According to the International Telecommunication Union’s Facts and Figures 2026, there are now 6.3 billion people, or 76% of the world’s population, using the Internet. But this leaves 2 billion people offline with marked differences according to country, income, gender and age.
The number of people online is gradually creeping upwards. In 2025, the ITU claimed there were 6.1 billion people.
“In the age of AI, being offline means being shut out of countless opportunities, from education to employment,” said Doreen Bogdan-Martin, ITU Secretary-General. “Now more than ever, we need to expand connectivity and make it meaningful for everyone, everywhere.”
Source: International Telecommunication Union’s Facts and Figures 2026
Some of the highlights of the report are:
- More men, 79%, use the internet than women (74%), with female Internet users increasing by 54% since 2019, compared with a 48% increase for men
- Young people are more connected with 86% of people aged 15 to 24 using the Internet globally, compared with 74% of the rest of the population
- Regionally, the Commonwealth of Independent States (Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Moldova) and Europe both have 93% of the population using the Internet, the Americas 87%, Asia-Pacific 80%, Arab states 74% and Africa 42%
- The urban-rural divide is narrowing although clear disparities persist with 82% of urban residents having access to the Internet, compared with 63% in rural areas
- 84% of the population aged 10 and over own a mobile phone with ownership exceeding 95% in high-income countries, compared with 57% in low-income countries
- 97% of the global population lives within reach of at least a 3G network however when it comes to 5G only 59% of the global population have access with coverage ranging from 86% in high-income countries to just 4% in low-income countries
- Average monthly mobile broadband traffic per subscription is 20GB in high-income countries, roughly six times the 3.4GB in low-income countries
- The global median price of a data-only mobile broadband basket fell to 1.2% of gross national income (GNI) per capita, while that of a fixed broadband basket declined to 2.3%.
To read the full report, go to: itu.int/hub/publication/d-ind-ict_mdd-2026-2/