Datasets
The FCC coverage, speed test and summary datasets, and the provider, technology and country codes you can request.
Every coverage lookup names the datasets it wants in the datasets field. Each dataset is returned per provider and technology for every location, and is billed separately, so ask only for what you use.
Choosing datasets
| Dataset code | Response field | Units per location | Returns |
|---|---|---|---|
fcc-coverage | fccCoverage | 1 | FCC modeled signal strength and the share of the area covered, at the location and within 0.5, 1 and 2 km. |
speed-tests | speedTest | 2 | Latency, download and upload statistics from real speed tests near the location. |
summary | summary | 1 | Overall, performance, coverage and reliability scores from 0 to 10. |
Dataset codes are not case sensitive and repeated codes are only counted once. The summary is built from the other two datasets behind the scenes, so you do not need to request them to get it.
FCC coverage
Sourced from the FCC Broadband Data Collection, where carriers report the coverage they provide, and processed into one queryable nationwide dataset so carriers can be compared.
- Updated to each new FCC release, twice a year, usually within 1 to 2 days of publication. Nothing changes on your side.
- Signal strength is in dBm, from -120 dBm (no signal) to -50 dBm (excellent).
- Coverage is the fraction of the area within each radius that is covered, from 0 to 1.
- Available for the United States only.
Speed tests
Real-world results from speed tests run in the CoverageMap app, on the website and with our open source tools, updated continuously. Tests near the location are summarised with the minimum, median, average and maximum of each metric, the number of tests behind them and how many tests failed.
- Latency is in milliseconds; download and upload speeds are in Mbps.
- An accuracy rating says how many tests were found and how close they were.
Summary scores
A quick answer to how a carrier performs at a location, without interpreting raw numbers. The summary weighs FCC coverage and nearby speed tests into four scores from 0 to 10 and says whether they were measured from tests or estimated from FCC data alone.
Providers
These carriers are available on every plan. A request with no providers returns them, plus any additional carriers enabled on your subscription:
| Code | Name in responses |
|---|---|
ATT | AT&T Mobility |
TMO | T-Mobile US |
VZW | Verizon Wireless |
Additional carriers, such as US Cellular and Boost Mobile, and regional providers are available on the Enterprise plan and are enabled on your subscription. The List providers endpoint always returns the exact list your key can request.
Technologies
| Code | Name in responses |
|---|---|
lte | LTE |
5g | 5GNR |
When a request has no technologies, every technology of a provider is combined into one result and technology is null in the response. Combined FCC values use the best of the technologies, and combined speed tests pool the tests of all of them.
Countries
Every subscription can query the United States, which is the default when country is left out. Other countries are enabled on your subscription by request; a country that is not enabled is rejected. The List countries endpoint always returns the exact list your key can request.
Note
FCC coverage, and so the FCC side of the summary, only exists for the United States.