Microwave Communication Statistics: Band Allocations, Link Counts, and 5G Backhaul Scale
Microwave communication is a spectrum story, a licensing story, and a network-capacity story all at once. The figures below show how crowded the band landscape has become, how large the installed base is, and why microwave still sits inside modern backhaul planning.
Table of contents
- Fast facts
- Microwave communication spectrum by band
- Licensing and deployment counts
- What the FCC tables reveal about use patterns
- Global microwave backhaul and 5G context
- What the numbers suggest for planners
Fast facts
At a glance, microwave communication statistics point to scale, congestion, and diversity of use. The most visible pattern is that the same bands can support fixed service, satellite service, mobile service, broadcast auxiliary, and point-to-point microwave operations depending on the allocation and licensing framework (FCC 22-80).
Key takeaways:
- The 12.7 GHz band spans 550 MHz from 12.7 GHz to 13.25 GHz (FCC 22-80).
- The U-NII-5 sub-band spans 500 MHz from 5.925 GHz to 6.425 GHz (FCC 24-125).
- FCC databases showed 31,942 fixed microwave link call signs in U-NII-5 as of September 19, 2024 (FCC 24-125).
- Ericsson says microwave backhaul now supports 75 percent of live 5G networks globally (Ericsson Microwave Outlook 2025).
- Ericsson says the installed base of microwave transceivers has risen to approximately 10.5 million (Ericsson Microwave Outlook 2025).
Microwave communication spectrum by band
A useful way to read the dataset is to separate the question of where microwave sits from the question of how heavily it is used. The band definitions show how much spectrum is available, while the license counts show how intensely those ranges are occupied.
The 12.7 GHz band in the FCC record
The 12.7 GHz band is one of the clearest examples of mixed use. According to FCC 22-80, the band spans 550 MHz from 12.7 GHz to 13.25 GHz, and it is allocated on a primary basis to the Fixed Service (FS), Fixed Satellite Service (FSS) Earth-to-space, and Mobile Service (MS) in the United States.
That combination matters because a band with multiple primary allocations needs more than one planning lens. The same slice of spectrum can support terrestrial point-to-point links, satellite earth-to-space operations, and mobile uses depending on the licensing context and technical rules (FCC 22-80).
The FCC record also shows a dense licensing footprint in this band:
- About 1,936 terrestrial service call signs in the 12.7 GHz band (FCC 22-80).
- Those terrestrial authorizations cover about 2,165 fixed point-to-point paths (FCC 22-80).
- About 453 licenses authorize mobile TV pickup operations in the band (FCC 22-80).
- 27 FSS space station call signs use the band (FCC 22-80).
- 43 FSS earth station call signs appear in the band (FCC 22-80).
That is already a lot of activity for one band segment, but the broadcast and specialized microwave categories add even more texture.
Licensing and deployment counts
A licensing-heavy band with several operating classes
The 12.7 GHz statistics also show how licensing categories split across operational roles. FCC 22-80 reports:
- About 1,697 BAS call signs in the 12.7 GHz band.
- Those BAS licenses cover about 1,172 fixed BAS paths.
- About 15 fixed CARS licenses in the band.
- About 224 Part 101 fixed point-to-point microwave call signs.
- Those Part 101 fixed point-to-point microwave licenses cover about 437 paths.
- About 112 common carrier fixed point-to-point microwave licenses.
- Those common carrier licenses authorize about 217 paths.
- About 89 private operational fixed microwave licenses.
- Those private operational licenses authorize about 197 paths.
The private operational group also breaks down further:
- 28 public safety pool MW licenses authorize 50 paths (FCC 22-80).
- 61 Industrial/Business Pool MG licenses authorize 147 paths (FCC 22-80).
That split tells you the band is not dominated by a single use case. It is instead shared across broadcast auxiliary, common carrier, private operational, and special-purpose licensing buckets (FCC 22-80).
A compact view of the FCC counts
| Category | Count or coverage | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Terrestrial service call signs | 1,936 call signs | FCC 22-80 |
| Fixed point-to-point paths | 2,165 paths | FCC 22-80 |
| Mobile TV pickup licenses | 453 licenses | FCC 22-80 |
| BAS call signs | 1,697 call signs | FCC 22-80 |
| Fixed BAS paths | 1,172 paths | FCC 22-80 |
| Part 101 fixed microwave call signs | 224 call signs | FCC 22-80 |
| Common carrier fixed microwave licenses | 112 licenses | FCC 22-80 |
| Private operational fixed microwave licenses | 89 licenses | FCC 22-80 |
The point of the table is not to rank one category as more important than another. It is to show how many different operational classes are active in the same band segment.
What the FCC tables reveal about use patterns
The later FCC table gives a broader view across the 5.925 GHz to 7.125 GHz range and the U-NII sub-bands. Here the dataset shifts from band definition to call-sign density.
U-NII-5, U-NII-6, U-NII-7, and U-NII-8
FCC 24-125 defines the sub-bands like this:
- U-NII-5 spans 500 MHz from 5.925 GHz to 6.425 GHz.
- U-NII-6 spans 100 MHz from 6.425 GHz to 6.525 GHz.
- U-NII-7 spans 350 MHz from 6.525 GHz to 6.875 GHz.
- U-NII-8 spans 250 MHz from 6.875 GHz to 7.125 GHz.
The same source says FCC databases showed the following fixed microwave link call signs as of September 19, 2024:
- 31,942 in U-NII-5.
- 353 in U-NII-6.
- 16,241 in U-NII-7.
- 5,110 in U-NII-8.
That distribution is highly uneven. U-NII-5 has the largest count by far, while U-NII-6 is small relative to the others. The shape of the table suggests that occupancy and historical licensing patterns differ sharply across sub-bands, even before you get into application-specific distinctions (FCC 24-125).
A comparison of the U-NII fixed-link counts
| Sub-band | Spectrum width | Fixed microwave link call signs | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| U-NII-5 | 500 MHz | 31,942 | FCC 24-125 |
| U-NII-6 | 100 MHz | 353 | FCC 24-125 |
| U-NII-7 | 350 MHz | 16,241 | FCC 24-125 |
| U-NII-8 | 250 MHz | 5,110 | FCC 24-125 |
A few practical observations follow from the counts alone:
- U-NII-5 combines the widest span in this group with the largest call-sign count.
- U-NII-6 is the narrowest U-NII segment in the set and also shows the smallest fixed-link count.
- U-NII-7 carries a materially larger load than U-NII-8 even though the bandwidth difference is not extreme.
Because this is a statistics article, the safest interpretation is descriptive rather than causal. The numbers show concentration, not the reason for it.
Global microwave backhaul and 5G context
The FCC data describe licensing density. Ericsson’s figures add the network perspective.
Microwave is still embedded in live 5G networks
Ericsson Microwave Outlook 2025 says microwave backhaul now supports 75 percent of live 5G networks globally. That is a large share for a transport layer that is sometimes treated as a fallback option rather than a primary design choice.
Ericsson also says the installed base of microwave transceivers has risen to approximately 10.5 million. The same source notes that the installed base was 10 million in the 2022 edition, implying roughly 0.5 million additional transceivers by 2025 (Ericsson Microwave Outlook 2025).
That growth matters because it suggests a platform with both scale and persistence. Even where fiber is attractive, microwave remains part of the live network inventory.
The band mix inside the installed base
Ericsson Microwave Outlook 2025 gives several useful distribution points:
- E-band transceivers account for approximately 8 percent of the global installed base.
- E-band accounted for about 6 percent in 2022.
- E-band has deployments in all regions globally.
- E-band in India currently holds a 3.5 percent share of the installed base.
- The regional E-band share ranges from just a couple of percent to around 25 percent.
- The 32 GHz band now represents more than 2 percent of the global installed base.
- The 32 GHz band ranges from close to 0 percent in some areas to about 7 percent in others.
- Bands between 6 GHz and 11 GHz hold around 25 percent of the global market share.
- The 6 GHz to 11 GHz band share varies regionally from a few percent to nearly 65 percent.
- The 6 GHz to 8 GHz subset stands near 18 percent globally.
- More than 60 percent of links in North America are in the 6 GHz to 11 GHz bands (Ericsson Microwave Outlook 2025).
These percentages point to a layered market rather than a single-band market. Lower microwave ranges still account for a large share in some regions, while higher-capacity options such as E-band continue to expand.
What the numbers suggest for planners
If you are reading these statistics as a network planner, policy analyst, or spectrum strategist, three ideas stand out.
1. Microwave communication is not a niche transport layer
The global scale alone says otherwise. 75 percent of live 5G networks using microwave backhaul and an installed base of about 10.5 million transceivers indicate a large operational footprint (Ericsson Microwave Outlook 2025).
That scale aligns with the FCC counts, where the same general spectrum ecosystem supports thousands of call signs, paths, and licenses across multiple service categories (FCC 22-80; FCC 24-125).
2. Spectrum occupancy is uneven and band-specific
The FCC data show strong concentration in certain sub-bands, especially U-NII-5 with 31,942 fixed microwave link call signs, while U-NII-6 shows only 353 (FCC 24-125). That gap is too large to ignore if you are looking at deployment patterns, migration pressure, or upgrade strategy.
The 12.7 GHz band also shows how one band can support many separate operational classes at once, from BAS and CARS to common carrier and private operational microwave use (FCC 22-80).
3. The market is regionally mixed, not uniform
Ericsson’s figures repeatedly show wide regional variation:
- E-band share ranges from a couple of percent to around 25 percent.
- The 32 GHz band ranges from close to 0 percent to about 7 percent.
- The 6 GHz to 11 GHz band share ranges from a few percent to nearly 65 percent.
That spread suggests that one global microwave strategy will not fit every region. The right answer depends on local spectrum conditions, rain assumptions, band availability, and existing installed base patterns, all of which are reflected indirectly in the statistics provided (Ericsson Microwave Outlook 2025).
Fast facts for reference
- 12.7 GHz band width: 550 MHz (FCC 22-80)
- U-NII-5 band width: 500 MHz (FCC 24-125)
- U-NII-6 band width: 100 MHz (FCC 24-125)
- U-NII-7 band width: 350 MHz (FCC 24-125)
- U-NII-8 band width: 250 MHz (FCC 24-125)
- Global microwave transceiver installed base: about 10.5 million (Ericsson Microwave Outlook 2025)
- Live 5G networks supported by microwave backhaul: 75 percent globally (Ericsson Microwave Outlook 2025)
- E-band share of installed base: about 8 percent (Ericsson Microwave Outlook 2025)
- 6 GHz to 11 GHz share of global market: around 25 percent (Ericsson Microwave Outlook 2025)
- North America links in 6 GHz to 11 GHz: more than 60 percent (Ericsson Microwave Outlook 2025)
Why this dataset is useful
The value of microwave communication statistics is that they connect policy, licensing, and deployment in one view. The FCC entries show how crowded certain bands and service classes have become. The Ericsson figures show that microwave is still actively carrying a large share of live mobile-network backhaul and that the installed base is still expanding.
For anyone comparing band options, the most useful habit is to keep the figures separated by source and by metric:
- Use FCC counts when you want licensing density or band occupancy.
- Use Ericsson percentages when you want installed-base mix or network-level adoption.
- Compare widths, counts, and shares side by side before drawing a deployment conclusion.
That approach keeps the statistics grounded and prevents the band story from being oversimplified.