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⚠ The Broadband-Only HouseholdModerate threat

T-Mobile US (TMUS) — threat to the moat

T-Mobile's broadband-only accounts lack the phones and instalment plans that make accounts sticky, and they are raising churn.

T-Mobile's broadband push changes what an account is. The company had 9,447 thousand broadband customers at the end of 2025, of which 8,450 thousand were 5G broadband1, and it targets 15 million 5G broadband and 3-4 million fiber customers by 20302.

T-Mobile broadband customers, end-2025 (thousands)8,4505G broadband997Other broadbandT-Mobile US Q4 2025 earnings release; total 9,447 thousand
Mostly fixed wireless, a little fiber.

Many of these households take only internet. T-Mobile attributes its rise in account churn to "Higher average broadband-only accounts"3. A broadband-only account lacks the phone lines and instalment plans that make the classic T-Mobile account hard to leave.

The broadband base grew quickly at the end of 2025. Total broadband customers were 8,889 thousand at the end of September and 9,447 thousand at the end of December4, against 6,439 thousand a year earlier5. Most of that is fixed wireless sold to households that may have no T-Mobile phone.

Fixed wireless also uses the same network as phones. Every household on 5G broadband takes capacity that could carry mobile traffic, which is why T-Mobile can sell it only where it has room. Its target of 15 million 5G broadband customers by 20306 is a statement about spare capacity as much as about demand.

The pace of broadband additions is still rising. T-Mobile added 1,662 thousand broadband customers in 2024 and 2,015 thousand in 20257. Each year more of the new accounts are households whose only link to T-Mobile is a router.

The broadband growth helps revenue and weakens the average stickiness of the base. Should account churn keep rising as broadband grows, the account will be a weaker unit of loyalty than it was when it meant a family of phones.

References
  1. ReportedThe company had 9,447 thousand broadband customers at the end of 2025, of which 8,450 thousand were 5G broadband, and it targets 15 million 5G broadband and 3-4 million fiber customers by 2030.
    T-Mobile US fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 results release, Form 8-K exhibit 99.1 - broadband customers, shareholder returns of $14.0 billion in 2025 and the network-award record. — FY2025 · publ. 11 February 2026 · source ↗
  2. ReportedThe company had 9,447 thousand broadband customers at the end of 2025, of which 8,450 thousand were 5G broadband, and it targets 15 million 5G broadband and 3-4 million fiber customers by 2030.
    T-Mobile US Capital Markets Day Update, Form 8-K exhibit 99.1, 11 February 2026 - 2026-2027 targets, broadband 2030 targets, the digital and AI contribution, the network-seeker opportunity and the capital envelope. — February 2026 · publ. 11 February 2026 · source ↗
  3. ReportedT-Mobile attributes its rise in account churn to "Higher average broadband-only accounts".
    T-Mobile US Investor Factbook for Q2 2026, Form 8-K exhibit 99.2 - quarterly revenue lines, postpaid accounts, churn, ARPA and its drivers, upgrade rate, bad debt, margins, balance sheet and leverage ratios - postpaid accounts, account churn, ARPA and its drivers, and the upgrade rate. — Q2 2026 · publ. 23 July 2026 · source ↗
  4. ReportedTotal broadband customers were 8,889 thousand at the end of September and 9,447 thousand at the end of December, against 6,439 thousand a year earlier.
    T-Mobile US fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 results release, Form 8-K exhibit 99.1 - broadband customers, shareholder returns of $14.0 billion in 2025 and the network-award record. — FY2025 · publ. 11 February 2026 · source ↗
  5. ReportedTotal broadband customers were 8,889 thousand at the end of September and 9,447 thousand at the end of December, against 6,439 thousand a year earlier.
    T-Mobile US fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 results release, Form 8-K exhibit 99.1 - broadband customers, shareholder returns of $14.0 billion in 2025 and the network-award record. — FY2025 · publ. 11 February 2026 · source ↗
  6. ReportedIts target of 15 million 5G broadband customers by 2030 is a statement about spare capacity as much as about demand.
    T-Mobile US Capital Markets Day Update, Form 8-K exhibit 99.1, 11 February 2026 - 2026-2027 targets, broadband 2030 targets, the digital and AI contribution, the network-seeker opportunity and the capital envelope. — February 2026 · publ. 11 February 2026 · source ↗
  7. ReportedT-Mobile added 1,662 thousand broadband customers in 2024 and 2,015 thousand in 2025.
    T-Mobile US fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 results release, Form 8-K exhibit 99.1 - broadband customers, shareholder returns of $14.0 billion in 2025 and the network-award record. — FY2025 · publ. 11 February 2026 · source ↗
Sources
Generated October 6, 2026