Communication Spectral Efficiencies
| Service | Standard | Year | Mbit/s | MHz | SISO | MIMO | Reuse Factor | Spectral Efficiency |
| 1G cellular | NMT 450 modem | 1981 | 0.0012 | 0.025 | 0.45 | — | 1⁄7 | 0.064 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1G cellular | AMPS modem | 1983 | 0.0003 | 0.030 | 0.001 | — | 1⁄7 | 0.0015 |
| 2G cellular | GSM | 1991 | 0.013 × 8 timeslots = 0.104 | 0.2 | 0.52 | — | 1⁄9 (1⁄3 in 1999) | 0.17 (in 1999) |
| 2G cellular | D-AMPS | 1991 | 0.013 × 3 timeslots = 0.039 | 0.030 | 1.3 | — | 1⁄9 (1⁄3 in 1999) | 0.45 (in 1999) |
| 2.75G cellular | CDMA2000 1× voice | 2000 | 0.0096 per phone call × 22 calls | 1.2288 | 0.0078 per call | — | 1 | 0.172 (fully loaded) |
| 2.75G cellular | GSM + EDGE | 2003 | 0.384 (typ. 0.20) | 0.2 | 1.92 (typ. 1.00) | — | 1⁄3 | 0.33 |
| 2.75G cellular | IS-136HS + EDGE | 0.384 (typ. 0.27) | 0.200 | 1.92 (typ. 1.35) | — | 1⁄3 | 0.45 | |
| 3G cellular | WCDMA FDD | 2001 | 0.384 | 5 | 0.077 | — | 1 | 0.51 |
| 3G cellular | CDMA2000 1× PD | 2002 | 0.153 | 1.2288 | 0.125 | — | 1 | 0.1720 (fully loaded) |
| 3G cellular | CDMA2000 1×EV-DO Rev.A | 2002 | 3.072 | 1.2288 | 2.5 | — | 1 | 1.3 |
| Fixed WiMAX | IEEE 802.16d | 2004 | 96 | 20 | 4.8 | 1⁄4 | 1.2 | |
| 3.5G cellular | HSDPA | 2007 | 21.1 | 5 | 4.22 | 1 | 4.22 | |
| 4G MBWA | iBurst HC-SDMA | 2005 | 3.9 | 0.625 | 7.3 | 1 | 7.3 | |
| 4G cellular | LTE | 2009 | 81.6 | 20 | 4.08 | 16.32 (4×4) | 1 (1⁄3 at the peri-meters) | 16.32 |
| 4G cellular | LTE-Advanced | 2013 | 75 | 20 | 3.75 | 30.00 (8×8) | 1 (1⁄3 at the peri-meters) | 30 |
| Wi-Fi | IEEE 802.11a/g | 2003 | 54 | 20 | 2.7 | — | 1⁄3 | 0.900 |
| Wi-Fi | IEEE 802.11n (Wi-Fi 4) | 2007 | 72.2 (up to 150) | 20 (up to 40) | 3.61 (up to 3.75) | Up to 15.0 (4×4, 40 MHz) | 1⁄3 | 5.0 (4×4, 40 MHz) |
| Wi-Fi | IEEE 802.11ac (Wi-Fi 5) | 2012 | 433.3 (up to 866.7) | 80 (up to 160) | 5.42 | Up to 43.3 (8×8, 160 MHz) | 1⁄3 | 14.4 (8×8, 160 MHz) |
| Wi-Fi | IEEE 802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6) | 2019 | 600.5 (up to 1201) | 80 (up to 160) | 7.5 | Up to 60 (8×8, 160 MHz) | 1⁄3 | 20 (8×8, 160 MHz) |
| WiGig | IEEE 802.11ad | 2013 | 6756 | 2160 | 3 | — | 1 | 3 |
| Trunked radio system | TETRA, low FEC | 1998 | 4 timeslots = 0.019 (0.029 without FEC) | 0.025 | 0.8 | — | 1⁄7 | 0.1 |
| Trunked radio system | TETRA II with TEDS, 64-QAM, 150 kHz, low FEC | 2011 | 4 timeslots = 0.538 | 0.150 (scalable to 0.025) | 3.6 | — | ||
| Digital radio | DAB | 1995 | 0.576 to 1.152 | 1.712 | 0.34 to 0.67 | — | 1⁄5 | 0.07 to 0.13 |
| Digital radio | DAB with SFN | 1995 | 0.576 to 1.152 | 1.712 | 0.34 to 0.67 | — | 1 | 0.34 to 0.67 |
| Digital TV | DVB-T | 1997 | 31.67 (typ. 24) | 8 | 4.0 (typ. 3.0) | — | 1⁄7 | 0.57 |
| Digital TV | DVB-T with SFN | 1996 | 31.67 (typ. 24) | 8 | 4.0 (typ. 3.0) | — | 1 | 4.0 (typ. 3.0) |
| Digital TV | DVB-T2 | 2009 | 45.5 (typ. 40) | 8 | 5.7 (typ. 5.0) | — | 1⁄7 | 0.81 |
| Digital TV | DVB-T2 with SFN | 2009 | 45.5 (typ. 40) | 8 | 5.7 (typ. 5.0) | — | 1 | 5.7 (typ. 5.0) |
| Digital TV | DVB-S | 1995 | 33.8 for 5.1 C/N (44.4 for 7.8 C/N) | 27.5 | 1.2 (1.6) | — | 1⁄4 | 0.3 (0.4) |
| Digital TV | DVB-S2 | 2005 | 46 for 5.1 C/N (58.8 for 7.8 C/N) | 30 (typ.) | 1.5 (2.0) | — | 1⁄4 | 0.4 (0.5) |
| Digital TV | ATSC with DTx | 1996 | 32 | 19.39 | 1.6 | — | 1 | 3.23 |
| Digital TV | DVB-H | 2007 | 5.5 to 11 | 8 | 0.68 to 1.4 | — | 1⁄5 | 0.14 to 0.28 |
| Digital TV | DVB-H with SFN | 2007 | 5.5 to 11 | 8 | 0.68 to 1.4 | — | 1 | 0.68 to 1.4 |
| Digital cable TV | DVB-C 256-QAM mode | 1994 | 38 | 6 | 6.33 | — | — | — |
| Broadband CATV modem | DOCSIS 3.1 QAM-4096, 25 kHz OFDM spacing, LDPC | 2016 | 1890 | 192 | 9.84 | — | — | — |
| Broadband modem | ADSL2 downlink | 12 | 0.962 | 12.47 | — | — | — | |
| Broadband modem | ADSL2+ downlink | 28 | 2.109 | 13.59 | — | — | — | |
| Telephone modem | V.92 downlink | 1999 | 0.056 | 0.004 | 14.0 | — | — | — |