5G Small Cell Density Calculator

Small cell count per square mile from capacity demand.

Coverage area (km²)

User density (/km²)

Target throughput (Mbps/user)

Frequency Band

Simultaneous user %

Deployment Type

Tab to move between fields

Required small cells

250

Cells per km²50

Inter-site distance (m)156

Cell radius (m)500

Total demand (Gbps)250

Capacity per cell (Mbps)1,000

Total users in area25,000

Simultaneous users2,500

Total deployment cost ($)$11,250,000.00

Cost per km² ($)$2,250,000.00

Total backhaul needed (Gbps)250

How to Use This Calculator

Enter the target coverage area in square km.
Set the small cell range in meters for the frequency band being deployed (mmWave: 150 m, sub-6 GHz: 500 m).
Input the target spectral efficiency in bits per Hz and the required average throughput per user in Mbps.
Review the Number of Small Cells Required and the Site Density per square km.
Use the Total Deployment Cost output to budget the rollout and compare against macro cell alternatives.

How the result changes with Coverage area (km²)

Coverage area (km²): Target deployment area in square kilometers.
User density (/km²): Expected user density per square kilometer. Urban core: 10,000+, suburban: 2,000-5,000.
Target throughput (Mbps/user): Target downlink throughput per simultaneous user in Mbps.
Frequency Band: Select 5G frequency band
Simultaneous user %: Percentage of users actively using data simultaneously. Typical busy hour: 5-15%.
Deployment Type: Select deployment environment type

Required small cells: Total number of small cells needed (max of capacity and coverage requirements).
Cells per km²: Small cell density per square kilometer.
Inter-site distance (m): Average distance between small cell sites.
Cell radius (m): Effective coverage radius per small cell for the chosen band/environment.
Total demand (Gbps): Aggregate throughput demand from simultaneous users.
Capacity per cell (Mbps): Downlink capacity of a single small cell at the chosen frequency.
Total users in area: Total user population within the coverage area.
Simultaneous users: Users actively consuming data at peak.
Total deployment cost ($): Estimated cost for all small cells including installation.
Cost per km² ($): Deployment cost per square kilometer.
Total backhaul needed (Gbps): Aggregate backhaul capacity required for all small cells.

Identify Input Parameters
4 parameters
Coverage area (km²) = 5, User density (/km²) = 5000, Target throughput (Mbps/user) = 100, Frequency Band = 1 = 6 input(s) provided
Calculate Required small cells
Required small cells
250 = 250
Calculate Cells per km²
Cells per km² = requiredCells / areaSqKm
50 = 50
Calculate Inter-site distance
Inter-site distance = sqrt((areaSqKm * 1e6) / requiredCells) * 1.1
156 = 156