# GSM frequency bands

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International Telecommunication Union-approved frequency bands for GSM

**GSM frequency bands** or frequency ranges are the [cellular frequencies](/source/Cellular_frequencies) designated by the [ITU](/source/International_Telecommunication_Union) for the operation of [GSM](/source/GSM) [mobile phones](/source/Mobile_phone) and other [mobile devices](/source/Mobile_device).

## Frequency bands

GSM frequency bands GSM band ƒ (MHz) Uplink (MHz) (mobile to base) Downlink (MHz) (base to mobile) Channel numbers Equivalent LTE band / NR band Regional deployments T-GSM-380[a] 380 380.2 – 389.8 390.2 – 399.8 dynamic None None T-GSM-410[a] 410 410.2 – 419.8 420.2 – 429.8 dynamic 87/88 None GSM-450 450 450.6 – 457.6 460.6 – 467.6 259–293 31/72/73 None GSM-480 480 479.0 – 486.0 489.0 – 496.0 306–340 None None GSM-710 710 698.2 – 716.2 728.2 – 746.2 dynamic 12/85 None GSM-750 750 777.2 – 792.2 747.2 – 762.2 438–511 None None T-GSM-810[a] 810 806.2 – 821.2 851.2 – 866.2 dynamic 27 None GSM-850 850 824.2 – 848.8 869.2 – 893.8 128–251 5 CALA,[b] NAR[c] P-GSM-900[d] 900 890.0 – 915.0 935.0 – 960.0 1–124 8 (subset) None deprecated E-GSM-900[e] 900 880.0 – 915.0 925.0 – 960.0 0–124, 975–1023 8 APAC,[f] EMEA[g] R-GSM-900[h] 900 876.0 – 915.0 921.0 – 960.0 0–124, 955–1023 8/100 APAC,[f] EMEA[g] used for GSM-R T-GSM-900[a] 900 870.4 – 876.0 915.4 – 921.0 dynamic None None DCS-1800[i] 1800 1710.2 – 1784.8 1805.2 – 1879.8 512–885 3 APAC,[f] EMEA[g] PCS-1900[j] 1900 1850.2 – 1909.8 1930.2 – 1989.8 512–810 2/25 CALA,[b] NAR[c]

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-t-gsm_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-t-gsm_1-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-t-gsm_1-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-t-gsm_1-3) T-GSM is [Trunking](/source/Trunked_radio_system)-GSM.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-cala_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-cala_2-1) CALA: [Canada](/source/Canada), [US](/source/United_States), [Caribbean](/source/Caribbean), and [Latin America](/source/Latin_America)

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-nar_3-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-nar_3-1) NAR: North American Region

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** P-GSM is the standard or primary GSM-900 band

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** E-GSM is the extended GSM-900 band: a superset of the standard GSM-900 band.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-apac_6-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-apac_6-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-apac_6-2) APAC: [Asia-Pacific](/source/Asia-Pacific)

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-emea_7-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-emea_7-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-emea_7-2) EMEA: [Europe, the Middle East and Africa](/source/Europe%2C_the_Middle_East_and_Africa)

1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** R-GSM, or [GSM-R](/source/GSM-R), is the Railways GSM-900 band, which also includes the standard and extended GSM-900 bands.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-9)** DCS: [Digital Cellular System](/source/Digital_Cellular_System)

1. **[^](#cite_ref-10)** PCS: [Personal Communications Service](/source/Personal_Communications_Service)

## GSM frequency usage around the world

A dual-band 900/1800 device is required to be compatible with most networks apart from deployments in [ITU Region](/source/ITU_Region) 2.

### GSM-900, EGSM/EGSM-900 and GSM-1800

GSM-900 and GSM-1800 are used in most parts of the world (ITU-Regions 1 and 3): [Africa](/source/Africa), [Europe](/source/Europe), [Middle East](/source/Middle_East), [Asia](/source/Asia) (apart from [Japan](/source/Japan) and [South Korea](/source/South_Korea) where [GSM](/source/GSM) has never been introduced) and [Oceania](/source/Oceania).

In common, GSM-900 is most widely used. Fewer operators use GSM-1800. [Mobile Communication Services on Aircraft](/source/Mobile_phones_on_aircraft) (MCA) uses GSM-1800.[1]

In some countries, GSM-1800 is also referred to as "Digital Cellular System" (DCS).[2]

### GSM-850 and GSM-1900

GSM-1900 and GSM-850 are used in most of North, South and Central America (ITU-Region 2). In North America, GSM operates on the primary mobile communication bands 850 MHz and 1900 MHz. In [Canada](/source/Canada), GSM-1900 is the primary band used in urban areas with 850 as a backup, and GSM-850 being the primary rural band. In the [United States](/source/United_States), regulatory requirements determine which area can use which band.

