Internet Usage Statistics By Global Users and Facts (2026)

Introduction

Internet use has become a core part of daily life around the world. Today, more than 6.04 billion people use the internet, which equals 73.2% of the global population. This wide reach shows how digital access is shaping communication, business, and social behavior across regions.

China has the largest number of internet users, with over 1.3 billion people online. Other large markets are also growing fast as mobile technology becomes easier to access. Lower smartphone prices, affordable mobile data plans, and rising incomes have helped more people get connected. At the same time, strong demand for digital services such as e-commerce, video streaming, online payments, and social media continues to push internet adoption forward.

From a research analyst view, internet growth is not only about access, but also about how people use digital tools. Usage patterns differ by country, age group, income level, and purpose. In this article, we present key internet usage statistics, with a clear focus on country-level data, user demographics, and major global trends that explain how and why the internet continues to expand worldwide.

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• Around 6.04 billion people worldwide use the internet, showing strong global digital adoption.
• As of February 2025, the global internet penetration rate stands at 67.9%.
• China leads the world with about 1.3 billion internet users.
• India follows closely, with nearly 1.03 billion people connected online.
• In the United States, the number of internet users is projected to reach 327.18 million.
• On average, users spend 6 hours and 36 minutes online every day, highlighting deep daily reliance on the internet.
• Northern Europe has the highest regional internet penetration rate at 97.9%.
• Eastern Africa has the lowest internet penetration globally, with only 28.5% of the population online.
• Mobile phones are the main access point, with 95.9% of users connecting through smartphones.
• About 62.2% of global users access the internet using laptops or desktops.
• Tablets are less common, used by only 27.6% of internet users worldwide.
• Internet usage among women has reached 64.4%, showing steady growth.
• Internet usage among men is higher at 69.8%, but the gap is narrowing.
• Female internet usage grew by 5% YoY, faster than the 4.3% YoY growth seen among males.

Global Internet Users Growth Over Time

• More than 6.04 billion people currently use the internet worldwide, showing strong global digital growth.
• The total number of internet users increased by 300 million from 5.74 billion in October 2024 to 6.04 billion in October 2025, based on the latest available data.
• From a research analyst perspective, this steady rise confirms that internet access continues to expand across both developed and emerging markets.
• In July 2018, there were 3.85 billion internet users globally. Since then, about 1.8 billion new users have come online in seven years.
• This long-term growth reflects better access to affordable smartphones, lower data costs, and wider use of online services.
• The data clearly shows that global internet adoption has more than doubled since October 2015.

Here is a table displaying the number of internet users by year:

Global Internet Penetration Rate

• According to the latest available data, 73.2% of the world’s population uses the internet as of October 2025.
• From a research analyst point of view, this figure shows a strong and steady rise in global digital access.
• Internet usage has grown rapidly over the past decade. In 2017, only 50% of the global population had access to the internet.
• This means that billions of people have come online in just a few years, driven by lower data costs, wider smartphone use, and better network coverage.
• The data clearly shows that internet access is becoming more common across both developed and developing regions.

Share of the world population using the internet by year:

• October 2025: 73.2%
• January 2024: 66.2%
• 2021: 59.5%
• 2020: 59%
• 2016: 46%

Overall, the trend confirms that global internet penetration continues to rise each year, showing long-term growth in worldwide connectivity.

Top Countries by Number of Internet Users

• China has the largest internet population in the world, with about 1.3 billion people using the internet.
• From a research analyst view, China’s lead is driven by its large population and strong digital platforms.
• India ranks second, with nearly 1.03 billion internet users as of 2025.
• Rapid smartphone growth and low mobile data prices have helped expand internet access in India.
• The United States holds the third position, with around 324 million internet users.
• High digital maturity and near-universal access support strong internet usage in the US.
• Indonesia follows with about 230 million people connected online.
• Brazil has approximately 185 million internet users, driven by mobile-first access.
• Russia records close to 136 million internet users.
• Pakistan has around 117 million people using the internet.
• Mexico reports nearly 110 million internet users.
• Nigeria has about 109 million internet users, the highest in Africa.
• Japan rounds out the list with roughly 107 million internet users.
• Overall, these figures show that countries with large populations and affordable digital access tend to have the highest number of internet users globally.

