Global internet access reached 6.3 billion users in 2026, equivalent to 76% of the world’s population, but an estimated two billion people remain offline, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) reports. The 2026 figure is up from 6.1 billion users, or 74%, in 2025.
Internet access remains uneven across incomes and regions
Access to the internet continues to vary sharply by income level and geography. Internet use stands at 93% in high-income countries versus 32% in low-income countries. Urban residents are more likely to be online than rural populations, with internet use at 82% in urban areas compared with 63% in rural areas.
Younger people are better represented online: 86% of those aged 15 to 24 use the internet, compared with 74% among the rest of the population. Globally, 79% of men use the internet compared with 74% of women, highlighting persistent gender gaps.
Network generation and coverage gaps
While 97% of the world’s population lives within reach of at least a 3G network, 5G coverage remains heavily skewed toward wealthier markets: 86% population coverage in high-income countries versus 4% in low-income countries. Newer mobile networks support higher speeds and greater capacity for data-intensive applications, making limited 5G availability a barrier to adopting advanced digital services in poorer economies.
Affordability and device ownership act as barriers
Affordability and device access continue to limit digital participation. Mobile phone ownership among people aged 10 and above is 84% globally, but exceeds 95% in high-income countries and falls to 57% in low-income economies. Average monthly mobile broadband traffic per subscription reaches 20GB in high-income countries, nearly six times the 3.4GB seen in low-income countries.
The ITU’s affordability measures show the global median price of a data-only mobile broadband basket at 1.2% of gross national income (GNI) per capita, while fixed broadband costs a median of 2.3% of GNI per capita. Landlocked developing countries and small island developing states met the target of keeping mobile broadband costs below 2% of GNI per capita for the first time in 2026. Least developed countries recorded a median mobile broadband cost of 6.1% of GNI per capita. Overall, three in 10 economies fail to meet the 2% affordability target for either fixed or mobile broadband.
Africa’s challenge: coverage versus usage
GSMA research shows that only 36% of Africa’s population used mobile internet in 2025, leaving more than 900 million people offline. The GSMA estimates that 63% of the continent’s population lives within mobile broadband coverage but does not use mobile internet, while 9% remain outside mobile broadband coverage. Smartphone affordability is a major factor: an entry-level internet-enabled handset cost the poorest 20% of people in Sub-Saharan Africa an amount equivalent to 76% of their average monthly income at the end of 2025.
Kenya: expanding networks, persistent gaps in use
Kenya’s market data shows rapid growth in connections alongside marked differences in adoption. By June 2026 there were 52.26 million connected smartphones and 27.42 million feature phones; mobile broadband subscriptions reached 54.93 million and total mobile data subscriptions stood at 64.26 million. Fixed internet subscriptions rose to 2.84 million in June 2026, an annual increase of 32.4%, with fibre accounting for approximately 1.57 million connections.
Despite broad 4G coverage (97.3% population coverage) and emerging 5G coverage (14% in the dataset), ITU country data for 2024 show wide urban–rural divides in Kenya: individual internet use was 56.6% in urban areas versus 25% in rural areas, and household internet access was 81.6% in urban areas versus 26% in rural locations. Individual internet usage was 37.8% among men and 32.2% among women. Satellite services also contribute: Starlink had 27,616 subscriptions by June 2026, offering an alternative where fixed infrastructure is limited.
Digital skills and complementary infrastructure matter
The ITU stresses that expanding access must go hand in hand with improving digital skills. Cosmas Luckyson Zavazava, director of the ITU’s Telecommunication Development Bureau, said people need the skills required to use online services and emerging technologies. Initiatives in Kenya include AI training delivered through public libraries and mobile library units by a partnership involving Intel, the Kenya National Library Service and the Mandela AI Hub Foundation. A separate digital skills programme in Garissa and Turkana has enrolled more than 700 young people and targets 1,700 participants from refugee and host communities, covering cloud computing, artificial intelligence, data analytics and professional certification.
Google’s Skilling Africa platform aims to reach three million people across the continent by 2030, offering data-light learning, downloadable lessons and offline course access to accommodate users facing connectivity and cost constraints. Kenya’s Commonwealth youth AI readiness assessment, reported in November 2026, identified electricity access, internet reliability and digital infrastructure as factors influencing the country’s ability to prepare young people for AI-related opportunities.
The ITU’s findings place the 6.3 billion internet users in a global context where two billion people still face barriers to meaningful digital participation, even as governments, operators and technology companies expand network infrastructure.
