Peak rates assume 100% resource allocation with no scheduling gaps. Real-world rates are typically 40–70% of the calculated peak.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is 5G NR peak throughput?
5G NR (New Radio) achieves peak data rates by combining wide bandwidths (up to 400 MHz in FR2), massive MIMO (up to 8 spatial layers), high-order modulation (256QAM), and carrier aggregation across multiple component carriers. The 3GPP specification targets peak DL rates of up to 20 Gbps.
What is the difference between FR1 and FR2?
FR1 (Frequency Range 1) covers sub-6 GHz bands (410 MHz–7125 MHz), offering good coverage with bandwidths up to 100 MHz. FR2 (mmWave) covers 24.25–52.6 GHz with bandwidths up to 400 MHz, enabling very high throughput but with shorter range and more penetration loss.
What does subcarrier spacing (SCS) affect?
SCS determines the width of each individual subcarrier. Larger SCS values (30, 60, 120 kHz) mean shorter symbol durations and more slots per second — enabling higher throughput but also more sensitivity to Doppler effects. Higher SCS values are used in higher frequency bands (FR2) where the faster processing supports them.
Why does the DL/UL ratio matter?
5G NR is predominantly TDD (Time Division Duplex) — DL and UL share the same frequency and alternate in time. A 75/25 DL/UL ratio means 75% of time slots carry DL data. Changing this ratio directly affects throughput in each direction. Indoor/hotspot deployments often use higher DL ratios since most traffic is downstream.