Nizhny Novgorod residents became almost twice as likely to communicate via SMS

Voice and SMS became more popular in 2026. In nine months, the volume of voice traffic in MegaFon's network increased by 27% year-on-year, and the number of outgoing SMS MESSAGES increased by 84%. The most noticeable dynamics among voice transmission technologies was shown by calls over Wi-Fi.

In the Nizhny Novgorod region, as well as in the whole country, in January-September 2026, the volume of voice traffic using VoWiFi (Voice over Wi-Fi) technology increased by more than 70% compared to the same period last year. VoWiFi technology allows you to make regular phone calls over Wi-Fi networks. At the same time, the volume of voice traffic via VoLTE (Voice over LTE) is also growing: in nine months, the figure increased by 30%. The technology provides high sound quality, as well as allows you to simultaneously talk on the phone and use the mobile Internet via the 4G network.

Also, users began to send SMS more often. Thus, in January-August, the average monthly number of their users increased by almost a quarter compared to the same period last year. At the same time, there are now about 18 outgoing messages per user per month, compared to 12 a year earlier.

"In nine months, voice traffic in our network has grown by 27%, and such dynamics create an additional burden on the infrastructure. In order to maintain high communication quality and a stable signal, we continue to upgrade the network, regularly expanding its capacity. We continue to develop modern voice transmission technologies, including VoWiFi, so that subscribers can always stay in touch with their loved ones," said Alexey Titov, Technical Director of MegaFon.

The high quality of voice calls is also confirmed by the operator's subscribers. According to a study by Insight Comcon for the first half of 2026, MegaFon took first place in terms of the perception of the quality of voice communication in Russia. Thus, 55% of MegaFon users called the quality of its voice communication the best — this is the highest indicator among domestic mobile operators.

Analysts of Insight Comcon during a telephone survey found out the opinion of 9 thousand subscribers from more than 70 regions of the country. The study involved both residents of large megacities and small settlements. Respondents were asked to choose one or more operators with the best, in their opinion, voice quality, as well as to indicate which of them they use. The assessment was calculated separately according to the subscriber base of each operator, after which the results were compared between market participants.