The term *Cellular* is sometimes used to describe GSM services in the 850 MHz band, because the original [analog](/source/Analog_signal) cellular mobile communication system was allocated in this spectrum. Further GSM-850 is also sometimes called *GSM-800* because this frequency range was known as the "800 MHz band" (for simplification) when it was first allocated for [AMPS](/source/Advanced_Mobile_Phone_System) in the United States in 1983. In [North America](/source/North_America) GSM-1900 is also referred to as [Personal Communications Service](/source/Personal_Communications_Service) (PCS) like any other cellular system operating on the "1900 MHz band".

### Frequency mixing between GSM 900/1800 and GSM 850/1900

Some countries in Central and South America have allocated spectrum in the 900 MHz and 1800 MHz bands for GSM in addition to the common GSM deployments at 850 MHz and 1900 MHz for ITU-Region 2 (Americas). The result therefore is a mixture of usage in the Americas that requires travelers to confirm that the devices they have are compatible with the bands of the network at their destination. [Frequency compatibility](/source/Frequency_compatibility) problems can be avoided through the use of multi-band (tri-band or, especially, quad-band) device.

The following countries are mixing GSM 900/1800 and GSM 850/1900 bands:[3]

Countries that mix GSM 900/1800 and GSM 850/1900 bands Region Country/Territory GSM-850 GSM-1900 GSM-900 GSM-1800 Caribbean Antigua and Barbuda Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao Barbados British Virgin Islands Cayman Islands Dominica Dominican Republic Grenada Haiti Jamaica Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Turks and Caicos Islands Central America Costa Rica El Salvador Guatemala South America Brazil Uruguay Venezuela

### GSM-450

Another less common GSM version is GSM-450.[4] It uses the same band as, and can co-exist with, old analog [NMT](/source/Nordic_Mobile_Telephone) systems. NMT is a first generation ([1G](/source/1G)) mobile system which was primarily used in [Nordic countries](/source/Nordic_countries), [Benelux](/source/Benelux), [Alpine Countries](/source/Alpine_states), [Eastern Europe](/source/Eastern_Europe) and [Russia](/source/Russia) prior to the introduction of GSM. The [GSM Association](/source/GSM_Association) claims one of its around 680 operator-members has a license to operate a GSM 450 network in [Tanzania](/source/Tanzania). However, currently all active public operators in Tanzania use GSM 900/1800 MHz. There are no publicly advertised handsets for GSM-450 available.

Very few NMT-450 networks remain in operation. Overall, where the 450 MHz NMT band has been licensed, the original analogue network has been closed, and sometimes replaced by [CDMA](/source/CDMA2000). Some of the CDMA networks have since upgraded from CDMA to [LTE](/source/LTE_(telecommunication)) (LTE band 31).

## Multi-band and multi-mode phones

Today, most telephones support multiple bands as used in different countries to facilitate [roaming](/source/Roaming). These are typically referred to as multi-band phones. Dual-band phones can cover GSM networks in pairs such as 900 and 1800 MHz frequencies (Europe, Asia, Australia and Brazil) or 850 and 1900 (North America and Brazil). European tri-band phones typically cover the 900, 1800 and 1900 bands giving good coverage in Europe and allowing limited use in North America, while North American tri-band phones utilize 850, 1800 and 1900 for widespread North American service but limited worldwide use. A new addition has been the quad-band phone, also known as a World Phone,[5] supporting at least all four major GSM bands, allowing for global use (excluding non-GSM countries such as Japan, South Korea and as well countries where 2G system was shut down to release frequencies and spectrum for LTE networks like Australia (since 2017), Singapore and Taiwan (since 2018).

There are also multi-mode phones which can operate on GSM as well as on other mobile phone systems using other technical standards or proprietary technologies. Often these phones use multiple frequency bands as well. For example, one version of the Nokia 6340i [GAIT](/source/GAIT_(wireless)) phone sold in North America can operate on GSM-1900, GSM-850 and legacy [TDMA](/source/Digital_AMPS)-1900, TDMA-800, and [AMPS](/source/Advanced_Mobile_Phone_System)-800, making it both multi-mode and multi-band. As a more recent example the Apple [iPhone 5](/source/IPhone_5) and [iPhone 4S](/source/IPhone_4S) support quad-band GSM at 850/900/1800/1900 MHz, quad-band UMTS/HSDPA/HSUPA at 850/900/1900/2100 MHz, and dual-band [CDMA](/source/CDMA2000) [EV-DO](/source/Evolution-Data_Optimized) Rev. An at 800/1900 MHz, for a total of 'six' different frequencies (though at most four in a single mode). This allows the same handset to be sold for [AT&T Mobility](/source/AT%26T_Mobility), [Verizon](/source/Verizon_Wireless), and [Sprint](/source/Sprint_Corporation) in the U.S. as well as a broad range of GSM carriers worldwide such as [Vodafone](/source/Vodafone), [Orange](/source/Orange_S.A.) and [T-Mobile](/source/T-Mobile_International_AG) (Excluding-US), many of whom offer official unlocking.

