As mobile connectivity becomes increasingly central to everyday life—from streaming and social networking to business operations and smart mobility—mobile network quality is no longer just a convenience but a critical infrastructure element. In Croatia, where over 99% of the population uses mobile devices, choosing the right mobile operator can directly impact user experience and digital accessibility.

To bring transparency and insight into the performance of local telecom providers, the Croatian Regulatory Authority for Network Industries (HAKOM) commissioned a comprehensive independent assessment of the country’s mobile networks. The testing, conducted in April and May 2025 by the specialized firm Commsquare Hellas, provides an in-depth snapshot of network quality across 31 cities and more than 5,000 kilometers of roads, covering over half of Croatia’s population. The methodology aligns with the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) guidelines, ensuring objectivity and international comparability.

The recently published results—analyzed by both HAKOM and Croatian business media outlet Poslovni dnevnik—confirm that all three major operators in Croatia (Hrvatski Telekom, A1 Hrvatska, and Telemach) deliver high-quality mobile services. However, the data also reveals a clear leader, with one operator outperforming the others across all major categories, including download and upload speeds, voice call quality, network stability, and interactive service performance.

Ranking across key performance categories

All three operators scored exceptionally high, showcasing minimal differences:

• Speech services: HT leads in all environments—large cities, smaller towns, and roads—with the best call setup success (99.2%), followed by A1 (98.9%) and Telemach (97.9%). Voice quality ratings were above 4.6/5 across the board.
• Data services (weighted as 60% of total score): HT also dominates, scoring 522/600; Telemach scores 509, and A1 scores 482. HT maintained the highest speeds even at the 10th percentile (51 Mbps).

Category breakdown

By geography

• Large cities: HT 192 pts, A1 185, Telemach 175
• Smaller towns: HT 116, A1 113, Telemach 104
• Roads/autoceste: HT 73, A1 66, Telemach 64

Interactive services (e‑gaming)

• HT & Telemach tied at 57 points; A1 scored 53
• Average e‑gaming quality: HT 37, Telemach 32, A1 15
• Highest page load success and speed: HT (99.5 % success, 0.9s load), followed by Telemach (98.9 %, 1.0s) and A1 (98.6 %, 1.2s)
• Video streaming quality (e.g., YouTube HD) rated at 4.42/5 for all operators

Trends and comparisons

• Compared to last year, all three networks improved significantly and now match or exceed European standards.
• The performance gap between HT and the others is narrowing, though HT still leads overall and across all categories.

Conclusion

The latest independent testing confirms that Croatia’s mobile networks are not only competitive among themselves but also meet and, in some areas, exceed European benchmarks for quality. While all three major providers—Hrvatski Telekom, A1, and Telemach—deliver solid performance across key categories, Hrvatski Telekom clearly stands out as the overall leader, showing consistently strong results in voice, data, and web services.

At the same time, the improvements shown by A1 and Telemach demonstrate a healthy, competitive market that continues to invest in better infrastructure and user experience. For consumers, this means more reliable connections, faster internet, and better service coverage, whether in big cities, smaller towns, or while traveling across Croatia.

As digital needs grow and technologies like 5G continue to expand, ongoing assessments like this one will remain essential for maintaining transparency and helping users make informed decisions. Croatia’s telecom landscape is moving in the right direction—becoming faster, more stable, and more responsive to the demands of modern mobile life.