How much do the largest telecom companies make per second?

Adam Alred • 15 Feb 2023 • 3 min read

When it comes to global industries that make staggering amounts of money, it’s safe to say that the telecommunication industry is very close to the top. And given that they’re responsible for connecting billions of people worldwide, this shouldn’t really come as a surprise. 

But just how much money do the largest telecom companies make? And just how much do they make with every passing second? To find out, the team at VoiceNation used their data to pull together the following infographic displaying just how much the top telecommunication companies across the globe earn. 

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How much do the biggest telecom companies earn per second?

Being in charge of transmitting electronic information around the world in the form of calls, texts, images, and video, it’s obvious that most top telecommunications companies will be earning a lot of money.

But as our graph shows, it’s truly staggering just how much money they pull in per second.

Company Total Revenue Revenue per Second Country
AT&T $168,860,000,000 $5,354.52 United States
Verizon $133,610,000,000 $4,236.75 United States
China Mobile $131,150,000,000 $4,158.74 China
Deutsche Telekom AG $126,210,000,000 $4,002.09 Germany
Comcast $116,380,000,000 $3,690.39 United States
Nippon Telegraph and Telephone $108,370,000,000 $3,436.39 Japan
China Telecom $64,290,000,000 $2,038.62 China
SoftBank $54,210,000,000 $1,718.99 Japan
Vodafone $50,870,000,000 $1,613.08 United Kingdom
Charter Communications $50,830,000,000 $1,611.81 United States
KDDI $48,250,000,000 $1,530.00 Japan
Orange $48,150,000,000 $1,526.83 France
Telefónica $45,720,000,000 $1,449.77 Spain
China Unicom $44,240,000,000 $1,402.84 China
América Móvil $39,860,000,000 $1,263.95 Mexico
BT Group $31,270,000,000 $991.57 United Kingdom
KT Corporation $21,450,000,000 $680.18 South Korea
Lumen $19,680,000,000 $624.05 United States
BCE $18,560,000,000 $588.53 Canada
Saudi Telecom $16,920,000,000 $536.53 Saudi Arabia
Gruppo TIM $16,499,000,000 $523.18 Italy
Bharti Airtel $14,940,000,000 $473.74 India
SK Telecom $14,500,000,000 $459.79 South Korea
Telstra $14,390,000,000 $456.30 Australia
Telus $13,330,000,000 $422.69 Canada

The largest telecommunications company on our list in terms of wealth, AT&T, makes a mindboggling $5,354.52 per second! That’s over $1,000 more than their next closest competitor, Verizon, who still makes an insane $4,236.75 per second! 

The numbers in transit here are truly enormous, as shown by the top ten below:

  1. AT&T – $5,354.52 
  2. Verizon – $4,236.75 
  3. China Mobile – $4158.74 
  4. Deutsche Telekom AG – $4,002.09 
  5. Comcast – $3,690.39 
  6. Nippon Telegraph and Telephone $3,436.39 
  7. China Telecom – $2,038.62 
  8. SoftBank – $1,718.99 
  9. Vodafone – $1,613.08 
  10. Charter Communications – $1,611.81 

Who is the largest telecommunications company in the world?

In terms of wealth, the largest telecommunications company in the world, and one of the largest top telecom companies in the USA, is AT&T. Worth an overwhelming $168.86 billion, only Verizon and China Mobile come close with a value of $133.61 billion, and $131.15 billion respectively.

As for the other top 25 biggest telecom companies in the world, we’ve listed them by value below:

  1. AT&T: $168.86 billion
  2. Verizon: $133.61 billion
  3. China Mobile: $131.15 billion
  4. Deutsche Telekom AG: $126.21 billion
  5. Comcast: $116.38 billion
  6. Nippon Telegraph and Telephone: $108.37 billion
  7. China Telecom: $64.29 billion
  8. SoftBank: $54.21 billion
  9. Vodafone: $50.87 billion
  10. Charter Communications: $50.83 billion
  11. KDDI: $48.25 billion
  12. Orange: $48.15 billion
  13. Telefónica: $ 45.72 billion
  14. China Unicom: $44.24 billion
  15. América Móvil: $39.86 billion
  16. BT Group: $31.27 billion
  17. KT Corporation: $21.45 billion
  18. Lumen: $19.68 billion
  19. BCE: $18.56 billion
  20. Saudi Telecom: $16.92 billion
  21. Gruppo TIM: $16.49 billion
  22. Bharti Airtel: $14.94 billion
  23. SK Telecom: $14.50 billion
  24. Telstra: $14.39 billion
  25. Telus: $13.33 billion

When Was AT&T Founded?

Given their total value, it’s safe to assume that AT&T has been around for a while. In fact, when reviewing the history of communication technology, AT&T dates back to 1877, when the Bell Telephone Company was founded the very first telephone company in the world! 

Founded by Gardiner Hubbard, father-in-law of Alexander Graham Bell, who had invented the telephone just one year earlier, a quick series of mergers and name changes, led to the company evolving into the American Telephone and Telegraph Company, formed in 1885.

AT&T and its army of subsidiaries then spread across the United States, effectively becoming a phone service monopoly, which eventually became federally authorized by the Kingsbury Commitment. 

What Is the Kingsbury Commitment?

The Kingsbury Commitment was a 1913 out-of-court settlement between the United States government and AT&T. 

In exchange for the government’s agreement not to pursue its antitrust case against AT&T, AT&T agreed to divest its controlling interest in the Western Union telegraph company and allow independent telephone companies to connect with the AT&T long-distance network. 

 AT&T kept its near-monopoly until the 1980s when the federal government forced the breakup of the company.  

So, now you know just how much the largest telecom companies in the world are making each second. Of course, you don’t have to go directly to them for your telecommunication needs. 

With VoiceNation, we can handle all your calls through our virtual receptionist service and live chat. Get in touch to learn more about what we can offer you. And if you’re interested in similar pieces to this one, why not read our article looking at the world’s most expensive phone bills? 

By Adam Alred

VP of IT @ VoiceNation