Europe ended 2025 with approximately 209 million smart electricity meters installed, about two thirds of all electricity customers in the EU27+3 region (Berg Insight, Smart Metering in Europe 2026). North America is further along, at more than 82% penetration in 2024, while Great Britain’s 40 million smart meters show that installing a meter and keeping it connected are two different problems: 3.1 million of them still run in ‘traditional’, non-communicating mode (DESNZ, June 2026). The connectivity layer is where the market is now moving, with RF mesh and Wi-SUN dominating North America, NB-IoT and LTE-M gaining share in Europe, and LoRaWAN common in water metering. Smart meters are the largest single fleet in the wider IoT statistics picture. We aggregated data from Berg Insight, the UK Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, the US Energy Information Administration, the European Commission, Ericsson, Wi-SUN Alliance, Itron and Landis+Gyr filings, Citizens Advice and the other primary sources listed in the methodology.
TL;DR
- About 209 million smart electricity meters were installed in the EU27+3 at end-2025, two thirds of customers (Berg Insight, 2026).
- More than 131 million smart electricity meters are forecast to ship in Europe from 2025 to 2031, reaching 85% penetration (Berg Insight, 2026).
- Smart meter penetration in North America passed 82% in 2024 (Berg Insight, Smart Metering in North America 2025).
- Itron controlled 63% of North American network endpoints, Landis+Gyr 25% (Berg Insight, 2024).
- Cellular has fewer than 5 million meters in North America, where RF mesh dominates (Berg Insight, 2024).
- Great Britain has 42 million smart and advanced meters, 72% of all meters (DESNZ, June 2026).
- 92% of GB smart meters operate in smart mode, leaving 3.1 million in traditional mode (DESNZ, June 2026).
- GB replacement installs (570,000) overtook new installs (525,000) in Q2 2026 (DESNZ, June 2026).
- 3GPP LPWA smart meter shipments in Europe rise from 2.4 million to 6.1 million a year over 2025 to 2031 (Berg Insight, 2026).
- Cellular IoT connections reached 4.5 billion in 2025, heading to 7.8 billion in 2031 (Ericsson Mobility Report, June 2026).
- Latin America’s smart meter base grows from 22.1 million to 61.3 million units by 2030 (Berg Insight, January 2026).
- Itron’s Q2 2026 revenue fell 7% to 563 million dollars, with Networked Solutions down 17% (Itron Q2 2026 results).
1. Europe: Two Thirds Smart, and the Second Wave Begins
Europe has moved from the rollout race to the replacement cycle. Berg Insight counted approximately 209 million smart electricity meters in the EU27+3 at the end of 2025, about two thirds of electricity customers, and expects more than 131 million deployments between 2025 and 2031 (IoT Business News on Berg Insight, July 2026). Growth has slowed to a 5.1% CAGR, and the volume now comes from two directions: first-generation projects in Central, Eastern and Southeastern Europe, and second-generation swaps in Spain, France and the Netherlands.
The trajectory is steady rather than spectacular. Berg Insight’s February 2024 assessment put the base at 186 million and penetration just over 60% at the end of 2023; its 2022 edition counted 163 million at the end of 2021 (World-Energy). That is about 46 million net additions over four years, or roughly 11.5 million a year (209 - 163 = 46; 46 / 4 = 11.5). Gas lags electricity badly: about 59 million smart gas meters in 2025, forecast to reach only 48% penetration in 2031.
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Smart electricity meters, EU27+3, end-2025 | About 209 million (two thirds of customers) | Berg Insight, Smart Metering in Europe 2026 |
| Smart electricity meters, EU27+3, end-2023 | 186 million (over 60% penetration) | Berg Insight, February 2024 |
| Smart electricity meters, EU27+3, end-2021 | 163 million | Berg Insight, November 2022 |
| Deployments forecast, 2025 to 2031 | More than 131 million (65% first-generation) | Berg Insight, 2026 |
| Penetration forecast, 2031 | 85% (installed base CAGR 5.1%) | Berg Insight, 2026 |
| Smart gas meters, 2025 to 2031 | Nearly 59 million to around 79 million (48% penetration) | Berg Insight, 2026 |
| Share of first-generation shipments to Central and Southeastern Europe | 76% by 2031 | Berg Insight, 2026 |
Context note: the European Commission’s DG Energy, citing ACER monitoring data, says around 60% of European households had an electricity smart meter at the end of 2024 and that 15 EU countries were above 80%. The Commission estimates average installation costs of 180 to 200 euros per meter against savings of 230 euros (gas) and 270 euros (electricity) per metering point, and aggregate investment of up to 47 billion euros by 2030 for about 266 million meters (92% penetration).
