Independent Research Names Movistar as the Premier Mobile Network in Spain
November 11, 2026
A recent comprehensive assessment by MedUX, an entity specializing in telecommunications benchmarking, has identified Movistar as the top-performing mobile service provider in Spain. The study, which evaluated various network operators throughout the country, concluded that the Telefónica-owned brand secured the highest honors across all six primary performance categories. With an overall experience rating of 3.97 out of 5, Movistar was named the sole leader in the national market for the third quarter of 2026.
The analysis focused on several critical pillars of service, including reliability, accessibility, and speed. Movistar performed exceptionally well in the reliability category, achieving a score of 4.20 out of 5, indicating high consistency in service completion. The network was also recognized for its superior responsiveness, particularly in the accessibility segment, which evaluates how quickly the infrastructure reacts to user requests. Furthermore, the report highlighted the provider's performance in data transmission, noting that over 80% of the field tests for Movistar were conducted using 5G technology.
For the first time, this industry study incorporated metrics regarding the use of generative artificial intelligence. Movistar demonstrated the fastest response times for these advanced tools, which typically rely on low latency and efficient transport speeds rather than raw bandwidth alone. Beyond AI, the provider outperformed its competitors in traditional voice services, securing a score of 4.59 for audio quality during standard telephone calls. The research also found that customers experienced the highest levels of quality when using common digital services such as online gaming, video streaming, social media platforms, and general web browsing.
To ensure the findings were robust and representative of actual user conditions, MedUX employed a dual-source methodology. Technicians conducted drive tests covering nearly 4,500 kilometers across 85 municipalities, while also gathering data from roughly 9 million crowdsourced measurements from personal devices. This approach, which weighted field tests at 80% and real-world samples at 20%, allowed the researchers to validate the network's performance during everyday usage scenarios. According to leadership at both Telefónica and MedUX, these results reinforce the company's efforts to provide high-quality digital gateways and reliable infrastructure for its customers in Spain.
Read original at Telefónica Newsroom.