Industry Benchmarks · Top 10
Top 10 Telecommunications ARPU and Churn Rate KPIs in 2027
Direct answer
Postpaid phone churn is the top telecom KPI in 2027, followed by prepaid churn and postpaid ARPA. In Q2 2026 AT&T reported postpaid phone churn of 0.86% and Verizon 0.92%, while T-Mobile reported postpaid ARPA of $152.91 and Verizon $168.35. Where the filings give no benchmark, this page says so.
At a glance
| # | Pick | Formula | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Postpaid Phone Churn | Wireless subscribers who canceled service during a month divided by subscribers at the start of that month; the period rate is the average of the monthly rates (AT&T definition) | Every carrier and reseller; it is the headline measure of whether paying customers stay |
| 2 | Prepaid Churn | Prepaid customers who canceled in a month divided by prepaid customers at the start of that month, averaged over the period (AT&T definition of churn) | Prepaid and value brands, where customers can leave without a contract |
| 3 | Postpaid ARPA | Postpaid service revenues divided by the average number of postpaid accounts in the period, divided by the months in the period (T-Mobile definition) | Carriers selling several lines and home broadband to one household |
| 4 | Prepaid ARPU | Average service revenue per unit from retail prepaid connections, excluding the SafeLink brand (Verizon definition) | Prepaid and value brands pricing plans where every dollar per line matters |
| 5 | Postpaid Account Churn | Churn is customers deactivated as a percentage of the average customers in the period, divided by the months in the period (T-Mobile 10-K definition) | Carriers selling bundles, where losing one account loses every line on it |
| 6 | Postpaid Net Additions | Reported in each carrier’s quarterly operating statistics as net additions, in thousands | Anyone judging whether a carrier is growing its base, not only its revenue |
| 7 | Upgrade Rate | Reported by Verizon under Wireless Retail Postpaid Connection Statistics; the release does not give a formula | Carriers watching device-subsidy spend and equipment revenue |
| 8 | Customer Satisfaction (ACSI) | A survey-based index reported on a 0 to 100 scale by the American Customer Satisfaction Index | Brands that want an outside view of how customers rate service quality |
| 9 | Data Usage per Smartphone | Average monthly mobile data traffic per smartphone, in GB per month (Ericsson Mobility Report) | Network planners and plan designers sizing capacity and data tiers |
| 10 | Broadband Net Additions | Quarterly net additions of fiber and fixed wireless access (FWA) internet connections, as reported in each carrier’s release | Carriers selling convergence bundles that pair mobile and home internet |
Pick by what you want
Best overall
Postpaid Phone Churn
Best for prepaid brands
Prepaid Churn
Best for household revenue
Postpaid ARPA
Best for growth
Postpaid Net Additions
Best for network planning
Data Usage per Smartphone
The ranking
1
Postpaid Phone Churn
Photo: Harrison Keely / CC BY 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Answrs VerdictThe headline KPI.
Formula: Wireless subscribers who canceled service during a month divided by subscribers at the start of that month; the period rate is the average of the monthly rates (AT&T definition)AT&T, Q2 2026: Postpaid phone churn of 0.86%, versus 0.87% in Q2 2025Verizon, Q2 2026: Wireless retail postpaid phone churn of 0.92%, versus 0.97% in Q2 2025T-Mobile, full-year 2025: Postpaid phone churn of 0.93% for 2025, 0.86% for 2024 and 0.87% for 2023
Postpaid phone churn is the share of subscribers who cancel in a month, averaged over the period. AT&T reported 0.86% for Q2 2026 and Verizon reported 0.92% for retail postpaid phones, while T-Mobile’s 10-K gave 0.93% for 2025.
Go ifEvery carrier and reseller; it is the headline measure of whether paying customers stay
Skip ifNever skip it, but compare like with like: the three carriers above report different periods and scopes
Why #1 over #2: Every revenue KPI below depends on customers staying, which is why churn ranks above ARPA.
2
Prepaid Churn
Photo: Phillip Pessar / CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Answrs VerdictThe no-contract KPI.
Formula: Prepaid customers who canceled in a month divided by prepaid customers at the start of that month, averaged over the period (AT&T definition of churn)AT&T, Q2 2026: Prepaid phone churn of 2.30%, versus 2.43% in Q2 2025Verizon, Q2 2026: Wireless retail core prepaid churn of 3.59%, versus 3.60% in Q2 2025; core prepaid excludes the SafeLink brandT-Mobile, full-year 2025: Prepaid churn of 2.72% for 2025 and 2.73% for 2024
Prepaid churn tracks customers who leave without a contract. AT&T reported prepaid phone churn of 2.30% in Q2 2026, Verizon reported 3.59% for core prepaid, and T-Mobile reported 2.72% for 2025.
