Dish Wireless Coverage Map

Stetson Doggett
by
Stetson Doggett
|
Updated:
December 6, 2023

Does Dish Wireless have good coverage?

Use the interactive maps below to check Dish Wireless coverage in your area

You can also download the free Coverage Map app for iPhone and Android to compare cellular coverage between carriers.

Map Key:
Great coverage
Good coverage
Poor coverage
Great coverage = stream 4K videos, video call, use your phone to its fullest potential
Good coverage = stream 480p videos, browse social media, stream music, use the web
Poor coverage = make phone calls, send a text
*The Estimated Coverage Map is created with coverage data from the FCC

Dish Wireless Cell Phone Plans

Boost Infinite
AT&T or T-Mobile coverage
1 Line
$
25
/mo
+tax
tax included
30GB
high-speed, then 512Kbps
Deprioritized
5GB hotspot
480p SD video streaming
Unlimited minutes
Unlimited texts

How good is Dish Wireless's coverage?

In this article, we will cover:

  • Dish Wireless coverage statistics
  • Dish Wireless coverage overview
  • Dish Wireless LTE coverage
  • Dish Wireless 5G coverage
  • Dish Wireless coverage FAQ

Let's dive in!

Dish Wireless Coverage Quick Stats

  • Network: Dish 5G
  • Total area covered: 8.5%
  • Total square miles covered: 690,068

The above statistics come from our analysis of the FCC signal strength data for the contiguous United States. The statistics ignore coverage data for Alaska and Hawaii.

Dish Wireless Coverage

Dish is the fourth big mobile network operator (MNO) in the United States.

Being an MNO means Dish Wireless is putting up cell towers, deploying network equipment, and building a network core to fully operate its own network.

Dish currently covers 8.5% of the land area in the United States with its 5G network. This may seem like a small amount at only 690,068 square miles, but Dish says its network covers over 240 million Americans.

Dish is able to cover such a large number of people because most people live in cities.

Dish has been diligently rolling out its 5G network in over 15,000 cities, which has allowed it to cover 72% of the U.S. population with a relatively small coverage footprint.

Still, only covering 8.5% of the land area in the U.S. leaves a lot of the nation without coverage. What does Dish do in areas where it does not yet have service? It turns out Dish has roaming agreements with AT&T and T-Mobile.

If a Dish Wireless customer is in an area without native Dish coverage, then their phone will automatically switch to using either the AT&T or T-Mobile network for service.

You can browse the Dish Wireless 5G coverage map below to see exactly where you can get service on the Dish network.

You can also check out the AT&T coverage map or the T-Mobile coverage map to see where you will get service if you end up roaming on one of those networks.

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iPhone with Coverage Map app on screen showing download and upload speeds in an area in New York, NY

What network does Dish Wireless use?

Dish Wireless uses its own 5G network to provide coverage.

Dish also has a roaming agreement with AT&T and T-Mobile, so Dish customers can use AT&T and T-Mobile's 4G LTE and 5G networks in areas where Dish does not have service.

Dish Wireless 5G Coverage

Dish Wireless 5G coverage map

Dish Wireless has the smallest 5G coverage area out of any of the MNOs.

It covers just 8.5% of the United States.

For comparison, AT&T covers 41.4% of the U.S. with 5G, T-Mobile covers 49.0%, and Verizon covers 14.7%. Despite having small physical footprint, Dish's 5G network still covers over 70% of the U.S. population. Dish is lucky that most Americans live in densely populated cities!

5G download speeds on the Dish 5G network range from about 5 Mbps on the low end to over 500 Mbps on the high-end.

Upload speeds range from 1 Mbps to over 60 Mbps.

We will continue to see Dish's native 5G network expand rapidly throughout the year, especially on our crowd-sourced coverage map.

Customers can currently experience the Dish 5G network by signing up for Boost Infinite with a compatible device in an area with active service, or by signing up for Project Genesis.

Dish Wireless LTE Coverage

Dish does not have any LTE coverage.

It only offers 5G coverage.

If you are a Dish Wireless customer with an LTE device, then you will roam on either the AT&T or T-Mobile LTE networks for coverage.

Dish Wireless Coverage by State

State Total Coverage Great Coverage Good Coverage Poor Coverage
Alabama 11.1% 5.6% 3.8% 1.7%
Arizona 6.3% 2.0% 2.4% 1.9%
Arkansas 7.9% 3.7% 2.6% 1.6%
California 8.9% 1.9% 3.4% 3.6%
Colorado 5.1% 2.5% 1.8% 0.8%
Connecticut 44.7% 12.8% 20.8% 11.1%
Delaware 56.6% 25.2% 17.7% 13.8%
District of Columbia 94.0% 28.6% 55.4% 10.0%
Florida 31.3% 15.8% 10.5% 4.9%
Georgia 10.4% 4.5% 4.2% 1.7%
Idaho 2.7% 1.4% 0.8% 0.5%
Illinois 22.4% 10.0% 6.3% 6.0%
Indiana 24.3% 10.8% 7.3% 6.1%
Iowa 7.5% 2.6% 2.7% 2.2%
Kansas 3.3% 1.3% 1.0% 0.9%
Kentucky 7.2% 2.7% 2.6% 1.9%
Louisiana 15.0% 6.9% 4.3% 3.9%
Maine 0.9% 0.3% 0.4% 0.3%
Maryland 44.9% 18.9% 17.6% 8.4%
Massachusetts 18.8% 4.8% 8.2% 5.9%
Michigan 17.1% 9.2% 5.3% 2.6%
Minnesota 5.1% 2.0% 1.8% 1.3%
Mississippi 4.8% 2.6% 1.3% 0.9%
Missouri 6.2% 2.6% 2.4% 1.2%
Montana 0.6% 0.1% 0.2% 0.3%
Nebraska 2.9% 1.1% 0.9% 0.8%
Nevada 1.9% 0.9% 0.7% 0.3%
New Hampshire 3.6% 1.0% 1.5% 1.1%
New Jersey 62.9% 25.8% 24.6% 12.5%
New Mexico 2.3% 1.1% 0.7% 0.5%
New York 18.4% 8.4% 6.6% 3.4%
North Carolina 23.2% 10.4% 8.9% 3.9%
North Dakota 1.6% 0.4% 0.5% 0.7%
Ohio 28.5% 15.1% 8.0% 5.4%
Oklahoma 5.4% 2.2% 1.8% 1.5%
Oregon 4.7% 1.6% 1.8% 1.3%
Pennsylvania 26.8% 10.0% 11.9% 4.9%
Rhode Island 15.2% 2.7% 6.2% 6.2%
South Carolina 19.5% 7.9% 7.6% 4.0%
South Dakota 1.1% 0.4% 0.4% 0.3%
Tennessee 15.5% 7.4% 5.8% 2.4%
Texas 12.3% 5.3% 3.9% 3.1%
Utah 3.7% 1.6% 1.3% 0.9%
Vermont 1.3% 0.6% 0.4% 0.2%
Virginia 14.6% 6.0% 5.8% 2.8%
Washington 6.7% 2.4% 2.9% 1.4%
West Virginia 3.3% 1.3% 1.4% 0.5%
Wisconsin 16.0% 8.7% 4.7% 2.7%
Wyoming 0.7% 0.3% 0.2% 0.2%

Dish Wireless vs. T-Mobile Coverage

Dish Wireless has less coverage than T-Mobile does.

Dish only covers 8.5% of the land area in the U.S. with service.

T-Mobile, meanwhile, has as a seven times bigger coverage area. Its LTE network spans 59.5% of the U.S. and covers 99% of Americans. T-Mobile's 5G network is also the largest in the country. It covers 49.0% of the U.S.

That said, the irony here is Dish has a roaming agreement with T-Mobile, so Dish customers can use the T-Mobile network for coverage in areas where Dish does not offer native service.

This means Dish Wireless customers will effectively get identical coverage on Dish Wireless as they would on T-Mobile.

There is one exception though. T-Mobile has some domestic roaming agreements with small regional carriers in certain parts of the country. Dish does not have those same roaming agreements. In the few areas where T-Mobile has domestic roaming agreements and Dish lacks native 5G coverage, Dish customers will not have service.

You can also check our T-Mobile coverage map to see how T-Mobile service is in your area.

Dish Wireless vs. AT&T Coverage

AT&T has the largest coverage area of any carrier in the U.S. right now.

It covers a massive 74.6% of the U.S.

That is 8.7 times more coverage than Dish Wireless!

It is comical to compare the two networks:

There is a plot twist though:

Dish has a roaming agreement with AT&T. It is able to use the AT&T network for coverage in areas where the native Dish network does not yet have serivce.

In effect, Dish Wireless customers will have identical coverage to AT&T customers because they will be able to roam on the AT&T network.

And this is great news for Dish Wireless customers because AT&T’s 4G LTE and 5G networks are excellent. 

You can check AT&T coverage in your area using our AT&T coverage map.

Dish Wireless vs. Verizon Coverage

Dish has worse coverage than Verizon.

Dish covers 8.5% of the country while Verizon covers a massive 71.5% of the country.

There is basically no comparison.

Except... there is a catch.

Dish has a roaming agreement with AT&T, which means Dish customers are able to use the AT&T network for service in areas where Dish does not have native 5G coverage.

And AT&T has the most coverage in the country with 74.6% of the U.S. being covered.

This means Dish, when roaming on AT&T, would give you more coverage than Verizon:

In effect, the coverage between Dish and Verizon would not be too different.

You will get excellent coverage on both carriers.

Check Verizon coverage in your area using our Verizon coverage map.

Dish Wireless Coverage Frequently Asked Questions

Is Dish Wireless coverage good?

Dish Wireless is still building out its network, so it only covers a small portion of the U.S. right now. Thankfully, Dish has a roaming agreement with AT&T, so Dish customers are also able to use AT&T’s network for service. AT&T has great coverage in most locations.

Does Dish Wireless offer 5G?

Yes, Dish Wireless offers 5G. In fact, Dish is only building a 5G network! There will be no 4G LTE service available from Dish Wireless directly. Customers who connect to 4G LTE will be using AT&T’s network for service under Dish’s roaming agreement with AT&T.

Does Dish Wireless have coverage in Canada?

Yes, Dish Wireless offers coverage in Canada for an extra cost on its Boost Infinite service. Boost Infinite customers can purchase the North America Connect add-on for $5. The add-on includes unlimited talk, text, and 5GB of high-speed data in Canada.

Does Dish Wireless have coverage in Mexico?

Yes, Dish Wireless offers coverage in Mexico for an extra cost on its Boost Infinite service. Boost Infinite customers can purchase the North America Connect add-on for $5. The add-on includes unlimited talk, text, and 5GB of high-speed data in Mexico.

Does Dish Wireless have international coverage?

Dish Wireless currently does not offer international coverage.

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