India’s total internet subscriber base increased to 1.114 billion at the end of June 2026 from 1.093 billion three months earlier, registering a quarterly growth of 1.96 per cent, according to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on Monday. The growth was driven by continued expansion in broadband and wireless internet adoption across the country. Of the total internet subscribers, 1,066.43 million were wireless internet users, while 47.73 million were wired internet subscribers. The internet subscriber base comprised 1,087.50 million broadband users and 26.67 million narrowband users. Broadband subscriptions rose 2.03 per cent during the quarter from 1,065.88 million, while narrowband subscribers declined marginally by 0.89 per cent. The telecom regulator said the overall telephone subscriber base in India increased by 1.31 per cent on a quarterly basis to 1,348.08 million at the end of June 2026 from 1,330.58 million in March. The country’s tele-density also improved to 94.31 per cent from 93.26 per cent during the period. Wireless subscriptions remained the primary growth driver. The total wireless subscriber base, including mobile and fixed wireless access (FWA) users, rose by 17.92 million to 1,300.25 million, while the mobile subscriber base alone increased by 16.66 million to 1,282.38 million. Wireless tele-density climbed to 90.96 per cent from 89.88 per cent in the previous quarter.
Wireless revenue per user increases
The report showed that telecom operators continued to improve monetisation. Monthly average revenue per user (ARPU) for wireless services increased 1.19 per cent sequentially to Rs 187.12. On a yearly basis, wireless ARPU grew 3.11 per cent. Prepaid subscribers generated an average monthly ARPU of Rs 200.72, while postpaid users generated Rs 114.26. At the same time, average revenue realisation per GB of wireless data declined 5.07 per cent to Rs 7.13, as per the data. Data consumption maintained strong momentum during the quarter. The number of wireless data subscribers increased to 1,045.55 million from 1,026.75 million, while total mobile data traffic jumped 8.3 per cent to 84,424 petabytes. Average monthly data usage per subscriber rose to 28.39 GB from 26.70 GB in the preceding quarter.
Telecom sector revenues register growth
TRAI’s report also highlighted growth in the telecom sector’s revenues. Gross Revenue (GR) stood at Rs 1.07 lakh crore during the quarter ended June 2026, while Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR) rose to Rs 88,796 crore. On a year-on-year basis, GR, Applicable Gross Revenue (ApGR) and AGR grew 10.5 per cent, 9.52 per cent and 9.19 per cent, respectively.