Go ifPrepaid and value brands, where customers can leave without a contract
Skip ifYou only sell postpaid contracts
Why #2 over #3: It is the highest churn on the list, so it moves total subscriber counts more than the account-level view.
3
Postpaid ARPA
Photo: Anthony92931 / CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Answrs VerdictThe household-revenue KPI.
Formula: Postpaid service revenues divided by the average number of postpaid accounts in the period, divided by the months in the period (T-Mobile definition)T-Mobile, Q2 2026: Postpaid ARPA of $152.91, up 2% year over year from $149.87Verizon, Q2 2026: Wireless retail postpaid ARPA of $168.35, versus $170.79 in Q2 2025Verizon definition: Average service revenue per account from retail postpaid accounts
Postpaid ARPA is average monthly postpaid service revenue per account. T-Mobile reported $152.91 for Q2 2026, up 2% year over year, and Verizon reported $168.35.
Go ifCarriers selling several lines and home broadband to one household
Skip ifYou sell single-line plans, where per-line ARPU is the cleaner view
Why #3 over #4: It captures revenue from bundles and extra lines, which prepaid ARPU cannot show.
4
Prepaid ARPU
Photo: Tony Webster from Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States / CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Answrs VerdictThe per-line revenue KPI.
Formula: Average service revenue per unit from retail prepaid connections, excluding the SafeLink brand (Verizon definition)Verizon, Q2 2026: Wireless retail core prepaid ARPU of $33.37, versus $32.56 in Q2 2025Verizon, six months: $33.34 for the first half of 2026, versus $32.24 a year earlierT-Mobile, full-year 2025: Prepaid ARPU of $34.14 for 2025 and $36.06 for 2024
Prepaid ARPU is service revenue per prepaid connection. Verizon reported $33.37 for core prepaid in Q2 2026, and T-Mobile’s 10-K gave $34.14 for 2025 against $36.06 for 2024.
Go ifPrepaid and value brands pricing plans where every dollar per line matters
Skip ifYou want an AT&T comparison: its Q2 2026 earnings exhibits show no ARPU figure
Why #4 over #5: It prices the value tier directly, where account churn only measures loyalty.
5
Postpaid Account Churn
Photo: Mike Mozart / CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Answrs VerdictThe bundle-loyalty KPI.
Formula: Churn is customers deactivated as a percentage of the average customers in the period, divided by the months in the period (T-Mobile 10-K definition)T-Mobile, Q2 2026: Postpaid account churn of 0.99%, versus 1.04% in Q1 2026 and 0.92% in Q2 2025T-Mobile, six months: 1.02% for the first half of 2026, versus 0.93% a year earlierBase adjustment: Metronet agreed to repurchase certain accounts, reducing postpaid accounts by 16,000 in Q2 2026
Postpaid account churn is T-Mobile’s headline retention figure. It was 0.99% in Q2 2026, against 1.04% in Q1 2026 and 0.92% in Q2 2025.
Go ifCarriers selling bundles, where losing one account loses every line on it
Skip ifYou report only per-line churn and have no account-level data
Why #5 over #6: It shows household-level loss, which net additions can hide.
6
Postpaid Net Additions
Photo: Rob DiCaterino from Jersey City, NJ, USA / CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Answrs VerdictThe growth KPI.
Formula: Reported in each carrier’s quarterly operating statistics as net additions, in thousandsAT&T, Q2 2026: 432 thousand postpaid phone net adds, versus 401 thousand in Q2 2025Verizon, Q2 2026: 184 thousand total postpaid phone net additions, versus a loss of 9 thousand in Q2 2025; core prepaid net additions were 73 thousandT-Mobile, Q2 2026: 277 thousand postpaid net account additions, versus 318 thousand in Q2 2025
Net additions show whether the base is growing. AT&T added 432 thousand postpaid phones in Q2 2026, Verizon added 184 thousand, and T-Mobile added 277 thousand postpaid accounts.
Go ifAnyone judging whether a carrier is growing its base, not only its revenue
Skip ifYou compare carriers directly: T-Mobile reports accounts while AT&T and Verizon report phones
Why #6 over #7: It measures growth, where upgrade rate measures device timing.
7
Upgrade Rate
Photo: WestportWiki / CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Answrs VerdictThe device-cycle KPI.
Formula: Reported by Verizon under Wireless Retail Postpaid Connection Statistics; the release does not give a formulaVerizon, Q2 2026: Upgrade rate of 2.6%, versus 3.6% in the prior-year columnRevenue effect: Verizon’s equipment revenue fell nearly 20 percent, mainly on significantly lower upgrade volumes as customers keep devices longerOther carriers: No upgrade rate appears in the AT&T or T-Mobile Q2 2026 releases cited here
Upgrade rate shows how often customers change devices. Verizon reported 2.6% for Q2 2026 against 3.6% in the prior-year column, and tied lower upgrade volumes to a fall of nearly 20 percent in equipment revenue.
