Mobile accounts for approximately half of web traffic worldwide. In the last quarter of 2024, mobile devices (excluding tablets) generated 62.54 percent of global website traffic. Mobiles and smartphones consistently hoovered around the 50 percent mark since the beginning of 2017, before surpassing it in 2020. Mobile traffic Due to low infrastructure and financial restraints, many emerging digital markets skipped the desktop internet phase entirely and moved straight onto mobile internet via smartphone and tablet devices. India is a prime example of a market with a significant mobile-first online population. Other countries with a significant share of mobile internet traffic include Nigeria, Ghana and Kenya. In most African markets, mobile accounts for more than half of the web traffic. By contrast, mobile only makes up around 45.49 percent of online traffic in the United States. Mobile usage The most popular mobile internet activities worldwide include watching movies or videos online, e-mail usage and accessing social media. Apps are a very popular way to watch video on the go and the most-downloaded entertainment apps in the Apple App Store are Netflix, Tencent Video and Amazon Prime Video.

The population share with mobile internet access in North America was forecast to increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total 2.9 percentage points. This overall increase does not happen continuously, notably not in 2028 and 2029. The mobile internet penetration is estimated to amount to 84.21 percent in 2029. Notably, the population share with mobile internet access of was continuously increasing over the past years.The penetration rate refers to the share of the total population having access to the internet via a mobile broadband connection.The shown data are an excerpt of Statista's Key Market Indicators (KMI). The KMI are a collection of primary and secondary indicators on the macro-economic, demographic and technological environment in up to 150 countries and regions worldwide. All indicators are sourced from international and national statistical offices, trade associations and the trade press and they are processed to generate comparable data sets (see supplementary notes under details for more information).Find more key insights for the population share with mobile internet access in countries like Caribbean and Europe.

The global number of smartphone users in was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total 1.8 billion users (+42.62 percent). After the ninth consecutive increasing year, the smartphone user base is estimated to reach 6.1 billion users and therefore a new peak in 2029. Notably, the number of smartphone users of was continuously increasing over the past years.Smartphone users here are limited to internet users of any age using a smartphone. The shown figures have been derived from survey data that has been processed to estimate missing demographics.The shown data are an excerpt of Statista's Key Market Indicators (KMI). The KMI are a collection of primary and secondary indicators on the macro-economic, demographic and technological environment in up to 150 countries and regions worldwide. All indicators are sourced from international and national statistical offices, trade associations and the trade press and they are processed to generate comparable data sets (see supplementary notes under details for more information).Find more key insights for the number of smartphone users in countries like Australia & Oceania and Asia.

Switzerland is leading the ranking by population share with mobile internet access, recording 95.06 percent. Following closely behind is Ukraine with 95.06 percent, while Moldova is trailing the ranking with 46.83 percent, resulting in a difference of 48.23 percentage points to the ranking leader, Switzerland. The penetration rate refers to the share of the total population having access to the internet via a mobile broadband connection. The shown data are an excerpt of Statista's Key Market Indicators (KMI). The KMI are a collection of primary and secondary indicators on the macro-economic, demographic and technological environment in up to 150 countries and regions worldwide. All indicators are sourced from international and national statistical offices, trade associations and the trade press and they are processed to generate comparable data sets (see supplementary notes under details for more information).

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Market leader Facebook was the first social network to surpass one billion registered accounts and currently sits at more than three billion monthly active users. Meta Platforms owns four of the biggest social media platforms, all with more than one billion monthly active users each: Facebook (core platform), WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and Instagram. In the third quarter of 2023, Facebook reported around four billion monthly core Family product users. The United States and China account for the most high-profile social platforms Most top ranked social networks with more than 100 million users originated in the United States, but services like Chinese social networks WeChat, QQ or video sharing app Douyin have also garnered mainstream appeal in their respective regions due to local context and content. Douyin’s popularity has led to the platform releasing an international version of its network: a little app called TikTok. How many people use social media? The leading social networks are usually available in multiple languages and enable users to connect with friends or people across geographical, political, or economic borders. In 2025, social networking sites are estimated to reach 5.42 billion users and these figures are still expected to grow as mobile device usage and mobile social networks increasingly gain traction in previously underserved markets.

