Bainbridge Island ranks 336th of 394 Washington places (1,000+ residents) and 59th of 61 places of similar size (15,000–40,000 residents).
Data: FCC National Broadband Map, Dec 31, 2025 filings · Analysis: Oct 12, 2026
The 5G Service Index compares how well 5G mobile service reaches the places where residents live, relative to every other Washington community. It uses the coverage that AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon each report to the FCC. A score of 100 means a place ranks at the top of the state on every measure; 50 is roughly typical.
| Component | What it measures | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| In-vehicle | Share of residents with 5G at 35/3 Mbps strong enough to use in a moving vehicle, from any carrier | 40% |
| Outdoor | Share of residents with 5G at 35/3 Mbps outdoors, from any carrier | 20% |
| Choice | Share of residents with in-vehicle 35/3 Mbps 5G from two or more carriers | 20% |
| Floor | Share of residents with 5G at 7/1 Mbps in-vehicle, from any carrier | 20% |
Each component is converted to a percentile among Washington places, then combined using the weights above. In-vehicle coverage carries the most weight because it is the stricter standard and the best available stand-in for reliable everyday service, including indoors. 35/3 Mbps is the FCC's own 5G benchmark.
Coverage is weighted by population, not land area, so the score reflects where people live. 2020 Census block populations are spread across the FCC's standard hexagon grid (about 0.1 km² per hexagon) and matched to each carrier's reported coverage.
The weights and components were set before any results were calculated, and the same method is applied to every place.
Ten comparison communities: Kitsap neighbors, other island or water-separated communities, and similar-sized Puget Sound cities.
Dashed line: Washington median (53)
| Mill Creek | 77 | 76 | 88% | 100% | 45% | 100% |
| Oak Harbor | 62 | 146 | 85% | 100% | 70% | 90% |
| Bremerton | 47 | 212 | 77% | 99% | 38% | 89% |
| Gig Harbor | 47 | 213 | 81% | 97% | 27% | 94% |
| Mercer Island | 40 | 242 | 63% | 99% | 36% | 94% |
| Poulsbo | 34 | 276 | 66% | 93% | 30% | 88% |
| Port Orchard | 25 | 306 | 56% | 95% | 17% | 74% |
| Silverdale | 24 | 311 | 52% | 95% | 18% | 70% |
| Vashon | 17 | 332 | 40% | 90% | 13% | 56% |
| Bainbridge Island | 16 | 336 | 38% | 83% | 15% | 54% |
| Anacortes | 13 | 352 | 33% | 77% | 8% | 56% |
| Washington median place | 53 | — | 77% | 99% | 34% | 94% |
| Similar-size median (15k–40k) | — | — | 80% | 100% | 40% | 97% |
Coverage columns are percent of residents.
About 38% of Bainbridge residents live where any carrier reports in-vehicle-grade 5G, compared with about 80% in a typical Washington community of similar size. Island and water-separated communities tend to score lower, which points to terrain, water crossings, and tower siting as shared challenges.
No. Bainbridge's position stays near the bottom however the index is built.
| Version | State rank (of 394) | Similar-size rank (of 61) |
|---|---|---|
| Primary weights (40/20/20/20) | 336 | 59 |
| Equal weights | 337 | 59 |
| In-vehicle only | 338 | 59 |
| Outdoor only | 352 | 59 |
| Choice only | 285 | 58 |
| Floor only | 345 | 60 |
| Land area instead of population | 364 | 59 |
Validation: Calculated by land area, the same method reproduces the FCC's published coverage figures for all 639 Washington places (correlation 0.99 or higher; median difference 0.0 points), so results are consistent with the National Broadband Map.
Limitations: