LTE Peak Throughput Calculator
What can an LTE carrier deliver?
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LTE Peak Throughput Calculator by TheCalcTools
How the LTE Peak Throughput Calculator works
Pick the channel bandwidth (number of PRBs), the modulation and the number of MIMO layers.
Each PRB has 12 subcarriers × 14 OFDM symbols per millisecond.
Throughput = resource elements × bits per symbol × layers × code rate × (1 − overhead).
The formula
Worked example
Using the default values shown in the calculator:
| Bandwidth | 20 MHz (100 PRB) |
|---|---|
| Modulation | 64QAM |
| MIMO layers | 2×2 |
| Code rate | 0.85 |
| Overhead (reference signals, control) % | 25 % |
| Carriers aggregated | 1 |
- Resource elements per ms = 100 × 12 × 14 = 16,800.
- With 64QAM, 2 layers, code rate 0.85 and 25% overhead: 128.5 Mbps per carrier.
Result:
| Throughput per carrier (Mbps) | 128.5 |
|---|---|
| Total with carrier aggregation (Mbps) | 128.5 |
| Resource elements per ms | 16,800 |
| Spectral efficiency (bit/s/Hz) | 7.14 |
Frequently asked questions
Is this the real-life speed?
No. It is a theoretical upper estimate. Real throughput depends on SINR, scheduling, load, UE category and backhaul.
What is the LTE category 20 peak?
LTE UE category 20 reaches up to 2 Gbps in theory using carrier aggregation, 256QAM and 8 layers on multiple carriers.
Sources and further reading
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This calculator gives estimates for information only. Check important results independently before you rely on them. See our disclaimer.