Abstract: In this study, we present next-generation Generalized Frequency-Division Multiplexing (GFDM) based 5th-Generation (5G) systems which are designed to overcome the drawbacks of 4th-Generation (4G) systems. In 5G systems, the number of cyclic prefixes required is reduced by adding one to the header of each frame (subsymbols), rather than to each symbol and then transmitting the data in blocks of subcarriers and subsymbols. To meet the growing demand for reliable ubiquitous connectivity, higher energy efficiency, lower network latency and higher data rates, 5G communication networks will require a majo rqualitative shift. These systems have been predicted to be launched soon and many techniques have been proposed to meet the requirements of 5G technology. The primary techniques include new radio access techniques, green communications, device-to-device connectivity, the internet of things, big data and mobile cloud computing, network ultra-densification, massive multiple-input multiple-output, use of the millimeter-wave spectrum, network function virtualization and wireless software-defined networks. This study presents an extensive survey of these techniques. In addition, MATLAB was employed to compare the Symbol Error Rates (SERs) and spectra of GFDM (5G) and Orthogonal Frequency-Division Multiplexing (OFDM) (4G) signals, demonstrating that GFDM uses the spectrum more effectively than OFDM and yields lower SERs.