India’s mobile subscriber base has crossed the 1.26-billion mark, with the country adding more than 108 million wireless mobile subscribers in 2025-26, even as telecom usage and revenues continued to expand.
The number of wireless mobile subscribers rose to 1,265.73 million by the end of March 2026, compared with 1,156.99 million a year earlier, representing a 9.40% increase. The sector recorded a net addition of 108.74 million wireless mobile subscribers during the financial year, according to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI).
The latest numbers point to a telecom market that is growing not just in subscriber numbers, but also in the amount of data being consumed and the revenues being generated from connectivity.
Internet Users Cross 1.09 Billion
India’s internet subscriber base also crossed the 1-billion mark by a wide margin, reaching 1,092.79 million at the end of March 2026, up from 969.10 million a year earlier. This represented annual growth of 12.76%.
Broadband continued to account for the bulk of internet connections, with the number of broadband subscribers rising from 944.12 million to 1,065.88 million during the year. Narrowband subscribers increased from 24.98 million to 26.91 million.
The rise in subscriber numbers has been accompanied by a sharp increase in data consumption. Wireless data usage jumped 24.74% during 2025-26 to 2,85,376 petabytes, compared with 2,28,779 petabytes in the previous financial year. At the same time, wireless data subscribers increased 9.29% to 1,026.75 million.
Average wireless data consumption also moved higher. Monthly usage per wireless data subscriber increased from 21.53 GB to 25.51 GB, marking an 18.49% rise over the year.
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More Data, Higher Revenues
The surge in data consumption has also translated into higher revenue from wireless data services. Revenue from wireless data usage increased from ₹2,15,078 crores in 2024-25 to ₹2,39,874 crores in 2025-26, registering growth of 11.53%. At the same time, average revenue realization per GB declined from ₹8.97 to ₹8.02.
Wireless service ARPU also increased. Average revenue per user per month rose from ₹174.46 in 2024-25 to ₹180.73 in 2025-26, a yearly increase of 3.59%. Prepaid users recorded an average monthly ARPU of ₹190.66, while the corresponding figure for postpaid services stood at ₹119.76.
India’s Total Telecom Base Reaches 1.33 billion
The broader telecom subscriber base also expanded significantly during the year. Total telephone subscribers in India rose from 1,200.80 million in March 2025 to 1,330.58 million in March 2026, representing annual growth of 10.81%. Overall tele-density increased from 85.04% to 93.26%.
Urban areas remained the stronger growth market. Urban telephone subscriptions increased from 666.11 million to 778.79 million, a 16.92% rise, while rural subscriptions increased from 534.69 million to 551.79 million, growing 3.20%.
The numbers also show a widening gap in tele-density. Urban tele-density rose to 151.47%, while rural tele-density increased to 60.46% by March 2026.
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Wireless Remains The Backbone
Wireless services continue to dominate India’s telecom market. Including Fixed Wireless Access (FWA), total wireless subscribers increased from 1,163.76 million in March 2025 to 1,282.33 million in March 2026, representing annual growth of 10.19%. The category recorded a net addition of 118.58 million subscribers during the year. Within this broader figure, wireless mobile subscribers stood at 1,265.73 million, while FWA subscribers accounted for 16.61 million.
TRAI has also flagged a change in reporting that needs to be considered while interpreting the mobile numbers. Bharti Airtel began including its M2M cellular subscriber base in its wireless mobile subscriber reporting during FY26, resulting in a significant increase in the reported wireless mobile subscriber base.
Wireline Makes an Unexpected Comeback
While wireless continues to dominate, India’s wireline subscriber base recorded a notable jump during the year. Wireline subscribers increased from 37.04 million in March 2025 to 48.25 million in March 2026, registering annual growth of 30.25%. Wireline tele-density consequently increased from 2.62% to 3.38%.
The increase was visible in both markets, although urban areas continued to account for the larger share. Urban wireline tele-density rose from 6.62% to 8.37%, while rural wireline tele-density increased from 0.39% to 0.57%.
Telecom Revenues Cross ₹4 lakh Crore
The expansion in connectivity was accompanied by stronger financial performance across the telecom sector. Gross Revenue rose from ₹3,72,097 crores in 2024-25 to ₹4,04,067 crores in 2025-26, an annual increase of 8.59%.
Adjusted Gross Revenue climbed 10.44% to ₹3,34,659 crores, from ₹3,03,025 crores in the previous year. Applicable Gross Revenue increased 7.12% to ₹3,81,645 crores. Spectrum Usage Charges increased 6.12% to ₹4,040 crores, while licence fee collections rose 10.40% to ₹26,763 crores.
Access services remained the dominant contributor to telecom-sector Adjusted Gross Revenue, accounting for 83.95% of the total during 2025-26.
DTH and Radio Tell a Different Story
The growth in telecom and internet connectivity contrasts with the performance of some traditional broadcasting segments. India had four pay DTH service providers at the end of March 2026, with an active pay subscriber base of around 49.05 million, down from 56.92 million a year earlier.
Private FM radio meanwhile saw a modest increase in the number of operational stations, from 388 across 113 cities in March 2025 to 390 across 120 cities in March 2026. However, advertising revenue reported by FM radio operators declined from ₹1,818.71 crores to ₹1,616.42 crores.
Community radio moved in the opposite direction, with the number of operational stations rising from 531 to 564 during the year.
India’s Connectivity Story Gets Bigger
The latest TRAI numbers show that India’s telecom market is expanding on several fronts at once. The country ended FY26 with more than 1.26 billion wireless mobile subscribers, over 1.09 billion internet subscribers, more than 1.06 billion broadband subscribers and 1.33 billion total telephone subscribers.
At the same time, rising data consumption and telecom revenues suggest that the story is moving beyond simply adding connections. With average wireless data usage reaching 25.51 GB per subscriber each month, India’s telecom market is increasingly being shaped by how much data consumers use and the services built around that connectivity.
