As of March 2021, there are over 33 million wireless subscriptions in Canada. [1] Approximately 90% of Canadian mobile phone users subscribe to one of the four largest national telecommunication companies (Rogers Wireless, Bell Mobility, Freedom Mobile and Telus Mobility) or one of their subsidiary brands. These four mobile network operators own and operate transmission facilities that cover most of the country, though they sometimes share each other's networks in certain geographical regions in order to reduce costs and reach more customers.
The remaining 10% of subscribers are served by smaller, regional providers, mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs), and resellers. [2] Regional providers own and operate transmission facilities that cover a limited area and rely on partnerships with national service providers to connect their customers across Canada. In contrast, MVNOs and resellers do not own spectrum or network infrastructure and are required to lease network capacity from other providers at wholesale rates. While MVNOs have their own facilities to package and support their mobile services, resellers rely on the host network provider to package, market, bill, and deliver mobile services. [3]
All wireless service providers in Canada are regulated by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), which has been blamed by some for the concentration of wireless service subscribers to only three large national carriers. Though measures have been taken to encourage more competition, critics suggest that more should be done to address the issue, e.g. by mandating wholesale network access for MVNOs. [4] [5]
This is a list of mobile network operators, which includes national and regional service providers. Where applicable, this list will also include any subsidiary "extension" brands associated with a mobile service provider. While primary brands, such as Rogers Wireless or Bell Mobility, account for roughly 82% of wireless revenue, extension brands allow wireless service providers to differentiate service offerings and reach broader market segments. [6]
Operator | Subscribers (in millions) | Coverage (excluding roaming) | Ownership |
---|---|---|---|
Bell Mobility | 10.206 (Q1 2024) | Nationwide [note 1] | BCE Inc. |
Eastlink Wireless | 0.075 (Q4 2015) | NB, NL, NS, ON, PE, AB | Eastlink |
Iristel | NU, NT, YT, QC | Iristel | |
K-Net Mobile | Remote ON [7] [8] Communities | Keewaytinook Okimakanak | |
Rogers Wireless | 11.504 (Q1 2024) | All provinces | Rogers Communications |
SaskTel Mobility | 0.654 (Q4 2022) | Saskatchewan | SaskTel |
Sogetel Mobilité | Quebec | Sogetel | |
SSi Canada | Quebec, Nunavut | SSi Canada | |
TbayTel Mobility | Ontario | TbayTel | |
Telus Mobility | 9.846 (Q1 2024) | Nationwide [note 1] | Telus Corporation |
Québecor | 3.825 (Q1 2024) | QC, ON, BC, AB, MB | Québecor |
Operator | Network | Ownership | Type / Info |
---|---|---|---|
7-Eleven Speak Out Wireless | Rogers Wireless | Ztar Mobile | Reseller [9] |
DCI Wireless | Telus Mobility | DCI Telecom Inc. | Reseller [9] |
Fongo Wireless | Rogers Wireless | Fibernetics Corporation | Data only plans |
Aetel Canada | Telus Mobility | Reseller | |
PC Mobile | Bell Mobility | Loblaws | Reseller |
Good2Go Mobility | Rogers Wireless | Ztar Mobile | Reseller [9] |
Wundle Mobile | Bell Mobility/Telus Mobility | Wundle United Co-Op/Fabricate INC | Reseller |
PhoneBox Canada | Rogers/Telus | Connex Telecommunications Inc. | Reseller |
Canadiansim.com | Rogers Wireless | Canadiansim.com | Reseller |
Execulink Mobility | Bell Mobility | Execulink Telecom Inc. | Reseller/Wiresless Carrier |
Quadro Mobility | Bell Mobility | Quadro Communications Co-operative Inc. | Reseller/Wiresless Carrier |
Wightman Mobility | Telus Mobility | Wightman Telecom Ltd. | Reseller/Wiresless Carrier |
CTExcel Canada | Telus Mobility | China Telecom | Reseller |
Always Mobile | Various | Always Mobile | Reseller eSIM Data Plans |
Operator | Ownership | Coverage | Technology | Frequency | Status | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Airtel Wireless | Airtel Wireless Ltd. | Calgary | iDEN | SMR | Active | |
Fleetcom | Fleetcom Inc. | Toronto | iDEN | SMR | Active |
Operator | Network | Ownership | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Amp'd Mobile | Telus Mobility | Launched on March 14, 2007. Discontinued on August 1, 2007 and eventually replaced by Koodo. | |
Clearnet | Started as second Clearnet incarnation as MVNO on April 5, 2011 by Telus. Discontinued as of June 2, 2012. | ||
MiKE | Launched in 1996 by Clearnet on iDEN platform from Motorola. Clearnet acquired by Telus in 2000. Shutdown on January 29, 2016. | ||
Shaw Mobile | Freedom Mobile | Rogers Wireless | Discontinued as of December 21, 2023. |
Solo Mobile | Bell Mobility | Bell Canada | Discontinued for new customers, but still active for current ones. |
Sprint Canada | Fido | Rogers Wireless | Had 31,000 customers in Q3 2005 before being acquired |
Petro-Canada Mobility | Rogers Wireless | Ztar Mobile | Discontinued, customers migrated to Good2Go Mobility |
Xplore Mobile | Bell Mobility | Xplore Inc. | Xplore Mobile brand was announced August 1, 2018. Discontinued August 2022. |
Cityfone | Rogers Wireless | As of November, 15, 2023 the company stopped accepting new activations and began transitioning customers over to Rogers Wireless. | |
Primus Wireless | |||
Sears Connect | |||
Simply Connect | |||
Zoomer Wireless |
Some operators listed below may still function as a separate brand but they no longer own any infrastructure (towers, network, etc.).
