What is RSSI vs RSRP vs RSRQ?

What is RSSI vs RSRP vs RSRQ?

Let me help you break down three commonly used LTE signal strength indicators — RSSI, RSRP, and RSRQ. You’ve likely come across these terms while analyzing LTE network performance or troubleshooting coverage issues. Although they seem similar, each one tells you something unique about the signal quality and helps in understanding what’s going on in the radio environment.

Let’s look at them individually so you get a clear view of how they work and how they differ:

RSSI – Received Signal Strength Indicator

RSSI is the total received power measured across the entire channel bandwidth. It includes all kinds of signals — the useful LTE signals as well as unwanted ones like interference and noise. So, RSSI gives you a general sense of how strong the signal is, but not necessarily how clean or usable it is.

• Measured in dBm (typically ranges from -120 dBm to -25 dBm).
• Includes signal, noise, and interference power.
• Used mainly to calculate RSRQ.

Think of RSSI like the total sound you hear in a crowded room — not just one person talking, but every voice and background noise mixed together.

RSRP – Reference Signal Received Power

Now, RSRP is more focused. It only measures the average power of the reference signals transmitted by the eNodeB — those specific signals that your device uses for cell selection, handover decisions, and signal quality evaluation. So when you want to know how strong the actual LTE signal is (without the interference), RSRP is what you should look at.

• Measured in dBm (values usually between -140 dBm to -44 dBm).
• Direct indicator of signal strength.
• Used for cell selection, reselection, and handover decisions.

Imagine you’re tuning in to a specific radio station — RSRP is the strength of just that station’s broadcast, excluding all the other noise around.

RSRQ – Reference Signal Received Quality

RSRQ combines both RSSI and RSRP to give a picture of signal quality. It tells you how good or bad the signal is relative to the noise and interference. It’s derived by this formula:

RSRQ = (N × RSRP) / RSSI

Here, N is the number of resource blocks over which RSSI is measured. So even if RSRP is strong, poor RSRQ could indicate interference or congestion.

• Measured in dB (ranges typically between -20 dB to -3 dB).
• Lower RSRQ means worse quality; higher is better.
• Useful for assessing overall network quality.

To use another analogy, if RSRP is the volume of someone talking, and RSSI is the total noise in the room, then RSRQ tells you how clearly you can hear that person.

How They Relate and When to Use

Here’s a quick comparative summary to help you decide when to look at each:

As we learned in earlier topics about LTE signal performance, RSRP and RSRQ work together to give you a full picture. Strong RSRP with poor RSRQ usually means interference is present. Meanwhile, good values for both often translate to a stable and high-performing LTE connection.

If you’re optimizing a network, testing coverage, or just trying to understand why your LTE data speed is fluctuating, these indicators are your best friends. I encourage you to always look at them together — each one complements the other to give you insight into both signal strength and quality.