In 2023, India had over 1.2 billion internet users across the country. This figure was projected to grow to over 1.6 billion users by 2050, indicating a big market potential in internet services for the South Asian country. In fact, India was ranked as the second largest online market worldwide in 2022, second only to China. The number of internet users was estimated to increase in both urban as well as rural regions, indicating a dynamic growth in access to internet. Mobile connectivity Of the total internet users in the country, a majority of the people access the internet via their mobile phones. There were nearly the same amount of smartphone users as internet users across the country. Cheap availability of mobile data, a growing smartphone user base in the country along with the utility value of smartphones compared to desktops and tablets are some of the factors contributing to the mobile heavy internet access in India. Growth is on the cards Despite the large number of internet users in the country, the internet penetration levels took longer to catch up equally. At the same time, the number of women who have access to internet is much lower than men in the country, and the bias is even more evident in rural India. Similarly, internet usage is lower among older adults in the country due to internet literacy and technological know-how. By encouraging internet accessibility among marginalized groups including women, older people and rural inhabitants in the country, India’s digital footprint has significant headroom to grow.

The internet penetration rate in India rose over ** percent in 2025, from about ** percent in 2015. Although these figures seem relatively low, it meant that more than half of the population of **** billion people had internet access that year. This also ranked the country second in the world in terms of active internet users. Internet availability and accessibility By 2021, the number of internet connections across the country tripled, with urban areas accounting for a higher density of connections than rural regions. Despite incredibly low internet prices, internet usage in India has yet to reach its full potential. Lack of awareness and a tangible gender gap lie at the heart of the matter, with affordable mobile handsets and mobile internet connections presenting only a partial solution. Reliance Jio was the popular choice among Indian internet subscribers, offering them wider coverage at cheap rates. Digital living Home to one of the largest bases of netizens in the world, India is abuzz with internet activities being carried out every moment of every day. From information and research to shopping and entertainment to living in smart homes, Indians have welcomed digital living with open arms. Among these, social media usage was one of the most common reasons for accessing the internet.

India’s digital adoption has been driven by the rural heartland of the country, registering a high growth of internet users compared to their urban counterparts. In 2024, there were *** million internet users in rural India, accounting for more than half the country's netizens. Bridging the internet gap This jump in rural internet penetration was largely owing to the increased availability of bandwidth, cheap data plans, and various government initiatives under the Digital India campaign. As of 2022, over *** thousand village and small-town councils, called Gram Panchayats, were equipped with internet access across India. Of these, Uttar Pradesh had the maximum connectivity in its rural areas with ** thousand internet-equipped gram panchayats. These factors also led to an overall spike in the internet penetration rates across the country. From just over a ** percent internet penetration rate in 2015, India reached almost ** percent in 2022. A perspective on the numbers Although these figures seem relatively low, it indicated that about *** million would be internet users by January 2023. This ranked India second in terms of active internet users across the world that same year.

While Indians between 12 and 34 years dominated internet use from 2013 to 2019 with about ** percent of the total market, this was projected to change by 2025. Between 2019 and 2025, it was estimated that age group 35 years and older would make up ** percent of internet usage in India. Gender and internet Among the total internet users in the country, it was found that only about ** percent were female users. While this was expected to change to ** percent male users and ** percent female users by 2020, it still showed a gender gap in internet accessibility in the south-Asian country. While several factors lead to this digital gender gap, economic and socio-cultural barriers stand out as the most compelling reasons. Older Indians part of digitalization The median age of India’s population was around 27 years in 2015, echoing the range of the country’s majority internet user base. The estimated shift, however, in the years to come would be the successful efforts towards digitalizing India. If done right, this would propel older adults to adopt and master new media technologies in their daily activities beyond social media and communication, including the use of financial services.

As of December 2023, the leading service area with the largest number internet subscribers in urban India was the nation's capital city, Delhi, with over ** million users. The total number of internet subscribers in urban India during the measured time period was over *** million. The countries with the highest number of internet users as of January 2023 can be found here.