2. North America: Near Saturation, Running on RF Mesh
North America is the most saturated large market and the one most committed to private radio networks. Smart meter penetration passed 82% in 2024, and Berg Insight forecasts an installed base of 180.9 million units by 2030, with US penetration at 91% and Canada at 97% (The Fast Mode on Berg Insight, July 2025). Shipments peaked at 18.4 million units in 2024 and are forecast to ease to 12.0 million in 2030, with second-generation replacements making up nearly 75% of yearly volumes by then.
The network choice has been made, and it is not cellular. Berg Insight’s 2024 report found wireless RF covers the vast majority of installations, with Wi-SUN mesh the most widespread variant, while significant cellular deployments total fewer than 5 million meters (Industrial News on Berg Insight, June 2024). Cellular has been seen as too costly per endpoint compared with utility-owned mesh, though utilities are now weighing private cellular networks as public 2G and 3G networks are phased out.
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Smart meter penetration, North America, 2024 | Over 82% | Berg Insight, Smart Metering in North America 2025 |
| Installed base forecast, 2030 | 180.9 million (2.9% CAGR, 2024 to 2030) | Berg Insight, 2025 |
| Penetration forecast, 2030 | US 91%, Canada 97% | Berg Insight, 2025 |
| Annual shipments | 18.4 million (2024 peak) to 12.0 million (2030) | Berg Insight, 2025 |
| Installed base, end-2023 | 145.6 million (130.6 million US, 15.4 million Canada) | Berg Insight, June 2024 |
| Network endpoint share | Itron 63%, Landis+Gyr 25%, Sensus 8% | Berg Insight, June 2024 |
| Cellular smart meter deployments | Fewer than 5 million meters | Berg Insight, June 2024 |
Context note: government data lags the analyst view. The US EIA’s smart meter FAQ still cites about 119 million AMI installations in 2022, 72% of all electricity meters (most recent available data in that summary: EIA, 2022). By customer class in 2021, residential AMI reached 104.2 million meters (73%) and commercial 13.9 million (69%). EIA released early 2025 Form EIA-861 data on August 4, 2026, with final data due in October 2026 (EIA-861).
3. Great Britain: Installed Is Not the Same as Connected
Britain is the clearest public case study of what happens after a meter goes on the wall. DESNZ counted 42 million smart and advanced meters in homes and small businesses at the end of June 2026, 72% of all 57.5 million meters, of which 40.3 million are smart meters (DESNZ, Smart meters in Great Britain, June 2026). Of those, 37.2 million (92%) were operating in smart mode, and 3.1 million were in traditional mode, meaning they no longer send readings remotely.
The rollout has also turned a corner on volume mix. In Q2 2026, replacement installations (570,000) exceeded new installations (525,000) out of 1.1 million fitted by large suppliers. Domestic coverage is uneven between fuels: 75% of homes have a smart electricity meter, but only 57% have a smart gas meter. Citizens Advice, responding to the same release, says 6.7 million households (36% of smart meter users) still regularly submit manual readings, up 20% year over year, and 1.2 million report inaccurate bills since installation.
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Smart and advanced meters, GB, end of June 2026 | 42 million (72% of 57.5 million meters) | DESNZ, quarterly update June 2026 |
| Smart meters in smart mode / traditional mode | 37.2 million (92%) / 3.1 million | DESNZ, June 2026 |
| Non-smart meters still operating | 15.9 million | DESNZ, June 2026 |
| Installations, Q2 2026 | 1.1 million (525,000 new, 570,000 replacements) | DESNZ, June 2026 |
| Homes with smart electricity / gas meter | 75% / 57% | DESNZ, June 2026 |
| Households still submitting manual readings | 6.7 million (36% of users, +20% YoY) | Citizens Advice, August 2026 |
| Smart meters operating, Q1 2025 | 39 million (720,000 installed in the quarter) | DESNZ via Solar Power Portal, 2025 |
Context note: the smart-mode share has barely moved, from 91% in Q1 2025 to 92% in Q2 2026 (Solar Power Portal on DESNZ Q1 2025), even as the fleet grew. Regional gaps persist too: in Q1 2025 penetration stood at 70% in England, 67% in Wales and 57% in Scotland. Ofgem figures in the same report put average supplier achievement of installation targets at 65%.