Operator | Ownership | Voice technology | Data technology | End date | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
CityWest | CityWest | GSM | EDGE | December 13, 2013 | Wireless services discontinued; mobile customers transitioned to Telus [10] |
Bell Aliant | Bell Aliant | CDMA | 2006 | Wireless services discontinued, migrated to Bell Mobility. | |
Bell MTS Mobility | Bell MTS | CDMA | October, 2018 | Wireless services discontinued, migrated to Bell Mobility. | |
Clearnet | Clearnet Communications | CDMA2000 | EV-DO | 2000 | Network merged with Telus |
Dryden Municipal Telephone Service | Dryden Municipal Telephone Service | GSM, CDMA2000 | EDGE, EV-DO | December 21, 2012 | Wireless customers migrated to Tbaytel [11] |
Fido | Microcell | GSM | EDGE | November 8, 2004 | Network merged with Rogers; continues to operate as an MVNO. |
Freedom Mobile | Shaw | GSM | LTE | December 21, 2023 | Network merged with Videotron; continues to operate as an MVNO. |
Kenora Municipal Telephone Service (KMTS) | Kenora Municipal Telephone Service | CDMA2000 | EV-DO | February 2008 | Acquired by Bell Aliant. |
Lynx Mobility | Lynx Mobility | GSM | EDGE | March 2018 | Ceased operations. |
Mobilicity | DAVE Wireless | UMTS | HSPA+ | 2016 | Acquired by Rogers Wireless; customers transitioned to Chatr Mobile. |
NorthernTel Mobility | NorthernTel Mobility | July 19, 2015 | NorthernTel Mobility wireless subscribers moved to Bell Mobility. [12] | ||
Northwestel | Northwestel | June 19, 2014 | Wireless services discontinued, sold to Bell Mobility. [13] | ||
Public Mobile | Public Mobile | CDMA2000 | EV-DO | August 8, 2014 [14] | Acquired by Telus; CDMA network decommissioned, continues to operate as a Telus MVNO [14] |
Superior Wireless | Superior Wireless | CDMA2000 | EV-DO | August 2006 | Merged with TBayTel |
Télébec Mobilité | Télébec | February 2007 | Télébec Mobilité wireless subscribers moved to Bell Aliant. [15] | ||
TNW | Investel Capital | 3G |
Present-day telecommunications in Canada include telephone, radio, television, and internet usage. In the past, telecommunications included telegraphy available through Canadian Pacific and Canadian National.
Telus Communications Inc. (TCI) is the wholly owned principal subsidiary of Telus Corporation, a Canadian national telecommunications company that provides a wide range of telecommunications products and services including internet access, voice, entertainment, healthcare, video, smart home automation and IPTV television. The company is based in the Vancouver, British Columbia, area; it was originally based in Edmonton, Alberta, before its merger with BC Tel in 1999. Telus' wireless division, Telus Mobility, offers UMTS, and LTE-based mobile phone networks. Telus is the incumbent local exchange carrier in British Columbia and Alberta. Its primary competitors are Rogers Communications and Bell Canada. Telus is a member of the British Columbia Technology Industry Association.
Bell Canada is a Canadian telecommunications company headquartered at 1 Carrefour Alexander-Graham-Bell in the borough of Verdun, Quebec, in Canada. It is an ILEC in the provinces of Ontario and Quebec; as such, it was a founding member of the Stentor Alliance. It is also a CLEC for enterprise customers in the western provinces.