The number of mobile broadband connections per 100 inhabitants in India was forecast to continuously increase between 2024 and 2029 by in total 16.5 connections (+25.08 percent). After the fourteenth consecutive increasing year, the mobile broadband penetration is estimated to reach 82.25 connections and therefore a new peak in 2029. Notably, the number of mobile broadband connections per 100 inhabitants of was continuously increasing over the past years.Mobile broadband connections include cellular connections with a download speed of at least 256 kbit/s (without satellite or fixed-wireless connections). Cellular Internet-of-Things (IoT) or machine-to-machine (M2M) connections are excluded. 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 mobile broadband connections per 100 inhabitants in countries like Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

As of 2023, India had **** billion internet users, more than any other country in the world. China ranked second, with **** billion Indians accessing the internet via any device. The United States followed with approximately *** million online users.

As of 2023, the number of Indians who did not use the Internet amounted to *** million. This was ** percent of the country's overall population. Internet penetration and accessibility have steadily increased in India as was reflected in the declining number of non-users since 2021.

As reported in a survey on AI usage among internet users in India conducted between August 2024 and February 2025, 66 percent of respondents said they used AI platforms primarily to find information. The next most popular use cases were finding information not available via search engines and summarizing documents.

As of October 2025, China has the world’s largest online population, with approximately *** billion internet users. India, currently the most populous nation, ranks second with about **** billion users. The United States follows in third place. Worldwide internet usage As of October 2025, there are more than *** billion internet users worldwide. However, user distribution varies significantly by region. In 2024, Eastern Asia alone accounted for **** billion internet users, while Africa and the Middle East reported considerably lower figures. As expected, urban areas also exhibited higher rates of internet access compared to rural regions. Internet use in China It is no surprise that China ranks first among countries with the most internet users. Driven by rapid economic development and a strong cultural embrace of technology, **** percent of China’s estimated *** billion residents are online. As of the third quarter of 2024, about **** percent of Chinese internet users were active on WeChat, the country’s most popular social platform. During the same period, Chinese internet users spent an average of **** hours and ** minutes online each day.

As of 2025, the estimated number of internet users worldwide was six billion, up from 5.5 billion in the previous year. This share represents 74 percent of the global population. Internet access around the world Easier access to computers, modernization across countries, and the growing use of smartphones have made internet connectivity more frequent and convenient. However, internet penetration still reflects differences in communications infrastructure and development levels. As of October 2025, Asian economies had the largest digital populations globally, followed by the United States in third place. Online activities Social networking remains one of the most popular online activities worldwide, with Facebook leading by active users. As of October 2025, India had the largest Facebook audience. Connecting with family and friends, sharing opinions, entertainment, and online shopping rank among the top reasons for internet usage.

As of October 2025, approximately 324 million people in the United States had access to the internet. This makes the country one of the largest online markets worldwide, behind only China and India. Overview of internet usage in the United States The digital population in the United States has constantly increased in recent years. Among the most common reasons is the growing accessibility of broadband internet. A big part of the country's digital audience accesses the web via mobile phones. In 2024, the country saw an estimated 97.1 percent mobile internet user penetration. According to a 2024 survey, over 51 percent of U.S. women and 43 percent of men said it is important to them to have mobile internet access anywhere, at any time. Another 41 percent of respondents could not imagine their everyday life without the internet. Google and YouTube are the most visited websites in the country, while music, food, and drinks were the most discussed online topics. Internet usage demographics in the United States While some users can no longer imagine their life without the internet, others do not use it at all. According to 2021 data, 25 percent of U.S. adults 65 and older reported not using the internet. Despite this, online usage was strong across other age groups, especially young adults aged 18 to 49. This age group also reported the highest percentage of smartphone usage in the country as of 2023. Due to a persistent lack of connectivity in rural areas, more online users were based in urban areas of the U.S. than in the countryside.

India’s digital journey is one of exuberance. The country had the world’s second-largest internet population at over 1.2 billion users in 2023. Of these, 1.05 billion users accessed the internet via their mobile phones. Estimates suggest that this figure would reach over 1.2 billion by 2050. The path towards digital India Mobile internet has been such a positive development in the country’s digital progress, that in 2019, over 73 percent of India’s total web traffic coming from mobile phones. But how did this come to be? Two main factors point to the sudden spike in mobile internet penetration in the south Asian country. Firstly, the increased availability of cheap smartphones since 2010 had created a fertile ground for digital adoption and literacy. Along with this, the Indian government understood the vitality of investments in its telecommunications sector and further opened the market with new telecom spectrum licenses. Reliance Jio - the market disruptor With this backdrop, in September 2016, Reliance Jio entered the Indian market, promising customers with cheap 4G, high speed data plans along with free voice calling. Within six months of its launch, the company had attracted over a 100 million customers and by the end of 2019, it had the highest wireless telecom subscriber base in India. Jio’s competitive pricing drove down the data pricing among other established telecom operators, leading to a cumulative growth in mobile internet accessibility as well as affordability.