4. Connectivity Mix: Mesh, Cellular LPWA and LoRaWAN
There is no single ‘smart meter network’. North American utilities buy proprietary or Wi-SUN RF mesh in the 915 MHz band; European rollouts long relied on powerline communications (PLC) and are now shifting toward standalone wireless. Berg Insight expects standalone wireless connectivity to exceed 50% of annual European shipments, peaking at 62% in 2028, with 3GPP LPWA (NB-IoT and LTE-M) shipments rising from 2.4 million to 6.1 million units a year over 2025 to 2031 (IoT Business News on Berg Insight, 2026). The share of wireless was only 33% in 2021, when Europe had 1.4 million NB-IoT and LTE-M meters.
The mesh camp gained formal weight in 2026. Wi-SUN FAN became the first wireless mesh network standard adopted by ISO/IEC as ISO/IEC/IEEE 32857:2026 on July 7, 2026, and the Wi-SUN Alliance counts more than 300 member organizations across 46 countries. Cellular operators still matter in scale terms: Ericsson counts 4.5 billion cellular IoT connections in 2025 and forecasts 7.8 billion by 2031 (Ericsson Mobility Report, June 2026), and the 5G side of that story is in our 5G adoption statistics. Water utilities often pick a third option: Aarhus Vand in Denmark chose a carrier-grade LoRaWAN network from Netmore for about 69,000 connected water meters through 2030.
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Standalone wireless share of European shipments | Over 50%, peaking at 62% in 2028 | Berg Insight, Smart Metering in Europe 2026 |
| 3GPP LPWA (NB-IoT, LTE-M) meter shipments, Europe | 2.4 million to 6.1 million a year (2025 to 2031) | Berg Insight, 2026 |
| Standalone wireless share, Europe, 2021 | 33% (57% forecast for 2027 at the time) | Berg Insight, November 2022 |
| NB-IoT and LTE-M smart meters, Europe, 2021 | 1.4 million | Berg Insight, November 2022 |
| Cellular IoT connections | 4.5 billion (2025) to 7.8 billion (2031), 10% CAGR | Ericsson Mobility Report, June 2026 |
| Broadband and critical IoT connections, 2025 | About 2.6 billion (about 60% of cellular IoT) | Ericsson Mobility Report, June 2026 |
| Wi-SUN Alliance membership | 300+ organizations, 46 countries | Wi-SUN Alliance, July 2026 |
| LoRaWAN water meters, Aarhus Vand | About 69,000 (rollout through 2030) | Netmore via IoT Business News, August 2026 |
Context note: Ericsson’s figures cover all cellular IoT, not metering alone. Low-cost, low-complexity devices such as meters sit in its massive IoT (NB-IoT and Cat-M) segment, which the public page does not break out, so we do not estimate a meter share. Mesh meters also carry security exposure on the utility side, a theme covered in our industrial IoT security statistics.
5. Emerging Markets: Latin America and India Take Over Growth
The next 100 million meters will not come from Europe or North America. Berg Insight expects Latin America and the Caribbean to grow from about 22.1 million smart meters (9.7% penetration) in 2025 to 61.3 million in 2030, a 22.7% CAGR (IoT Business News on Berg Insight, January 2026). Brazil and Mexico drive about 70% of shipment volumes, and Brazil alone is forecast to move from 9.2% to 30.6% penetration. Annual regional shipments roughly double, from 5.2 million to 11.3 million units.
Regulation is doing the work in Brazil. A Ministry of Mines and Energy ordinance (Portaria Normativa MME No. 126/2026) requires smart metering for 2% of consumer units annually for 24 months starting March 1, 2026, and the Wi-SUN Alliance counts more than 2 million Wi-SUN endpoints across 60 Brazilian cities, including more than 250,000 Wi-SUN meters at CPFL Energia. India’s rollout favors RF mesh too: Wirepas says its mesh runs in more than 11 million smart meters tied to the Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme, nearly 1 million of them Polaris meters in rural Uttar Pradesh, and Comminent has shipped more than 500,000 Wi-SUN modules for Indian networks after the Bureau of Indian Standards adopted Wi-SUN FAN as IS 18010.
