5G RedCap – April 2026
5G Reduced Capability (RedCap) aims to bridge the gap between the cost and power requirements of various 5G uses, particularly addressing requirements for connected devices such as wearables, security and surveillance equipment and industrial sensors.
By lowering 5G device costs, while continuing to support advanced 5G features such as network slicing and 5G-only spectrum bands, RedCap will help operators to better monetise their 5G networks.
This report offers a snapshot of 5G RedCap’s market momentum. The full report provides insights about the global status of 5G standalone and 5G RedCap, investments by operators and a comprehensive outline of the 5G RedCap ecosystem, illustrating support for the technology in chipsets, modules and end-user devices. It also covers enhanced RedCap (eRedCap), its benefits, potential in 5G and GSA’s vision for how it will shape this ecosystem.
5G RedCap Status.
When assessing the global status of 5G RedCap in March 2026, GSA identified 42 operators in 27 countries that are currently investing in the technology. A closer look at the status of these investments underscores that many operators are currently in the trial phase. Operators in Bahrain, Czechia, Finland, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Oman, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Thailand, Turkey and the United Kingdom are testing the viability of a 5G Redcap network alongside existing
5G networks.
Six operators are planning a 5G RedCap service and Rogers Wireless (including Fido) in Canada is in the process of deploying these services on its network. Since the previous update in September 2025, Telefonica and Deutsche Telekom in Germany, SoftBank in Japan, M1 in Singapore, MasOrange in Spain and Etisalat (e&) in the United Arab Emirates are the latest to launch a 5G RedCap service. These accompany eight other operators which had previously launched a service: Optus in Australia, stc in Kuwait, Dito in the Philippines, T-Mobile and AT&T in the United States and the three major Chinese operators — China Unicom, China Telecom and China Mobile.
5G RedCap – April 2026
© GSA 2026
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