Overview of CBRS Radio Deployment Trends

This chart tracks the cumulative number of CBRS (Citizens Broadband Radio Service) radio device deployments over time, spanning from early 2022 (when the Key Bridge SAS was first launched) to the present date.

CBRS is a shared spectrum band (3.5 GHz) in the U.S. used for private LTE and 5G networks, often in enterprise, industrial, and neutral-host scenarios.

The chart shows a strong overall upward trajectory, indicating robust adoption growth, with deployments approaching 450,000 at the end of 2025. This suggests accelerating market penetration, likely driven by factors like regulatory support, cost reductions in CBRS-compatible hardware, and demand for private wireless networks in sectors like manufacturing, logistics, and smart cities.

Overall Growth

From ~20,000 in early 2022 to ~470,000 by Jul 2025, representing a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of approximately 195% over 3.5 years. This exponential curve fits a logistic growth model typical of emerging tech adoption (slow start, rapid mid-phase expansion, potential saturation approaching 500k).

Phase Breakdown

• 2022 (Ramp-Up Phase): Explosive start from near-zero, reaching ~80k by mid-year. This aligns with post-pandemic recovery and initial CBRS ecosystem maturation (e.g., more certified devices from vendors like Nokia, Celona).
• 2023 (Acceleration): Linear-to-exponential rise to ~220k, doubling prior levels. Likely fueled by enterprise pilots scaling to production.
• 2024 (Steady Commercial Adoption): Growth to ~320k by mid-year, but a visible correction to ~390k in Q3/Q4.
• 2025 (YTD: Sustained Expansion): Continued growth reaching the previous (false) peak by July, with steeper positive slope than prior years. Extrapolating linearly, deployments should hit 500k+ by early 2025 and 600% by year-end 2026 if the trend holds, implying a 50%+ YoY increase.

Anomalies and Insights

The 2024 Dip: The only downward tick (~10% decline over 1 month) stands out against the otherwise monotonic uptrend. This correction was experienced after the discovery of a reporting fault in one of the major SAS provider, where the provider neglected to purge legacy radio records after the radio was upgraded or replaced with a newer model by the network service provider. The period affected by this double counting error is January through September 2024. The scale of the mis-count had accumulated to approximately 20,000 units.

Growth Drivers Inferred from Trend

• Velocity: Average monthly addition ~12,000-15,000 units in 2023-2024, surging to ~20,000+ in 2025. This points to network effects (more deployments enabling more use cases).
• Implications: CBRS is transitioning from niche to mainstream, potentially capturing 10-20% of U.S. private wireless market share. For stakeholders (e.g., telcos, integrators), this signals investment opportunities in SAS (Spectrum Access System) providers and edge computing.

Strategic & Market Implications

Ecosystem Maturity

• Approaching 500,000 radios = millions of connected devices (IoT, robots, sensors).
• CBRS now a core infrastructure layer for Industry 4.0.

This chart paints an optimistic picture of CBRS as a high-growth spectrum play—deployments have grown over 23x in under 4 years, with no signs of abatement. CBRS has evolved from a regulatory experiment in 2021 to a core U.S. wireless infrastructure asset by 2025, with close to half a million deployed radios supporting mission-critical private networks. The ecosystem is now positioned for sustained growth toward 1 million units by 2027.