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Latin America and Caribbean installed base | 22.1 million (2025) to 61.3 million (2030) | Berg Insight, Smart Metering in Latin America, January 2026 |
| Regional penetration, 2025 | 9.7% (22.7% CAGR to 2030) | Berg Insight, January 2026 |
| Brazil penetration | 9.2% (2025) to 30.6% (2030) | Berg Insight, January 2026 |
| Annual shipments, Latin America | 5.2 million (2025) to 11.3 million (2030) | Berg Insight, January 2026 |
| Wi-SUN endpoints in Brazil | More than 2 million across 60 cities | Wi-SUN Alliance, October 2026 |
| Brazil smart metering mandate | 2% of consumer units a year for 24 months from March 1, 2026 | MME Portaria 126/2026 via Wi-SUN Alliance |
| Indian smart meters on Wirepas mesh | More than 11 million (nearly 1 million in Uttar Pradesh) | Wirepas via IoT Business News, September 2026 |
| Wi-SUN modules shipped for India | More than 500,000 | Comminent / Silicon Labs via IoT Business News, May 2026 |
Context note: India’s official National Smart Grid Mission dashboard was unreachable during research, so this section does not cite national installation totals; the Wirepas and Comminent figures are vendor-reported and cover only their own deployments.
6. The Vendors: Backlogs Stay High as Meter Revenue Cools
Meter makers are living through the gap between first-wave peaks and second-wave ramps. Itron reported Q2 2026 revenue of 563 million dollars, down 7% year over year, with Networked Solutions, its AMI and grid network business, down 17% to 339.2 million dollars (Itron Q2 2026 results, SEC Form 8-K). At the same time, adjusted gross margin rose to a record 41.4%, annual recurring revenue climbed 21% to 417 million dollars, and backlog held at 4.4 billion dollars. The money is shifting from hardware to software and services on top of the network.
Landis+Gyr shows the same pattern. Its Q1 FY2026 trading update reported net revenue of 232.3 million dollars (down 6.8%) and order intake of 167.0 million dollars, with Connected Platforms revenue down 13.9% while Grid Intelligence revenue rose 14.8%. Its backlog of 3,820 million dollars at June 30, 2026 is almost unchanged from 3,868 million a year earlier. For full-year 2025, Itron’s Networked Solutions segment brought in 1,557.3 million dollars, about 66% of segment revenue (1,557.3 / (447.1 + 1,557.3 + 359.7 + 3.0) = 65.8%), per its Q4 2025 results.
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Itron revenue, Q2 2026 | 563 million dollars (-7% YoY) | Itron Q2 2026 results (Form 8-K) |
| Itron Networked Solutions revenue, Q2 2026 | 339.2 million dollars (-17%) | Itron Q2 2026 results |
| Itron backlog / bookings, Q2 2026 | 4.4 billion dollars / 550 million dollars | Itron Q2 2026 results |
| Itron annual recurring revenue | 417 million dollars (+21%) | Itron Q2 2026 results |
| Itron revenue, full-year 2025 | 2.4 billion dollars (-3%); bookings 2.1 billion | Itron Q4 2025 results (Form 8-K) |
| Itron 2026 revenue guidance | 2.37 to 2.41 billion dollars | Itron Q2 2026 results |
| Landis+Gyr net revenue / order intake, Q1 FY2026 | 232.3 million dollars (-6.8%) / 167.0 million dollars (-2.7%) | Landis+Gyr Q1 FY2026 trading update |
| Landis+Gyr backlog, June 30, 2026 | 3,820 million dollars (3,868 million a year earlier) | Landis+Gyr Q1 FY2026 trading update |
Context note: vendor revenue includes products beyond meters, such as grid sensors, software and services, so it is a proxy for metering demand, not a measure of it. The broader energy load picture that utilities are planning for, including data center demand, is tracked in our AI energy consumption statistics.
