- Google tops the on-train Wi-Fi bandwidth league table, with Instagram, Facebook, Netflix and TikTok close behind, confirming rail passengers now expect a home broadband experience while on the move.
- Insights are drawn from the anonymised Wi-Fi traffic of more than two million daily users travelling on thousands of trains in service across Europe and North America over the last 12 months.
- Rail operators are trialling low-Earth-orbit satellite technology – such as SpaceX’s Starlink – to boost onboard Wi-Fi speeds and reliability for passengers and day-to-day train operations.
Icomera Rail passengers increasingly expect onboard Wi-Fi to mirror the always-on, content-rich experience of their home broadband. New figures from connectivity specialist Icomera – published today on World Wi-Fi Day – indicate that Google, Instagram and Facebook are absorbing the biggest share of on-train Wi-Fi bandwidth.
Key Findings
- Passenger use of Google is the single largest consumer of on-train Wi-Fi bandwidth.
- Image- and short-video platforms Instagram, Facebook and TikTok followed close behind.
- Long-form streaming services such as Netflix, YouTube and Amazon Prime Video all feature in the top 10, alongside music-streaming leaders Spotify and Apple’s iTunes.
- WhatsApp was the most widely used messaging app; Snapchat appeared in the North American top ten but not in the European list.
1. Google
2. Instagram
3. Facebook
4. Netflix
5. Spotify
6. YouTube
7. WhatsApp
8. TikTok
9. Amazon Prime Video
10. Apple iTunes
From Email to Entertainment
“When on-train Wi-Fi was first offered in the early 2000s, it primarily attracted business passengers with the promise of improving their productivity by allowing them to send work emails while they travelled” says Paul Barnes, Chief Marketing Officer at Icomera, a subsidiary of Equans, a global leader in the energy and services sector.
“Today we see a typical user consume 100 megabytes during a Wi-Fi session, which would be enough for those early 2000s business passengers to send potentially 1,000+ emails over the course of their journey – but most of that data is now being used for streaming video, music and social media. All passenger groups want the home broadband experience on the move”.
This raises the question of how rail operators can keep pace with the constantly evolving digital landscape.
Starlink Enters the Mix
Low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite networks are emerging as a viable solution for meeting increasing passenger expectations and evolving rail operator requirements. Icomera signed an authorised reseller agreement with SpaceX’s Starlink in December 2024 and is trialling the service with operators on both sides of the Atlantic.
“We’ve seen impressive early results when adding satellite into the mix alongside the 4G and 5G cellular networks that trains are already connecting to” Barnes says. “Even in remote rural areas the performance is comparable to an inner-city 5G connection. This will benefit both train passengers and operational systems such as live video surveillance or remote diagnostics.” “With data-hungry passengers and operational systems now sharing the same digital path, reliable high-capacity connectivity is fast becoming as essential to rail travel as the tracks themselves.”
—ENDS—
Notes to Editors
Methodology: Icomera’s analysis covers the period from 28th May 2024 to 27th May 2025, drawing on the anonymised Wi-Fi traffic of 2.2 million daily users categorised by service types from thousands of trains in Europe and North America. Rankings are based on total data volume per service type. Passengers’ personal information was not collected.
World Wi-Fi Day is a platform to recognise and celebrate the significant role Wi-Fi is playing in cities and communities around the world and understand how Wi-Fi is helping to reduce digital poverty through innovative projects that will ‘connect the unconnected’. World Wi-Fi Day is a unique worldwide initiative organised by Wireless Broadband Alliance under the leadership of Connected Community Forum (CCF). -https://wballiance.com/world-wi-fi-day-home/
PRESS CONTACT:
Paul Barnes, Chief Marketing Officer, Icomera: +44 (0)7837 917611 – [email protected]
About Icomera
For over two decades, Icomera has been the world’s leading provider of onboard connectivity solutions. We enable millions of passengers to connect every day with the fastest, most reliable and secure Internet connection currently available to a moving vehicle. Today our networks have the power to fully integrate tens of thousands of vehicles into the cloud, paving the way for a vibrant new world of smart, connected transportation. In the future, our network connectivity will empower a bold new generation of safer, more efficient and sustainable transport solutions. We aim to be the partner of choice for those on the smart, connected journey that lies ahead. A wholly owned subsidiary of Equans, Icomera is headquartered in Gothenburg, Sweden, operating across Europe and North America with key offices in the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, the United States and Canada. www.Icomera.com
About Equans and Equans France
Equans, a subsidiary of the Bouygues group, is a global leader in the energy and services sector.
In France, Equans France draws on its historic brands Ineo, Axima, and Bouygues Energies & Services and its strong local presence to support businesses, local authorities, and industries in meeting the challenges of the energy, industrial, and digital transitions.
With the ability to operate at every stage of projects’ lifecycle, Equans France brings together 35,000 employees to design, install and supply tailor-made solutions that optimize clients’ equipment and usage, enhancing infrastructure performance and energy efficiency. Its expertise spans electrical engineering, HVAC, refrigeration, fire safety, Facility Management, multi-technical maintenance, IT & Telecommunication, and digital solutions. On a global scale, Equans operates in 20 countries, with 90,000 employees across 5 continents and a turnover of 19.2 billion euros in 2024. Following a similar dynamic, its subsidiary Equans France achieved a turnover of 7.2 billion euros in 2024 and operates in nearly 30 countries.
www.equans.fr | www.equans.com
- World Wi-Fi Day 2025
- World Wi-Fi Day 2025