Vidéotron is a Canadian integrated telecommunications company active in cable television, interactive multimedia development, video on demand, cable telephony, wireless communication and Internet access services. Owned by Quebecor, it primarily serves Quebec and Ottawa, as well as the Francophone communities of New Brunswick and some parts of Eastern Ontario. Its principal competitors are Bell Canada and Telus Communications.
Bell Mobility Inc. is a Canadian wireless network operator and the division of Bell Canada which offers wireless services across Canada. It operates networks using LTE and HSPA+ on its mainstream networks. Bell Mobility is the third-largest wireless carrier in Canada, with 10.1 million subscribers as of Q3 2020.
Bell MTS Inc. is a subsidiary of BCE Inc. that operates telecommunications services in Manitoba.
A mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) is a wireless communications services provider that does not own the wireless network infrastructure over which it provides services to its customers. An MVNO enters into a business agreement with a mobile network operator to obtain bulk access to network services at wholesale rates, then sets retail prices independently. An MVNO may use its own customer service, billing support systems, marketing, and sales personnel, or it could employ the services of a mobile virtual network enabler (MVNE).
Virgin Mobile is a wireless communications brand used by seven independent brand-licensees worldwide. Virgin Mobile branded wireless communications services are available in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, Colombia, Chile, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Poland and Mexico. Virgin Mobile branded services used to be offered in Australia, France, Singapore, India, Qatar, South Africa and the United States.
Rogers Wireless Inc. is a Canadian wireless telephone company headquartered in Toronto, providing service nationally throughout Canada. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Rogers Communications. The company had revenues of just under $15.1 billion in 2018. Rogers Wireless is the largest wireless carrier in Canada, with 13.7 million subscribers as of Q2 2023.
Fido Solutions Inc. is a Canadian mobile network operator owned by Rogers Communications. Since its acquisition by Rogers in 2004, it has operated as a Mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) using the Rogers Wireless network.
Northwestel Inc. is a Canadian telecommunications company that is the incumbent local exchange carrier (ILEC) and long-distance carrier in the territories of Yukon, the Northwest Territories, Nunavut, and part of Northern British Columbia. Originally established in 1979 by the Canadian National Railway from CN's northern telecommunications assets, it has been owned by BCE Inc. since 1988.
Telus Mobility is a Canadian wireless network operator and a division of Telus Communications which sells wireless services in Canada on its numerous networks. It operates 5G, LTE and HSPA+ on its mainstream networks. Telus Mobility is the second-largest wireless carrier in Canada, with 10.6 million subscribers as of Q3 2020.
A mobile phone operator, wireless provider, or carrier is a mobile telecommunications company that provides wireless Internet GSM services for mobile device users. The operator gives a SIM card to the customer who inserts it into the mobile device to gain access to the service.
7-Eleven SpeakOut Wireless is a Canadian mobile virtual network operator brand for prepaid wireless service. The brand was launched in April 2003 by the 7-Eleven convenience store chain in the United States, and expanded to Canada in November 2005. 7-Eleven SpeakOut ceased operating in the United States in 2010.
Ice Wireless is a Canadian mobile network operator and telecommunications company that provides 4G/LTE mobility services, mobile broadband Internet, and fixed line telephone in Canada's northern territories: Yukon, the Northwest Territories, Nunavut, and Nunavik, Quebec. The company's corporate headquarters are located in Markham, Ontario.
Koodo Mobile is a Canadian mobile flanker brand started by Telus in 2008 and mostly oriented toward younger customers. Koodo differs from its parent Telus by not requiring a fixed term contract. Koodo currently provides postpaid, prepaid, and wireless home phone services. Being a subsidiary of Telus, Koodo has been able to offer extensive coverage and a strong presence in mobile retailers. This allowed Koodo to gain a presence nationwide.
Freedom Mobile, a Canadian wireless telecommunications provider owned by Québecor, holds a 6% market share of the Canadian wireless market, primarily concentrated in urban areas of Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta, and Manitoba. As the fourth-largest wireless carrier in Canada, Freedom Mobile serves 2,290,497 subscribers as of November 30, 2022. In addition to mobile phone plans, Freedom also offers home internet and TV services.
Public Mobile Inc. is a Canadian self-serve mobile brand which is owned by Telus. Launched on March 18, 2010, Public Mobile was one of several new Canadian cellphone providers that started in 2009–10 after a federal government initiative to encourage competition in the wireless sector.
Xplore Inc. is a Canadian rural internet service provider. It is the largest rural focused broadband service provider in Canada.