Summary: Smart Utility Meter Connectivity by the Numbers
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Smart electricity meters, EU27+3, end-2025 | About 209 million (two thirds of customers) | Berg Insight, 2026 |
| European deployments, 2025 to 2031 | More than 131 million | Berg Insight, 2026 |
| European penetration forecast, 2031 | 85% | Berg Insight, 2026 |
| EU households with an electricity smart meter, end-2024 | Around 60% | European Commission DG Energy (ACER data) |
| EU investment estimate to 2030 | 47 billion euros for about 266 million meters | European Commission DG Energy |
| North American penetration, 2024 | Over 82% | Berg Insight, 2025 |
| North American installed base, 2030 | 180.9 million | Berg Insight, 2025 |
| North American network endpoint share | Itron 63%, Landis+Gyr 25%, Sensus 8% | Berg Insight, 2024 |
| Cellular smart meters in North America | Fewer than 5 million | Berg Insight, 2024 |
| US AMI meters, 2022 | About 119 million (72%) | US EIA |
| GB smart and advanced meters | 42 million (72% of meters) | DESNZ, June 2026 |
| GB smart meters in smart mode | 92% (3.1 million in traditional mode) | DESNZ, June 2026 |
| GB households submitting manual readings | 6.7 million | Citizens Advice, August 2026 |
| European standalone wireless share peak | 62% of shipments in 2028 | Berg Insight, 2026 |
| European NB-IoT and LTE-M meter shipments | 2.4 million to 6.1 million a year | Berg Insight, 2026 |
| Cellular IoT connections, 2025 / 2031 | 4.5 billion / 7.8 billion | Ericsson Mobility Report, June 2026 |
| Latin America smart meters, 2030 | 61.3 million (22.7% CAGR) | Berg Insight, January 2026 |
| Wi-SUN endpoints in Brazil | More than 2 million | Wi-SUN Alliance, October 2026 |
| Itron Q2 2026 revenue / backlog | 563 million / 4.4 billion dollars | Itron Q2 2026 results |
| Landis+Gyr backlog, June 2026 | 3,820 million dollars | Landis+Gyr Q1 FY2026 |
Methodology and Sources
Every figure above was read during research for this article and traced to the organization that produced it. Berg Insight publishes the only free, regularly updated regional smart meter counts; where its own site or PDFs could not be read, we used trade-press articles that name the specific Berg Insight report and date, and say so below. Market-sizing estimates from report resellers (smart meter market ‘worth X billion’ figures) were excluded because they do not disclose methodology.
- Berg Insight, Smart Metering in Europe: 2026 edition via IoT Business News, 2024 edition via The Fast Mode and Industrial News, 2022 edition via World-Energy
- Berg Insight, Smart Metering in North America: 2025 edition via The Fast Mode, 2024 edition via Industrial News
- Berg Insight, Smart Metering in Latin America and the Caribbean: January 2026 via IoT Business News
- UK Department for Energy Security and Net Zero: Smart meters in Great Britain, quarterly update June 2026; Q1 2025 figures and Ofgem target data via Solar Power Portal
- Citizens Advice: response to the June 2026 smart meter statistics
- US Energy Information Administration: smart meter FAQ, Form EIA-861 data files
- European Commission, DG Energy: Smart grids and meters (citing ACER market monitoring and the 2019 benchmarking study)
- Ericsson: Mobility Report IoT connections outlook, June 2026
- Wi-SUN Alliance: Brazil endpoint deployments (October 2026), ISO/IEC adoption of Wi-SUN FAN (July 2026)
- Vendor deployments: Wirepas in Uttar Pradesh, Comminent Wi-SUN modules, Netmore and Aarhus Vand
- Itron: Q2 2026 results (SEC Form 8-K, Exhibit 99.1), Q4 and full-year 2025 results
- Landis+Gyr: Q1 FY2026 trading update
- Data watch: European penetration figures differ by definition: Berg Insight counts about two thirds of electricity customers at end-2025, while the European Commission (ACER data) counts around 60% of households at end-2024. Berg Insight’s forecasts for 3GPP LPWA shipments have moved: its 2024 edition expected 3.5 to 4.0 million NB-IoT and LTE-M meters a year, while its 2026 edition starts the range at 2.4 million in 2025. North American forecasts also shifted between editions (182.9 million by 2029 in the 2024 report versus 180.9 million by 2030 in the 2025 report). The North American vendor endpoint shares (Itron 63%) and the end-2023 installed base date from June 2024 and are the most recent available public data. The EIA’s FAQ still reflects 2022 data (most recent available summary: EIA, 2022); final 2025 EIA-861 data, due in October 2026, should update it. Smart DCC’s network dashboard, Berg Insight’s own press pages, India’s National Smart Grid Mission dashboard and the FERC demand response assessment could not be read automatically, so their figures are not used. Wirepas, Comminent and Wi-SUN Alliance deployment counts are self-reported.
Last updated: October 3, 2026. We update this roundup quarterly, and the next refresh is expected when DESNZ publishes its September 2026 smart meter quarterly update and the EIA releases final 2025 Form EIA-861 advanced metering data.