Cell tower density in Kenya by county
Nairobi has 4,916 cell towers per 100 km². Wajir has 0.3. Part of the gap comes from geography, so I read density next to land area, not on its own.
The densest counties
Nairobi (4,916), Mombasa (1,973), Kiambu (445), Kisumu (260) and Uasin Gishu (222) lead on towers per 100 km². 13 counties reach 100 or more. The median county has 42.
The thinnest coverage
Wajir (0.3), Mandera (0.4), Marsabit (0.5), Isiolo (0.8) and Turkana (1.0) have the lowest tower density. 13 counties fall under 10 towers per 100 km² and 4 fall under one. Turkana covers 70,132 km², about 99 times the area of Nairobi. Its tower density is 1.0.
Why density needs context
A large county needs far more towers than a small one to post the same density. A low number in a big dry county means few towers are spread over a lot of land. Population weighted coverage would tell a fairer story, but the map does not carry population figures yet. For now, density is the cleanest measure I can source for every county.
Where the data comes from
I use OpenCelliD, a crowd sourced database, with the March 2026 refresh. The map counts 144,834 towers nationally. Crowd sourcing can undercount towers in sparsely populated areas, so treat the lowest counties as a floor.
Tower density in all 47 counties
| Rank | County | Towers per 100 km² | Area (km²) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nairobi | 4,915.7 | 708 |
| 2 | Mombasa | 1,972.8 | 234 |
| 3 | Kiambu | 444.9 | 2,543 |
| 4 | Kisumu | 259.6 | 2,665 |
| 5 | Uasin Gishu | 222.2 | 3,397 |
| 6 | Vihiga | 164.6 | 560 |
| 7 | Kericho | 156.0 | 2,513 |
| 8 | Nakuru | 149.6 | 7,487 |
| 9 | Kisii | 148.8 | 1,314 |
| 10 | Busia | 123.1 | 1,812 |
| 11 | Siaya | 114.4 | 3,520 |
| 12 | Bungoma | 106.0 | 3,016 |
| 13 | Kakamega | 102.1 | 3,008 |
| 14 | Bomet | 99.1 | 2,438 |
| 15 | Kirinyaga | 94.2 | 1,475 |
| 16 | Nyamira | 86.0 | 897 |
| 17 | Murang'a | 76.4 | 2,525 |
| 18 | Trans Nzoia | 75.5 | 2,485 |
| 19 | Nyeri | 68.8 | 3,335 |
| 20 | Migori | 59.3 | 3,144 |
| 21 | Machakos | 47.1 | 6,044 |
| 22 | Embu | 45.9 | 2,824 |
| 23 | Makueni | 43.5 | 8,175 |
| 24 | Homa Bay | 42.1 | 4,732 |
| 25 | Nandi | 39.8 | 2,836 |
| 26 | Kwale | 39.7 | 8,266 |
| 27 | Meru | 38.1 | 6,993 |
| 28 | Nyandarua | 35.6 | 3,267 |
| 29 | Kilifi | 32.2 | 12,599 |
| 30 | Tharaka Nithi | 21.8 | 2,581 |
| 31 | Taita Taveta | 16.1 | 17,131 |
| 32 | Kajiado | 15.6 | 21,885 |
| 33 | Narok | 14.8 | 17,912 |
| 34 | Elgeyo Marakwet | 13.2 | 3,008 |
| 35 | Baringo | 7.9 | 10,889 |
| 36 | Laikipia | 7.7 | 9,537 |
| 37 | Kitui | 7.0 | 30,457 |
| 38 | West Pokot | 6.2 | 9,306 |
| 39 | Lamu | 3.6 | 6,047 |
| 40 | Tana River | 1.6 | 39,192 |
| 41 | Samburu | 1.3 | 21,016 |
| 42 | Garissa | 1.1 | 43,596 |
| 43 | Turkana | 1.0 | 70,132 |
| 44 | Isiolo | 0.8 | 25,399 |
| 45 | Marsabit | 0.5 | 76,028 |
| 46 | Mandera | 0.4 | 25,979 |
| 47 | Wajir | 0.3 | 56,669 |
Tower density counts for 25% of the composite score. Read how the score is built in the data, formula and limits post, or open the map and switch to the Tower Density layer.
Frequently asked questions
Which Kenyan county has the most cell towers per area?
Nairobi, with 4,916 towers per 100 km². Mombasa is second at 1,973.
Which counties have the fewest cell towers per area?
Wajir (0.3), Mandera (0.4) and Marsabit (0.5) towers per 100 km² are the lowest.
Where does the tower data come from?
OpenCelliD, a crowd sourced database of cell towers. I use the March 2026 refresh.
Explore the data
Open the interactive map or browse all 47 counties. County data is on the data page.