frequency 5G spectrum (which struggles to penetrate buildings), newer construction materials like low-emissivity (low-E) glass, and the sunsetting of legacy 2G and 3G networks has deepened indoor coverage challenges. Meanwhile, mobile data usage continues to concentrate indoors, and networks built to prioritize outdoor coverage often don’t deliver the performance users now expect inside buildings.
In this article, we’ll break down the key challenges facing in-building mobile coverage, explore solutions, and show how Ookla’s data can help improve outcomes for consumers, operators, and property owners. For a deeper dive into these topics, watch our recent webinar on-demand, “Reimagining In-Building Cellular: Closing the Coverage Gap.”
The Data Gap: What Regulators Miss About Indoor Coverage
Accurate data is the foundation of good policy. But when it comes to indoor connectivity, many public maps and benchmarks focus on outdoor or predicted coverage and ignore what users actually experience once they step inside.
Higher-frequency 5G spectrum, signal-blocking materials like low-E glass, and the shutdown of legacy networks have all made reliable in-building coverage harder to achieve in many developed markets.
Data from Ookla’s Cell Analytics™ platform highlights the scale of the problem. In cities like London and Paris, building-level data reveals large clusters of poor indoor performance, even in areas that draw large numbers of people and appear well-served on public maps. In many cases, users experience degraded 5G coverage and fallback to low-band spectrum that offers limited capacity, leading to a poorer quality of experience. This disconnect between perception and reality underscores several important points:
Traditional coverage maps often present an overly optimistic view of network performance—especially indoors—based on computer-modeled predictions rather than reflecting the actual signal conditions enjoyed by end users.
Crowdsourced data reveals large pockets of poor in-building coverage in major global cities.
These blind spots can lead to misaligned investments and missed opportunities to improve service where it’s most needed.
Without building-level insights, policymakers and operators lack the visibility required to close the indoor coverage gap.
Better indoor outcomes start with a more accurate understanding of what users actually experience. Without that understanding, it’s difficult to allocate funding or resources where they’ll make a difference.
Why Indoor Coverage is a Public Safety Issue
Dropped calls and dead zones inside buildings are more than a nuisance—they can be dangerous. In emergencies, people expect to reach help from anywhere, but many buildings still lack the coverage needed for reliable 911 (or equivalent) service. And as emergency response operations increasingly rely on mobile networks and broadband applications, buildings without reliable service could put lives at risk. When people in distress cannot quickly reach emergency services, every second counts. A one-minute delay in dispatching help can increase cardiac arrest mortality rates by 1–2% and raise fire damage by up to 20%. FCC modeling during the E911 modernization effort found that improving vertical (z-axis) location accuracy—made possible partly through better indoor mobile coverage—could save thousands of lives each year,
Here’s why indoor connectivity matters for public safety—and what’s standing in the way:
Indoor coverage gaps can delay or prevent emergency calls. People expect to have mobile service everywhere—but many buildings don’t deliver it when it matters most.
First responders increasingly depend on mobile broadband—like apps, video, and real-time data—which all require strong indoor cellular coverage to work reliably.
Buildings that lack coverage can disrupt first responder communication and coordination.
Fire and building codes in many areas require indoor coverage for public safety radios (not general mobile service), but enforcement varies widelyBetter indoor coverage also helps 911 responders find people faster—especially in multi-story buildings. Today’s emergency systems use more advanced location technology, like device-based hybrid (DBH) methods, which combine GPS, Wi-Fi, and barometric sensors. These signals can now estimate not just your location on a map, but also what floor you’re on. As of April 2025, the FCC requires carriers to provide this vertical accuracy—within about 10 feet (or one floor)—for 80% of wireless 911 calls.
That level of precision can save critical time. If first responders know exactly where to go, they can reach people faster—often shaving a full minute off response times. In serious emergencies like cardiac arrests, where every second matters, that minute could save a life.
In-building coverage should be treated with the same urgency as other public safety infrastructure. Lives may depend on the ability to communicate from inside a building—whether by call, text, or other mobile tools.
New Models for Indoor Connectivity: The Rise of Shared Infrastructure
A new funding model is taking hold across the industry, with more venue owners now willing to foot the bill for in-building deployments as part of broader efforts to improve tenant experiences and stay competitive. With operators focused on outdoor network coverage and typically investing in custom in-building solutions only for the highest-profile venues (like stadiums), many building owners are realizing they’ll need to take the lead if they want better indoor coverage.
One solution gaining traction is the neutral host model, where a single shared infrastructure supports multiple mobile operators within a building. Instead of each carrier deploying its own system, a neutral host handles the design, installation, and operation—reducing cost and complexity for everyone involved. Key benefits of shared deployments include:
Neutral hosts design, build, and operate infrastructure that supports multiple MNOs through a single system.
Shared systems eliminate the inefficiencies (physical equipment and cost duplications) of carrier-by-carrier installations.