As of February 2025, 5.56 billion individuals worldwide were internet users, which amounted to 67.9 percent of the global population. Of this total, 5.24 billion, or 63.9 percent of the world's population, were social media users. Global internet usage Connecting billions of people worldwide, the internet is a core pillar of the modern information society. Northern Europe ranked first among worldwide regions by the share of the population using the internet in 20254. In The Netherlands, Norway and Saudi Arabia, 99 percent of the population used the internet as of February 2025. North Korea was at the opposite end of the spectrum, with virtually no internet usage penetration among the general population, ranking last worldwide. Eastern Asia was home to the largest number of online users worldwide – over 1.34 billion at the latest count. Southern Asia ranked second, with around 1.2 billion internet users. China, India, and the United States rank ahead of other countries worldwide by the number of internet users. Worldwide internet user demographics As of 2024, the share of female internet users worldwide was 65 percent, five percent less than that of men. Gender disparity in internet usage was bigger in African countries, with around a ten percent difference. Worldwide regions, like the Commonwealth of Independent States and Europe, showed a smaller usage gap between these two genders. As of 2024, global internet usage was higher among individuals between 15 and 24 years old across all regions, with young people in Europe representing the most significant usage penetration, 98 percent. In comparison, the worldwide average for the age group 15–24 years was 79 percent. The income level of the countries was also an essential factor for internet access, as 93 percent of the population of the countries with high income reportedly used the internet, as opposed to only 27 percent of the low-income markets.

Mobile phones dominate global digital commerce website visits and contribute to the largest share of online orders. As of the first quarter of 2025, smartphones constituted around ** percent of retail site traffic globally, responsible for generating ** percent of online shopping orders. Marketplace momentum Retail e-commerce has significantly increased globally over the past few years. Currently, the leading countries in retail e-commerce growth, such as the Philippines, have seen an increase of up to ** percent. In 2024, the majority of online purchases worldwide were made on online marketplaces, incurring around a ** percent share of consumer purchases. The top four retail websites for consumers to visit globally were all marketplaces, with the leading website being Amazon.com. Converting clicks When shopping online, website visits often do not end in purchases. This can be due to having second thoughts when online shopping, or simply due to consumers using the platforms to search for products. In 2025, the conversion rate of online shoppers globally was under * percent, with beauty & skincare incurring the highest conversion rate from online purchases. Across the globe, almost ** percent of all retail sales were conducted online. This figure is forecast to increase to at least ** percent by 2027.

As of the third quarter of 2024, around ** percent of global users accessed the internet via mobile phones, while **** percent reported doing so via smartphones. By comparison, internet access via laptop or desktop computer was reported by almost **** percent of respondents. Additionally, smart wrists were common among ** percent of the respondents. Online video consumption In 2023, texting and watching online videos were among the most popular activities for smartphone users worldwide. By the first quarter of 2024, ** percent of internet users globally were watching online videos monthly. TikTok is a prime example of this trend, as it became the platform where U.S. adults spent more daily time than on any other social media app as of June 2023. Gaming and live-streaming Video game streaming has become a leading trend in watched video content, accounting for ** percent of online reach by the fourth quarter of 2024. This growth is driven mostly by the shift from single player to multiplayer gaming. For example, the multiplayer game Grand Theft Auto V was the most-watched game, with over *** million monthly watch hours across live-streaming platforms in June 2024. On Twitch alone, gamers watched over *** billion hours of live-streamed content in the first quarter of 2024.