Go ifCarriers watching device-subsidy spend and equipment revenue
Skip ifYou need an industry-wide benchmark; none is published in the sources cited
Why #7 over #8: It explains equipment revenue, which satisfaction scores do not.
8
Customer Satisfaction (ACSI)
Photo: Wikideas1 / CC0 via Wikimedia Commons
Answrs VerdictThe customer-verdict KPI.
Formula: A survey-based index reported on a 0 to 100 scale by the American Customer Satisfaction IndexWireless service, 2026: Industry score of 77, an all-time high, up 3%; mobile network operators scored 76Carriers, 2026: T-Mobile 78, Verizon 76 and AT&T 76Survey base: 26,963 completed surveys collected between April 2025 and March 2026
The American Customer Satisfaction Index scored wireless service at 77 in 2026, an all-time high, with T-Mobile at 78 and Verizon and AT&T at 76.
Go ifBrands that want an outside view of how customers rate service quality
Skip ifYou need churn-grade data; satisfaction is a survey score, not a count of lost customers
Why #8 over #9: It gives an outside view of service quality, where data usage describes only demand.
9
Data Usage per Smartphone
Photo: John Robert McPherson / CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Answrs VerdictThe network-demand KPI.
Formula: Average monthly mobile data traffic per smartphone, in GB per month (Ericsson Mobility Report)North America, 2025: 25 GB per month, up from 21 GB in 2024Forecast: 52 GB per month by 2031, a 13% compound annual growth rate from 2025 to 2031Edition: Figures are from the Ericsson Mobility Report, November 2025 edition
Data usage per smartphone sizes the network. Ericsson puts North America at 25 GB per month in 2025, up from 21 GB in 2024, and forecasts 52 GB per month by 2031.
Go ifNetwork planners and plan designers sizing capacity and data tiers
Skip ifYou need a per-carrier figure; these are regional industry estimates
Why #9 over #10: It looks forward to capacity, which broadband net adds do not.
10
Broadband Net Additions
Photo: Tessa Bury / CC BY 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Answrs VerdictThe convergence KPI.
Formula: Quarterly net additions of fiber and fixed wireless access (FWA) internet connections, as reported in each carrier’s releaseVerizon, Q2 2026: 348 thousand broadband net additions: 193 thousand FWA and 155 thousand fiberAT&T, Q2 2026: 646 thousand total consumer and business Advanced Connectivity internet net adds: 367 thousand fiber and 279 thousand fixed wirelessVerizon base: About 17.1 million fixed wireless access and fiber broadband connections
Broadband net additions show the convergence push. Verizon added 348 thousand broadband connections in Q2 2026 and AT&T added 646 thousand Advanced Connectivity internet connections.
Go ifCarriers selling convergence bundles that pair mobile and home internet
Skip ifYour business is mobile-only
How we ranked these
We ranked KPIs on how directly they drive telecom results and how clearly carrier filings define them, using the Q2 2026 earnings exhibits filed with the SEC by AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile, T-Mobile’s 2025 10-K, the ACSI 2026 telecom study and the Ericsson Mobility Report. Carriers report different periods and scopes, so each figure is labeled with whose it is and which period it covers. Facts are taken from each maker's own published information; check the official site before you buy.
Questions people ask
What is a good postpaid phone churn rate for a US carrier?
In Q2 2026 AT&T reported postpaid phone churn of 0.86% and Verizon reported 0.92% for retail postpaid phones. T-Mobile reported 0.93% for 2025.
How does prepaid churn compare with postpaid churn?
It is higher. AT&T reported prepaid phone churn of 2.30% in Q2 2026 and Verizon reported 3.59% for core prepaid.
What is ARPA and how is it calculated?
ARPA is average revenue per account. T-Mobile calculates postpaid ARPA as postpaid service revenues divided by average postpaid accounts, divided by the months in the period; its Q2 2026 figure was $152.91.
Why does T-Mobile report account churn instead of phone churn?
Its Q2 2026 release leads with postpaid account churn of 0.99% and net account additions of 277 thousand. The release does not explain the choice, so this page does not speculate.
Monthly churn, Q2 2026 at a glance
AT&T postpaid phone0.86 %
Verizon retail postpaid phone0.92 %
AT&T prepaid phone2.3 %
Verizon core prepaid3.59 %
Official sites
- Postpaid Phone Churn · sec.gov
- Prepaid Churn · sec.gov
- Postpaid ARPA · sec.gov
- Prepaid ARPU · sec.gov
- Postpaid Account Churn · sec.gov
- Postpaid Net Additions · sec.gov
- Upgrade Rate · sec.gov
- Customer Satisfaction (ACSI) · theacsi.com
- Data Usage per Smartphone · ericsson.com
- Broadband Net Additions · sec.gov
Sources
Prices, specs and availability change; confirm on the official site before you buy.