Key Insights from the Data

Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) deployments across U.S. counties and territories. CBRS operates in the 3.5 GHz shared spectrum band and is commonly used for private LTE/5G networks, fixed wireless access, and enhanced connectivity in both urban and rural settings.

As of 2026-07-22 (file dated 2026-07-23): 446,346 CBSDs across 2,639 counties/areas in 56 states and territories.

Updates and changes since the last review

• Data window: previous tables reflected an earlier ~429k total; this review uses the 2026-07-23 county extract (446,346 CBSDs).

• Headline changes: Texas remains #1 and has grown to 80,870 (18.1% of national). Top-10 states still hold about 55% of all CBSDs. Top counties reshuffled slightly (e.g., Wise and Parker TX remain very high; Brown TX enters the top 10; Washington UT and Philadelphia ranks adjust).

• Trend continuity: concentration in energy, industrial, and selected urban counties; weak presence in small New England states and most territories.

• New or revised findings: TX’s share ticked up vs. the prior table (~17.2% → 18.1%); OK/OH absolute counts eased slightly while MO/CO gained.

• Corrections: replace stale top-10 state/county tables with the figures below; keep sector mapping as inference, not labeled data.

• Distribution by State/Territory: Deployments are uneven. The top 10 states/territories by total CBSDs account for ~55.1% of all deployments:

  State/Territory	CBSD Count	% of Total
  TX	80,870	18.1%
  CA	24,797	5.6%
  IL	23,753	5.3%
  OK	20,518	4.6%
  OH	19,292	4.3%
  CO	17,028	3.8%
  KS	15,410	3.5%
  MO	15,210	3.4%
  IN	14,967	3.4%
  NY	14,112	3.2%

  Lower-deployment areas include American Samoa (9), U.S. Virgin Islands (45), Northern Mariana Islands (92), and small states such as Vermont (150) and Rhode Island (310).

• Top Counties: The highest concentrations are in urban/industrial hubs or resource-rich areas:

  County	State	CBSD Count
  Onondaga	NY	5,402
  Wise	TX	5,018
  Maricopa	AZ	4,665
  Mecklenburg	NC	4,188
  Parker	TX	4,019
  Los Angeles	CA	3,799
  Cook	IL	3,799
  Kenai Peninsula	AK	3,239
  Brown	TX	2,930
  Philadelphia	PA	2,823

• Trends: Absolute scale is highest in the South-Central and industrial Midwest corridors (TX, OK, OH, IL, IN, MO, KS) plus CA and NY. Rural and semi-rural counties often punch above population weight—especially energy and agriculture counties—while many dense Northeast markets show more moderate per-area footprints.

Correlation with U.S. Economic Activity

CBRS deployments show a moderate positive association with overall economic output but are more strongly tied to specific sectors like energy, manufacturing, and agriculture rather than broad GDP alone.

• Scale vs. GDP: Large economies such as Texas and California remain high in absolute CBSD counts, but smaller resource states (OK, KS, and energy counties in ND/NM/WY in prior analyses) punch above pure GDP rank.
• Not purely a wealth story: Deployments track industrial and coverage need more than per-capita income. Mid-tier industrial and resource economies often show dense county-level builds.
• Sector-specific ties (qualitative):
  • Energy and mining: TX counties such as Wise and Parker, plus other basin-linked areas, remain top of the county list—consistent with private networks for field ops, pipelines, and remote IoT.
  • Manufacturing: OH, IN, IL, MI continue to host large statewide totals suited to factory private 5G and campus automation.
  • Agriculture: KS, IA, MO, and similar states keep substantial rural deployments for precision ag and wide-area connectivity.
  • Urban / commercial: CA, NY, IL, NC, PA show large urban counties (Los Angeles, Cook, Mecklenburg, Philadelphia) where neutral-host, campus, and capacity offload matter.

Correlation with Demand for Wireless Networks

CBSD totals rise with population at a moderate level, but demand appears driven by coverage gaps and enterprise use rather than raw density alone.

• Urban vs. rural: Large urban counties appear in the top 10, yet many high-count counties are resource or semi-rural. Sparse regions use CBRS where macro economics are weak for traditional builds.
• Enterprise / industrial demand: Energy, manufacturing, logistics, and campus networks remain primary drivers behind county outliers that lack matching consumer density.
• Other drivers: Rural broadband initiatives, education/public venues, and specialized industrial campuses continue to seed deployments outside the largest metros.

In summary, CBRS deployments are positively linked to large economies and populations but remain disproportionately important in rural and resource-based counties. The national map is not a simple population heat map.

CBRS Deployments by Economic Sector (2026)

While the provided CBRS dataset does not include sector labels, we can infer sector usage by overlaying county-level CBSD counts with U.S. Census Bureau, USDA, EIA, and BLS economic data.

Below is a sector-mapped breakdown using county-level economic specialization to assign dominant sectors. Estimates are illustrative (scaled from prior sector mapping to the current 446,346 total) and should not be treated as audited industry labels.

Total CBSDs: 446,346
Methodology: Counties with strong employment or output specialization in a sector assigned fully; others proportionally weighted. Sector percentages retained from the prior review’s allocation and applied to the updated national total.

Energy & Mining (~22.8%)

Top Counties (Energy-Dominant)

Use Cases:

• Real-time sensor networks (pressure, flow, methane)
• Drone-based inspections
• Private LTE for worker push-to-talk & video
• ROI: Reduced downtime, improved safety

Manufacturing (~19.1%)

Top Counties (manufacturing-leaning examples)

Use Cases:

• Private 5G for AGVs & cobots
• AR/VR worker training
• Predictive maintenance via IoT

Agriculture & Ranching (~15.8%)

Top Counties (examples)

Use Cases:

• Soil moisture & weather sensors
• Autonomous equipment links
• Livestock and ranch connectivity

Urban / Commercial (~19.8%)

Top Counties

Use Cases:

• Neutral host networks
• Indoor 5G for offices and venues
• Event and campus coverage

Logistics & Transportation (~7.2%)

Top Counties (hub examples)

Use Cases:

• Container and yard tracking
• Connected fleet telematics
• Warehouse and intermodal automation

Government / Education / Healthcare (~15.1%)

Top Counties (public / research examples)

Use Cases:

• E-Rate funded school networks
• Secure campus connectivity
• Telemedicine and clinical campus links

Key Takeaways

1. CBRS is not just rural broadband — it’s a multi-sector industrial platform
2. Energy & Manufacturing remain large — CBRS is critical infrastructure in resource and factory regions
3. Agriculture remains a strong rural use case — high relative deployment density in ag-heavy counties
4. Urban use is significant but diluted — CBRS complements, not replaces, macro networks
5. Government/Education/Healthcare stay relevant — campuses, public sector, and digital equity programs