GSM frequency bands or frequency ranges are the cellular frequencies designated by the
ITU for the operation of GSM mobile phones.
Bands There are fourteen bands defined in 3GPP TS
45.005, which succeeded 3GPP TS 05.05: bands 2 and 5 have been deployed in NAR and
CALA bands 3 and 8 have been deployed in EMEA and
APAC all other bands have not seen any commercial
deployments P-GSM, Standard or Primary GSM-900 Band
E-GSM, Extended GSM-900 Band R-GSM, Railways GSM-900 Band
T-GSM, Trunking-GSM GSM-900, GSM-1800 and EGSM/EGSM-900
GSM-900 and GSM-1800 are used in most parts of the world: Europe, Middle East, Africa,
Australia, Oceania. In South and Central America the following countries use the following:
Bolivia – GSM-850 and 1900 Paraguay – GSM-850 and 1900
Peru – GSM-1900 Costa Rica – GSM-1800
Brazil – GSM-850, 900, 1800 and 1900 Guatemala – GSM-850, GSM-900 and 1900
El Salvador – GSM-850, GSM-900 and 1900 Venezuela – GSM-850, GSM-900 and 1900
GSM-900 uses 890–915 MHz to send information from the mobile station to the base station
and 935–960 MHz for the other direction, providing 124 RF channels spaced at 200 kHz.
Duplex spacing of 45 MHz is used. Guard bands 100 kHz wide are placed at either end of
the range of frequencies. GSM-1800
GSM-1800 uses 1,710–1,785 MHz to send information from the mobile station to the base transceiver
station and 1,805–1,880 MHz for the other direction, providing 374 channels. Duplex
spacing is 95 MHz. GSM-1800 is also called DCS in the United Kingdom, while being called
PCS in Hong Kong – to avoid confusion with GSM-1900 which is commonly called PCS in the
rest of the world. Mobile Communication Services on Aircraft uses GSM1800.
GSM-850 and GSM-1900 GSM-850 and GSM-1900 are used in Argentina,
Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, the United States and many other countries in the Americas.
GSM-850 uses 824–849 MHz to send information from the mobile station to the base station
and 869–894 MHz for the other direction. Channel numbers are 128 to 251.
GSM-850 is also sometimes called GSM-800 because this frequency range was known as the "800 MHz
band" when it was first allocated for AMPS in the United States in 1983.
The term Cellular is sometimes used to describe the 850 MHz band, because the original analog
cellular mobile communication system was allocated in this spectrum.
GSM-1900 uses 1,850–1,910 MHz to send information from the mobile station to the base station
and 1,930–1,990 MHz for the other direction. Channel numbers are 512 to 810.
PCS is the original name in North America for the 1,900 MHz band. It is an initialism
for Personal Communications Service. GSM-450
Another less common GSM version is GSM-450. It uses the same band as, and can co-exist
with, old analog NMT systems. NMT is a first generation mobile phone system which was primarily
used in Nordic countries, Benelux, Alpine Countries, Eastern Europe and Russia prior
to the introduction of GSM. It operates in either 450.4–457.6 MHz paired with 460.4–467.6 MHz,
or 478.8–486 MHz paired with 488.8–496 MHz. The GSM Association claims one of its around
680 operator-members has a license to operate a GSM 450 network in Tanzania. However, currently
all active public operators in Tanzania use GSM 900/1800 MHz. Overall, where the 450 MHz
NMT band exists, it either still runs NMT, or its been replaced by CDMA. GSM-450 is a
provision; it has not seen commercial deployment. GSM frequency usage around the world
Americas In North America, GSM operates on the primary
mobile communication bands 850 MHz and 1,900 MHz. In Canada, GSM-1900 is the primary band used
in urban areas with 850 as a backup, and GSM-850 being the primary rural band. In the United
States, regulatory requirements determine which area can use which band.
GSM-1900 and GSM-850 are also used in most of South and Central America, and both Ecuador
and Panama use GSM-850 exclusively. Venezuela and Brazil use GSM-850 and GSM-900/1800 mixing
the European and American bands. Some countries in the Americas use GSM-900 or GSM-1800, some
others use three: GSM-8501900, GSM-8501900, GSM-9001900 or GSM-8501800. Soon some countries
will use GSM-8501800/1900 MHz like the Dominican Republic, Trinidad & Tobago and Venezuela.
In Brazil, the 1,900 MHz band is paired with 2,100 MHz to form the IMT-compliant 2,100 MHz
band for 3G services. The result is a mixture of usage in the Americas
that requires travelers to confirm that the phones they have are compatible with the band
of the networks at their destinations. Frequency compatibility problems can be avoided through
the use of multi-band phones. Africa, Europe, Middle East and Asia
In Africa, Europe, Middle East and Asia, most of the providers use 900 MHz and 1800 MHz
bands. GSM-900 is most widely used. Fewer operators use DCS-1800 and GSM-1800. A dual-band
900/1800 phone is required to be compatible with almost all operators. At least the GSM-900
band must be supported in order to be compatible with many operators.
Multi-band and multi-mode phones Today, most telephones support multiple bands
as used in different countries to facilitate roaming. These are typically referred to as
multi-band phones. Dual-band phones can cover GSM networks in pairs such as 900 and 1,800 MHz
frequencies or 850 and 1900. European tri-band phones typically cover the 900, 1800 and 1900
bands giving good coverage in Europe and allowing limited use in North America, while North
American tri-band phones utilize 850, 1,800 and 1,900 for widespread North American service
but limited worldwide use. A new addition has been the quad-band phone, also known as
a world phone, supporting all four major GSM bands, allowing for global use.
There are also multi-mode phones which can operate on GSM as well as on other mobile
phone systems using other technical standards or proprietary technologies. Often these phones
use multiple frequency bands as well. For example, one version of the Nokia 6340i GAIT
phone sold in North America can operate on GSM-1900, GSM-850 and legacy TDMA-1900, TDMA-800,
and AMPS-800, making it both multi-mode and multi-band. As a more recent example the Apple
iPhone 5 and iPhone 4S support quad-band GSM at 8501,800/1,900 MHz, quad-band UMTSHSUPA
at 8501,900/2,100 MHz, and dual-band CDMA EV-DO Rev. A at 800/1,900 MHz, for a total
of 'six' different frequencies. This allows the same handset to be sold for AT&T Mobility,
Verizon, and Sprint in the U.S. as well as a broad range of GSM carriers worldwide such
as Vodafone, Orange and T-Mobile, many of whom offer official unlocking.
See also 3GPP
Cellular frequencies OD-GPS
Roaming UMTS frequency bands
United States 2008 wireless spectrum auction References
^ 3GPP TS 05.05 version 8.20.0 Release 1999 Pages 9 and 10
^ Rappaport, Theodore S., Wireless Communications: Principles and Practices, 2nd Ed. Upper Saddle
River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2002. p. 554. ^ OFTA of HK, Office of the Telecommunications
Authority ^ EUROPA - PRESS RELEASES - Press release
- Commission Decisions on Mobile Communication Services on Aircraft - Frequently Asked Questions.
Europa.eu. Retrieved on 2013-09-18. ^ Ericsson, Nokia Eye 450 MHz GSM technology
^ "International Cell Phones". Cellhire. Retrieved 3 September 2013.
External links LDpost.com – History of GSM and More GSM
history, technology, bands, multi-band phones 3GPP Specification detail TS 05.05 Specification
3GPP TS 05.05 Radio Transmission and Reception 3GPP Specification detail TS 45.005 Specification
3GPP TS 45.005 Radio Transmission and Reception 3GPP Specifications for group: R4 – Frequencies
info for UMTS