AT&T vs. Verizon: The Fastest versus the Most Reliable, According to a Nationwide Test

For the fourth year in a row, PCMag went on a road trip to test out the most common wireless networks in the United States, going from city to city in a minivan looking for signal. Their takeaway: AT&T is the fastest 4G LTE network, but Verizon Wireless is the most reliable.

The news website says they collected data on wireless transmission speeds in 30 test cities that were chosen to reflect a wide range across six regions and so that they would have the largest number of 4G networks competing against each other (but they also needed to be able to drive through all of those cities in just three weeks). AT&T and Verizon LTE were in every one of the 30 cities, while Sprint LTE covered 24 of them and six cities, out of T-Mobile's limited seven-city LTE network, were tested as well. PC Mag only tested for speed and reliability for data - not call quality, dropped calls, or coverage.

AT&T LTE came in first place among their speed ranking, coming it at a 97 on their index, while Verizon averaged slower download and upload speeds, and a lower maximum, resulting in it coming in at second place with an 89 on their index. "If you're looking for a fast mobile broadband experience in major and medium-sized cities, AT&T is the best nationwide 4G choice," concludes PCMag.

Verizon was a close second though, as it not only got second place in speed but also, according to the website, "is the master of coverage and reliability." T-Mobile's LTE network was very sparse but faster than Sprint's, and though Sprint came in last place, the magazine calls the network "on an upward trend" by switching out obsolete wireless technologies with an up and coming LTE system.

Despite AT&T's blue ribbon, how good a network performs can always depend on which part of the country you live in. Check out PCMag for their breakdown from region to region and city to city to get a better picture of what network might be fastest for you, and to read about their road trip.