Nigeria accounts for 140 million mobile internet usage gap, GSMA says

Nigeria accounted for an estimated 140 million people in the mobile internet usage gap in 2025, according to the GSM Association (GSMA).

The GSMA disclosed this in its State of Mobile Internet Connectivity 2026 report, which examined the barriers preventing people from adopting and using mobile internet services.

The figure represents Nigerians who lived within the footprint of mobile broadband networks but did not use mobile internet services, highlighting the scale of the country’s connectivity challenge despite network availability.

What GSMA is saying

The GSMA defines the mobile internet usage gap as people who live within the footprint of a mobile broadband network but do not use mobile internet services.

• “The biggest challenge is a lack of mobile internet adoption among people living in areas already covered by mobile broadband,” the GSMA said.

Nigeria accounted for about 140 million people in the mobile internet usage gap in 2025, as 3.1 billion people globally lived within mobile broadband coverage but did not use mobile internet, according to the GSMA.

Nigeria’s usage gap was similar in size to Pakistan’s 140 million, while India and China recorded larger gaps of 710 million and 200 million, respectively.

The GSMA’s 2025 Consumer Survey shows a significant difference in mobile internet adoption between urban and rural Nigerians.

• Among adults surveyed, 66% of urban respondents were using mobile internet, compared with 33% of rural respondents.
• The disparity becomes more pronounced at the device stage. While 79% of urban respondents owned an internet-enabled handset, the proportion fell to 51% among rural respondents.

Awareness of mobile internet was relatively high in both groups, at 97% among urban respondents and 86% among rural respondents.

For people already using mobile internet, safety and security concerns, affordability and the quality of their connectivity experience were among the barriers to greater use.

Get up to speed

The latest GSMA findings come amid a persistent gap between mobile broadband coverage and actual internet use in Nigeria.

• Nairametrics reported in October 2024 that the GSMA estimated about 120 million Nigerians were not using mobile internet at the end of 2023, despite living within the footprint of mobile broadband networks.
• In February 2025, Nairametrics also reported that 60% of Nigerians with access to 4G coverage were not using mobile internet, according to the GSMA. The figure comprised 18% who had a phone but were not using mobile internet and 42% who did not have a device.

The increase from 120 million Nigerians in the usage gap in 2023 to about 140 million in 2025 shows that the divide between mobile broadband coverage and actual internet use has continued to widen.

What you should know

While millions of Nigerians remain outside mobile internet use, data consumption among those already connected continues to rise.

Nairametrics reported in August 2026 that Nigerians consumed a record 1.5 million terabytes of data in May, the highest monthly consumption recorded by the Nigerian Communications Commission.

The figure came as the share of internet users on 4G networks rose to 54.3%, while active mobile internet subscriptions increased from 154.3 million in April to 157 million in May.