As of October 2025, **** billion people worldwide were internet users, representing **** percent of the global population. Of these, **** billion, or **** percent, were social media users. Global internet usage The internet connects billions globally and is central to the modern information society. In 2025, Northern Europe had the highest penetration rate, with the Netherlands, Norway, and Saudi Arabia reporting ** percent usage. North Korea ranked last, with almost no public access. East Asia had the most online users – over **** billion – followed by South Asia with about *** billion. China, India, and the United States led all countries by user numbers. Worldwide internet user demographics In 2024, women accounted for ** percent of global internet users, five points fewer than men, with the largest gender gap in Africa. Usage was highest among people aged 15 to 24, reaching ** percent in Europe. Access stood at ** percent in high-income markets, compared with ** percent in low-income ones.

As of December 2023, the leading service area with the largest number internet subscribers in rural India was Bihar, with over ** million users. The total number of internet subscribers in rural India during the measured time period was over *** million.

The countries with the highest number of internet users as of January 2023 can be found here.

As of the second quarter of 2025, watching videos, TV shows, or movies was the leading reason for using the internet in India, cited by ** percent of internet users. Staying in touch with friends and family ranked second, at **** percent. During the surveyed period, Indian internet users spent over ** hours per week online. Expanding digital landscape India's internet user base has grown significantly and is expected to reach over *** billion by 2050. This expansion is driven by increased mobile connectivity, with smartphone users nearly matching the total number of internet users. Affordable mobile data and the utility of smartphones have contributed to India's mobile-centric internet access. However, internet penetration varies widely across regions, with Delhi leading at ** percent and Odisha lagging behind. Challenges ahead Despite the large user base, India faces challenges in ensuring equitable internet access. Gender disparities persist, particularly in rural areas, and older adults have lower usage rates due to literacy and technological barriers. India's internet freedom score of ** out of 100 in 2024 indicates a “partly free” status, reflecting government-imposed restrictions and censorship. However, the average monthly data consumption reached **** gigabytes per user in 2023, driven by online education, remote work, and increased streaming content consumption.

As of December 2023, the internet service provider with the largest number of subscribers across India was Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited, accounting for over *** million. This number translated to market share of over ** percent.

According to a 2023 survey, ** percent of internet users in urban India preferred using the internet in English. Meanwhile, ** percent of users accessed the internet in Indian languages, with Hindi being the most preferred language among them. Over *** million internet users reside in the urban areas of India.

As of October 2025, 73.2 percent of the global population accessed the internet. This figure has increased significantly in recent years, with only 53 percent of the global population using the internet in 2018. As of the measured month, internet users worldwide were around 6.04 billion. Where do people use the internet the most? Northern Europe has the most comprehensive internet coverage in the world. According to January 2025 data, nearly 98 percent of the population of this part of Europe went online. Europe’s western part ranked second among other world regions, with around 95 percent. Southern Asia, as well as Western, Middle, and Eastern Africa, ranked lower than the worldwide average of nearly 68 percent. There is a different picture when it comes to the number of internet users in the world. As of January 2025, China had the highest number of online users, amounting to 1.1 billion, followed by India, with 806 million users. What do people do online? The internet nowadays is one of the main sources of information for the average user in 2025. Accordingly, nearly 63 percent of adults worldwide, when asked about the most common reasons to go online, said they did so to find information. Almost the same share of respondents said they stayed in touch with friends and family via the internet. Additionally, 55 percent of them said they received news updates online.

As of December 2023, the access technology with the largest number of internet subscribers in India was Fibre, with approximately ** million users.

The average internet connection speed in selected Asia Pacific countries as of the first quarter of 2017 can be found here.