The following table displays the countries with the highest number of internet users by country:

Global Internet Penetration by Region

• According to the latest available data from February 2025, the global internet penetration rate stands at 67.9%.
• From a research analyst perspective, this means more than two-thirds of the world’s population now has access to the internet.
• Internet access levels vary widely by region, mainly due to differences in income levels, infrastructure, and data costs.
• Northern Europe records the highest internet penetration globally, with nearly 97.5% of its population using the internet.
• In contrast, Eastern Africa has the lowest internet penetration rate worldwide, with only 28.5% of the population online.
• These gaps highlight ongoing digital inequality between developed and developing regions.

Here are further details about the global internet penetration rate by region:

Average Daily Time Spent on the Internet

• On average, a typical internet user spends about 6 hours and 36 minutes online each day worldwide.
• From a research analyst point of view, this shows that the internet remains a major part of daily life for most users.
• Daily internet usage increased by 5 minutes compared to the previous quarter, when users spent 6 hours and 31 minutes online.
• Time spent online reached its highest levels during the COVID period, when work, education, and entertainment shifted online.
• In recent quarters, average daily internet time has slightly declined but remains at a high and stable level.
• Factors such as digital fatigue, return to offline activities, and balanced screen habits have influenced this trend, alongside stable data.

The following table displays the average time spent online by internet users worldwide:

Devices Used to Access the Internet Worldwide

• Most people around the world access the internet using mobile devices, showing a strong shift toward mobile-first connectivity.
• From a research analyst perspective, device choice is influenced by affordability, ease of use, and data costs..
• About 95.9% of internet users worldwide use a mobile phone to go online.
• Within mobile access, 93.7% of users connect through smartphones, making them the most common internet device globally.
• 62.2% of users access the internet using a laptop or desktop, showing that computers are still important for work and study.
• 54% of global internet users use personal laptops or desktops.
• Work-provided laptops or desktops are used by 27.7% of users, mainly for professional tasks.
• 31.6% of users access the internet through connected televisions, driven by streaming services.
• 27.6% of internet users go online using tablet devices, which remain a secondary access option.
• 18.1% of users connect through smart home devices, such as voice assistants.
• 11.5% of users access the internet via gaming consoles.
• Older feature phones are still used by 4.5% of users for internet access.
• 4.4% of users connect through virtual reality devices, showing early-stage adoption.
• Overall, the data confirms that mobile phones dominate global internet access, while other devices support specific use cases like work, entertainment, and smart homes.

Internet User Demographics by Gender and Age

Gender-based internet usage

• From a research analyst perspective, internet access shows a small but clear gap between genders at the global level.
• Around 64.4% of the global female population uses the internet.
• In comparison, about 69.8% of the global male population is online.
• Internet usage among women increased by 5% YoY, showing faster growth than men.
• Internet usage among men grew by 4.3% YoY, indicating steady but slightly slower growth.
• In the United States, internet access is nearly universal across genders.
• About 97% of women and 96% of men in the US use the internet.
  

Internet users in the United States by Gender Over Time

Here is a table showing the distribution of internet users in the U.S. by gender:

• In 2024, 96% of men and 97% of women used the internet.
• In 2019, internet usage stood at 90% for men and 91% for women.
• In 2016, internet usage was 89% for men and 86% for women.

Internet Usage by Age Group in the United States

• Internet adoption in the US remains high across all adult age groups.
• About 98% of adults aged 30 to 49 years use the internet, making this the most connected age group.
• Nearly 97% of adults aged 18 to 29 years have internet access.
• Around 96% of adults aged 50 to 64 years are internet users.
• Internet usage drops among older adults, with 88% of people aged 65 years and above accessing the internet.

Mobile Internet Usage Trends

• Mobile phones are the main way people access the internet worldwide.
• From a research analyst perspective, mobile access continues to dominate due to low device costs and affordable data plans.
• About 95.9% of global internet users access the internet using a mobile phone as of Q2 2025.
• This share declined slightly by 0.3 percentage points compared to Q2 2024 and by 0.1 percentage points compared to the end of 2023, showing stable but mature adoption.

Share of internet users accessing the internet via mobile phones by quarter:

• Q2 2025: 95.9%
• Q2 2024: 96.2%
• Q2 2023: 95.8%

Mobile Internet Users in the United States

• In the United States, an estimated 308.67 million people will use mobile phones to access the internet in 2024.
• This represents a 4.79% YoY increase compared to 294.55 million mobile internet users in 2023.
• The number of mobile internet users in the US is expected to continue rising in the coming years.
• By 2029, mobile internet users in the US are projected to reach 324.25 million.