How much time do people spend on social media? As of 2025, the average daily social media usage of internet users worldwide amounted to 141 minutes per day, down from 143 minutes in the previous year. Currently, the country with the most time spent on social media per day is Brazil, with online users spending an average of 3 hours and 49 minutes on social media each day. In comparison, the daily time spent with social media in the U.S. was just 2 hours and 16 minutes. Global social media usageCurrently, the global social network penetration rate is 62.3 percent. Northern Europe had an 81.7 percent social media penetration rate, topping the ranking of global social media usage by region. Eastern and Middle Africa closed the ranking with 10.1 and 9.6 percent usage reach, respectively. People access social media for a variety of reasons. Users like to find funny or entertaining content and enjoy sharing photos and videos with friends, but mainly use social media to stay in touch with current events friends. Global impact of social mediaSocial media has a wide-reaching and significant impact on not only online activities but also offline behavior and life in general. During a global online user survey in February 2019, a significant share of respondents stated that social media had increased their access to information, ease of communication, and freedom of expression. On the flip side, respondents also felt that social media had worsened their personal privacy, increased a polarization in politics and heightened everyday distractions.

As of September 2019, Tinder reported an audience reach of 7.86 million users in the United States, making it the most popular online dating. Second-ranked Bumble had 5.03 million U.S. mobile users. Globally, tinder.com ranked third most popular online dating website in March 2020, with roughly 59 million visits during this month. The leading dating site during this period was badoo.com, with 182.5 million visits per month. Tinder user demographics in the United States
In April 2020, individuals aged between 30 and 44 years old made up the largest share of Tinder users in the United states. Tinder was less popular amongst adults within the 55-64 age group, with only six percent of respondents using the dating app. Additionally, Tinder attracted significantly more male than female users , with respective shares of 72 percent and 28 percent . Online dating in times of coronavirus
Social distancing and stay-at-home orders due to the global coronavirus pandemic have resulted in an increased interest in online dating, as a way to connect to one another. Based on data collected from a survey in April 2020 in the United States, 31 percent of Millennials admitted they were using online dating apps or services much more during than prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. On the other hand, only 12 percent of U.S. Millennial the dating app users said that they were using online dating platforms much less. 

Despite the growth and prominence of mobile messengers and chat apps, e-mail is an integral part of daily online life. In 2023, the number of global e-mail users amounted to **** billion and is set to grow to **** billion users in 2027. Global e-mail audiencesIn 2023, approximately *** billion e-mails were sent and received every day worldwide. This figure is projected to increase to over *** billion daily e-mails in 2027. As of July 2022, Apple Mail Privacy accounted for over half of the e-mail opens, while mobile use of e-mails saw a significant decrease in their market shares. Apple MPP e-mail app was the most popular e-mail client, accounting for ** percent of e-mail opens. Gmail, the free e-mail service owned by Google, was ranked second with a ** percent open share. Malicious mailMany online users use e-mails for website and newsletter signups and brace themselves for the inevitable flood of spam and marketing communications. Whereas most unwanted e-mails are annoying yet ultimately benign, consumers are right to be wary of malicious e-mail that can be used to compromise their digital accounts and devices. In 2023, ** percent of fraud reports in the United States related to cases in which victims were contacted via e-mail.

In France, Uber Eats' mobile downloads outdid other food delivery operators by a significant margin in 2023. While the Uber Eats app was downloaded almost 2.7 million times, Deliveroo and Leclerc reached about 1.5 and 1.1 million downloads, respectively. E.Leclerc: omnichannel champion The online food delivery landscape in France is not only championed by third-party aggregators like Uber Eats and Deliveroo, but more established supermarket and hypermarket chains like E.Leclerc, Carrefour, and Auchan are also venturing in the digital sphere. In 2022, E.Leclerc was the leading drive-thru grocery retailer in France, surpassing competitors with a large margin. In the final quarter of 2023, E.Leclerc recorded nearly 18 million average unique monthly visitors to its website and mobile app. Online food delivery in France France boasts one of the highest online food delivery user penetration rates in the world, ranking ahead of major markets like Brazil, Italy, and Spain. In 2023, the online food delivery market in France generated more than 12 billion euros in revenues from both the grocery delivery and meal delivery segments.