12 Top Telecommunication Companies in Nigeria (2023)

The need for constant mobile connectivity is a human want that requires constant premium satisfaction.

Since the introduction of mobile phones into the country in 2001, the telecommunications industry has been experiencing an economic boom, with the creation of several telecommunication companies in Nigeria that provide network services to users.

Telecommunication Companies in Nigeria

1. MTN Nigeria

Do you remember when MTN was the only network service provider in Nigeria and ultimately christened themselves “your best connection”? That was over 15 years ago.

MTN Nigeria was one of the first telecommunications companies in Nigeria to offer voice and data services to internet users. Since its inception in 2001, they have spent over $2 billion to provide premium services to the major villages and cities in Nigeria.

The company is a subsidiary of the MTN Group, a renowned telecommunications company in Africa, with its headquarters in South Africa.

2. 9 Mobile

Back in the days, the telecommunications company used to be owned by Etisalat, but was later acquired by 9 Mobile, after an in-house overhaul. The name was derived from the initial 0809ja numbers that were released when they started operations in Nigeria.

9 Mobile started operating in 2017 and has been offering high-speed internet and premium voice plans to its subscribers.

They offer voice and data plans to individuals, private and public organizations.

3. Globacom

It is a Nigerian-owned telecommunications company that was founded on 29 August 2003. Their old slogan, “Glo with pride” was a popular slogan back when the company started operations.

They offer quality voice, data, and mobile device services. This multinational company is also the first to build an $800 million high capacity fiber-optic cable in Nigeria. It is a close competition of MTN telecommunications company in Nigeria.

Globacom’s services also extend to other West African countries like Ghana and the Benin Republic.

4. Airtel Nigeria

The history of the acquisition of this telecommunications company is one that a lot of Nigerians remember – mostly with a grin or a smile on their faces.

The company started out as Econet mobile, before it was sold off to Zain, passed down to Celtel in 2010, and was then acquired by Vodacom, Vmobile, then it was dropped like a hot potato until Airtel finally acquired it.

Airtel Nigeria has a 26.8% mobile telephone market share and 46.8 million subscribers, according to the subscriber’s statistical report released by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), in 2019.

The company is currently operating in 14 African countries.

5. Smile Nigeria

Smile network was officially launched in Nigeria in 2007, and they currently cover three African countries. They provide 4G LTE services to mobile and internet users in Nigeria.

The only disadvantage is that they only have coverage for eight cities in the country.

6. MainOne

They offer data and other innovative internet services to businesses in West Africa. They currently have subsidies in 10 African countries.

MainOne provides real-time communication for industries and businesses and public spaces. They also offer support, tech advice, and cloud hosting services.

7. Spectranet

They are the first internet service provider in Nigeria. They were awarded a license to carry out operations in 2009, by the Nigerian Communications Commission.

Due to the impeccable services, it offers Spectranet was awarded the best broadband company of the year in 2016.

They provide affordable data solutions to individuals, businesses, and public organizations, and they only have coverage for Lagos, Ibadan, Port Harcourt, and Abuja.

8. Swift Network Limited

They have been operating in the telecommunications industry in Nigeria since 2002, and they provide multi-service internet connectivity services to businesses and individual internet users.

They operate on a fast 3.5GHZ spectrum and do not have coverage for all the states in Nigeria.

The services they offer users include:

• High speed broadband Internet connectivity, that is secure and reliable.
• Web and email hosting.
• Video conferencing and all-round surveillance solutions for companies and individuals.
• And other value-added services.

9. NTEL

The Nigerian Telecommunications Limited (NTEL) started operations in 2016 and currently covers three major cities (Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt) in Nigeria. They provide internet users with 4G LTE, Voice-over-LTE and high-speed broadband access. For the first time in Nigeria, internet users on the NTEL network were able to successfully make a 4G data call. This happened in 2016.

They have SIM registration centers in the three cities they operate in and also provide swift customer service care.

10. L. M. ERICSSON [NIG] LTD

They are part of the multinational Ericsson group, and they have their Nigerian head office in Victoria Island, Lagos. They provide data and cloud hosting services to organizations.

They are the first telecommunications company in Nigeria that is planning to make 5G broadband network connectivity a reality.

11. Netcom Nigeria Limited

Netcom has been operating in Nigeria since 2004.

Netcom Africa is a leading telecommunications company that provides ICT services, IT solutions, Cloud, and Data broadband for organizations and industries across the nation.

The network runs on VSAT, WiMAX, Radio, and fiber optics mediums to provide their users with fast, reliable, and secure internet connectivity.

12. We Konnect

They are a new, satellite-based internet provider in Nigeria. They are the first in Africa to constantly provide a network speed of up to 100 Mbps. They have super affordable data plans that are perfect for heavy data usage.

They provide an IP option where users are allocated a fixed IP address, which allows them to access their business networks remotely through remote applications or a VPN.

Users on this network also have the option of subscribing to SIP prioritisation, which will allow them to make and receive high-quality VoIP(Voice over Internet Protocol) calls as they are prioritized over other Internet activities.

Related:

• List of Job Sites in Nigeria
• Top South African Companies In Nigeria Hiring

A lot of telecommunications companies in Nigeria came into the telecoms industry with a bang and fizzled out almost immediately. Some of these companies are Zoom Mobile, Starcomms, Mtel, amongst a host of others, and based on the statistical report released by the Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC), the four leading telecommunications companies in Nigeria are MTN, Globacom, Airtel and 9 Mobile.