The number of mobile internet users in the United States by year.

Time Spent and Mobile Web Traffic

• On average, people spend 4 hours and 49 minutes per day using the internet on their mobile phones.
• This equals about 33 hours and 42 minutes per week spent on mobile internet usage.
• Users also spend around 18 hours and 46 minutes per week on social media platforms, mostly through mobile devices.
• Mobile devices generate 54.67% of total global web traffic.
• Since 2017, mobile web traffic has stayed near the 50% level and crossed this mark permanently in 2020.
• Overall, the data confirms that mobile devices now lead internet access, usage time, and global web traffic share.

Global Search Engine Usage and Market Share

• From a research analyst perspective, search engines remain one of the most used online tools worldwide.
• Each month, about 81.8% of internet users use search engines to find information online.
• Since Q1 2022, the share of users relying on search engines has stayed stable between 80% and 83%, showing consistent demand.

Global Search Engine Market Share

• Google leads the global search engine market with a 90.48% share, holding a strong and stable position.
• Bing ranks second with 3.93% of the global market.
• Yandex follows with a 1.95% share.
• Baidu accounts for 0.79% of global searches.
• DuckDuckGo holds a 0.64% market share worldwide.
• This strong lead shows that search engines, especially Google, remain the primary source of online information, supported by low access costs.

Mobile Search Engine Market Share

• Search engine use on mobile devices is even more concentrated than on desktops.
• Google dominates the mobile search market with a 94.69% global share.
• Yandex ranks as the second-most-used mobile search engine worldwide.
• Baidu holds 0.88% of the mobile search market.
• Bing accounts for 0.75% of mobile searches.
• Yahoo and DuckDuckGo hold smaller shares at 0.6% and 0.54%, respectively.

Search Volume and Advanced Search Trends

• Google processes about 16.4 billion searches per day, showing the massive scale of search activity.
• This equals roughly 190,000 searches per second worldwide.
• More than 1 billion voice searches are performed every month, driven by smart assistants and mobile use.
• Google Lens handles around 8 billion visual searches per month, highlighting growth in image-based search.
• Overall, these figures confirm that search engines continue to play a central role in how people discover information online across both desktop and mobile platforms.

Global Social Media Usage

• From a research analyst perspective, social media has become a core part of global internet activity.
• About 95.9% of internet users worldwide use at least one social media platform.
• Around 5.41 billion people use social media globally, which equals 66.4% of the world’s total population.
• On average, users spend 2 hours and 40 minutes per day on social media platforms.
• This high usage is supported by affordable smartphones and mobile data plans.

Growth in the Number of Social Media Users Worldwide

• The number of social media users has increased steadily every year.
• In 2017, there were 2.73 billion social media users worldwide.
• By 2020, this number grew to 3.9 billion, driven by mobile adoption and online engagement.
• In 2023, global social media users reached 4.90 billion.
• By 2025, the total number of users rose further to 5.41 billion.

 The number of social media users recorded over the years: 

Top Social Media Platforms by Number of Users

• Facebook was the first platform to cross 1 billion registered accounts.
• Today, Facebook remains the largest social media platform, with 3.07 billion users worldwide.
• YouTube follows with 2.50 billion users.
• WhatsApp and Instagram each have about 2 billion users.
• TikTok has grown rapidly to 1.60 billion users.
• WeChat records 1.36 billion users.
• Facebook Messenger has 977 million users.
• Telegram reports 900 million users.
• Snapchat has around 800 million users.

Social Media Usage in the United States

• The United States has around 253 million people who actively use social media platforms.
• This represents about 70.1% of all internet users in the country.
• High smartphone usage and strong digital spending capacity continue to support social media growth in the US.
• Overall, the data shows that social media usage is expanding steadily worldwide, with strong engagement across platforms and regions.

Conclusion

From a research analyst perspective, the data clearly shows that internet and social media usage have reached a mature yet steadily growing stage worldwide. With billions of users online, high daily engagement, and strong mobile dominance, digital platforms have become essential to how people communicate, work, shop, and consume content.

While growth in developed regions is nearing saturation, emerging markets continue to drive new user adoption due to improving infrastructure and affordable access. At the same time, trends such as mobile-first behavior, rising social media penetration, and stable search engine usage highlight long-term shifts in user habits.

Overall, the global digital landscape remains strong, with sustained engagement and expanding reach shaping future opportunities for businesses, policymakers, and technology providers.