## See also

- [3GPP](/source/3GPP)

- [Cellular frequencies](/source/Cellular_frequencies)

- [Global Positioning System](/source/Global_Positioning_System)

- [Roaming](/source/Roaming)

- [UMTS frequency bands](/source/UMTS_frequency_bands)

- [LTE frequency bands](/source/LTE_frequency_bands)

- [5G NR frequency bands](/source/5G_NR_frequency_bands)

- [CDMA frequency bands](/source/CDMA_frequency_bands)

- [2008 United States wireless spectrum auction](/source/2008_United_States_wireless_spectrum_auction)

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-11)** [EUROPA - PRESS RELEASES - Press release - Commission Decisions on Mobile Communication Services on Aircraft - Frequently Asked Questions](http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=MEMO/08/220&format=HTML&aged=1&language=EN&guiLanguage=en). Europa.eu. Retrieved on 2013-09-18.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-12)** Ramsdale, P.A.; Hadden, A.D.; Gaskell, P.S. (December 1991). [*DCS1800-the standard for PCN*](https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/140234). 1991 Sixth International Conference on Mobile Radio and Personal Communications. pp. 175–181.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-13)** ["GSM Bands information by country"](https://www.worldtimezone.com/gsm.html). WorldTimeZone.com. 2016-01-16. Retrieved 2016-02-06.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-14)** [neon lite, Nokia Eye 450 MHz GSM technology](https://www.cdrinfo.com/Sections/News/Print.aspx?NewsId=15254)

1. **[^](#cite_ref-15)** ["International Cell Phones"](https://web.archive.org/web/20140304020052/http://www.cellhire.com/products/international/cell-phone/international). Cellhire. Archived from [the original](http://www.cellhire.com/products/international/cell-phone/international) on 4 March 2014. Retrieved 3 September 2013.

## External links

- [LDpost.com – History of GSM and More](https://web.archive.org/web/20080517095542/http://www.ldpost.com/telecom-articles/History-of-GSM-and-More.html) GSM history, technology, bands, multi-band phones

- [3GPP Specification detail TS 05.05](http://www.3gpp.org/ftp/Specs/html-info/0505.htm) Specification 3GPP TS 05.05 Radio Transmission and Reception

- [3GPP Specification detail TS 45.005](http://www.3gpp.org/ftp/Specs/html-info/45005.htm) Specification 3GPP TS 45.005 Radio Transmission and Reception

- [3GPP Specifications for group: R4](http://www.3gpp.org/ftp/Specs/html-info/TSG-WG--R4.htm) – Frequencies info for UMTS (TS 25.101/102/104/105)

v t e Cellular network standards List of mobile phone generations 0G radio telephones (1946) MTS IMTS Altai OLT MTA - MTB - MTC - MTD AMTS Autotel (PALM) ARP B-Netz AMR 1G (1979) AMPS family AMPS - N-AMPS TACS - ETACS Other NMT C-450 Hicap Mobitex DataTAC CT1 RTMI 2G (1991) GSM/3GPP family GSM CSD - HSCSD 3GPP2 family cdmaOne (IS-95) AMPS family D-AMPS (IS-54 and IS-136) Other CDPD iDEN PDC PHS CT2 2G transitional (2.5G, 2.75G, 2.9G) GSM/3GPP family GPRS EDGE/EGPRS - Evolved EDGE 3GPP2 family CDMA2000 1X (TIA/EIA/IS-2000) CDMA2000 1X Advanced Other WiDEN DECT 3G (1998) IMT-2000 (2001) 3GPP family UMTS UTRA-FDD / W-CDMA FOMA UTRA-TDD LCR / TD-SCDMA UTRA-TDD HCR / TD-CDMA 3GPP2 family CDMA2000 1xEV-DO Release 0 (TIA/IS-856) 3G transitional (3.5G, 3.75G, 3.9G) 3GPP family HSPA HSDPA HSUPA HSPA+ DC-HSDPA LTE (E-UTRA) 3GPP2 family CDMA2000 1xEV-DO Revision A (TIA/EIA/IS-856-A) EV-DO Revision B (TIA/EIA/IS-856-B) EV-DO Revision C IEEE family Mobile WiMAX IEEE 802.16e Flash-OFDM iBurst (IEEE 802.20) WiBro ETSI family HiperMAN 4G (2009) IMT Advanced (2013) 3GPP family LTE Advanced (E-UTRA) LTE Advanced Pro (4.5G/4.9G) IEEE family WiMAX (IEEE 802.16m) WiMax 2.1 WiBro 5G (2018) IMT-2020 (2021) 3GPP family 5G NR 5G-Advanced (5.5G) 5G RedCap LTE-M NB-IoT Other DECT-2020 Related articles Cellular networks Mobile telephony History Comparison of standards Channel access methods FDMA OFDMA TDMA STDMA SSMA CDMA SDMA Spectral efficiency comparison table Frequency bands GSM UMTS LTE 5G NR CDMA Mobile broadband Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Service NGMN Alliance Push-to-talk MIMO IMS VoLTE ViLTE VoNR ViNR Wi-Fi Calling Osmocom Telecommunication portal Telephones portal

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [GSM frequency bands](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GSM_frequency_bands) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GSM_frequency_bands?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.