The model is particularly effective in transit systems, stadiums, airports, and other high-traffic venues where all operators need coverage and there are significant space constraints
Participation often hinges on securing an anchor tenant—an MNO willing to be the first onboard.
Neutral host systems reduce complexity while improving results for everyone involved. As demand grows, expect shared infrastructure to become the norm, not the exception.
The Building Owner Equation: What’s the ROI?
Even when building owners recognize the value of strong indoor connectivity, calculating the return on investment isn’t always straightforward. While features like upgraded lobbies or new HVAC systems have clear costs and resale value, cellular deployments can feel abstract by comparison.
Still, connectivity is increasingly a requirement for tenants—not a perk. With hybrid work schedules, hot-desking, and mobile-first workflows, workers now expect reliable coverage throughout the building—from shared lounges to meeting rooms to wherever they can take a call or join a video meeting. If a space can’t support consistent connectivity across both cellular and Wi-Fi, it becomes harder to attract and retain tenants.
As connectivity becomes a baseline expectation in modern workspaces, building owners face growing pressure to deliver. Here’s what that means in practice:
Tenants expect strong indoor coverage (both cellular and Wi-Fi) as part of a modern workspace.
Poor connectivity can influence leasing decisions and renewal rates.
Owners of mid-sized or lower-profile buildings are often underserved by MNOs—and may need to take the lead on providing connectivity.
Without benchmarks or transparency, it’s hard to know where a building stands—or how to improve.
Reliable connectivity increasingly factors into occupancy, retention, and tenant satisfaction. For owners, strong mobile coverage is becoming a basic competitive differentiator.
Policy Can Make or Break Progress
Technology alone won’t fix the indoor coverage problem. Regulation and planning play a critical role—and some countries are showing what works. Leading global markets like Singapore, South Korea, and Hong Kong have implemented policies that require mobile-ready infrastructure in new buildings as a condition of zoning approval. This ensures operators have access to deploy equipment without facing prohibitive delays or costs.
South Korea offers one of the most comprehensive policy approaches to indoor mobile coverage anywhere in the world. New building codes require in-building mobile infrastructure—like risers, conduit, power, and equipment rooms—for a wide range of structures, including high-rise buildings (16 floors or taller), large buildings over 1,000 square meters, any building with underground levels, apartment complexes with 500 or more units, and all subway stations.
The Korean government also sets clear coverage requirements. Every mobile operator must provide service at all subway stations and high-speed rail hubs using mid-band 3.5 GHz spectrum. To make sure performance matches expectations, public scorecards put serious weight on indoor results: about half of the testing in South Korea’s national 5G Quality Evaluation takes place inside buildings like malls, hospitals, and campuses. Carriers that underperform can face financial penalties and public callouts. Together, these policies ensure strong indoor coverage is built in from the start—and that operators are held accountable for delivering it.
That kind of clear policy framework offers a model for other markets to follow. For countries like the U.S. and those across Europe, there are several clear policy opportunities to help close the indoor coverage gap:
Require cellular-ready infrastructure (ducting, risers, equipment space) in building codes.
Expedite permitting for indoor mobile deployments in public buildings like schools and hospitals.
Encourage government facilities to adopt 5G and in-building solutions as part of national strategy.
Develop transparent coverage certification or ratings to drive competition and investment.
Support more flexible use of spectrum for shared or private indoor deployments.
The bottom line is that indoor coverage can’t be an afterthought in policy. Clear requirements and streamlined permitting are essential for creating long-term change.
How Ookla Is Helping Improve Indoor Connectivity
Ookla supports better in-building connectivity through a powerful set of tools that deliver actionable, real-world insights. These solutions help operators, regulators, and property owners understand performance at the building level—revealing where indoor coverage falls short and where investment is most needed. Here’s how each group is using Ookla’s data to drive better outcomes:
Operators use Cell Analytics and Speedtest Intelligence® to identify coverage gaps, prioritize in-building upgrades, optimize spectrum deployment, and validate improvements.
Regulators and policymakers rely on Ookla data to support evidence-based planning, improve public reporting, and track progress over time.
Building owners use Speedtest results and building-level insights to assess tenant experiences, benchmark performance, and guide connectivity investments.
Ookla’s insights into indoor connectivity continue to play a key role in helping the industry move beyond outdated assumptions and improve mobile performance where people really need it.
Looking Ahead: Closing the Indoor Coverage Gap
Indoor coverage is no longer a secondary concern. As more mobile activity happens inside buildings, strong indoor performance is now essential—for everything from emergency response to tenant satisfaction. Yet this critical area still suffers from outdated assumptions, inconsistent data, and underinvestment.
Fixing the problem requires a coordinated approach—one that brings together network operators, property owners, infrastructure providers, policymakers, and data partners. \With better visibility through tools like Cell Analytics and Speedtest Intelligence, there’s a real opportunity to target improvements where indoor connectivity continues to fall short.
To explore these topics in more detail, watch our full webinar on-demand. And stay tuned—more in-building connectivity research and insights are coming soon!
