Mobile subscriptions total 8.58 billion worldwide. Fixed broadband serves 1.52 billion connections at average download speeds of 91 Mbps. Submarine cables stretch 1.4 million km beneath the oceans to support this traffic.
Key Takeaways
- Global submarine cable length totaled 1.4 million km in 2023
- Worldwide data center capacity reached 10,000 MW in 2023
- Global telecom capex was $295 billion in 2023
- Worldwide fixed broadband subscriptions reached 1.52 billion in 2023, representing 19 per 100 people
- Global home internet penetration was 65% in households by 2023
- In 2023, average fixed broadband speed globally was 91 Mbps download
- In 2023, the global number of mobile cellular subscriptions reached 8.58 billion, equivalent to 108 percent of the world's population
- As of 2024, there were 5.64 billion unique mobile internet users worldwide, representing 68.7% penetration rate
- In Q4 2023, global smartphone shipments totaled 403.5 million units, a 5.6% year-over-year increase
- Global social media users numbered 5.24 billion in early 2024, 60.1% of population
- Facebook had 3.07 billion monthly active users in Q4 2023
- YouTube reached 2.5 billion monthly users in 2023
- Global TV households numbered 1.1 billion in 2023
- Worldwide radio listeners averaged 2.5 hours daily in 2023
- US newspaper circulation fell to 20.9 million daily in 2023
In 2023, global connectivity surged with rising capacity, investment, and internet traffic, while social media and wireless usage exploded.
Related reading
01 · Category
Communication Infrastructure23 stats
01
Global submarine cable length totaled 1.4 million km in 2023
02
Worldwide data center capacity reached 10,000 MW in 2023
03
Global telecom capex was $295 billion in 2023
04
Number of internet exchange points (IXPs) hit 580 globally in 2023
05
US telecom infrastructure investment $80 billion annually avg 2023
06
Global undersea cable systems numbered 550 in 2023
07
Europe's 5G base stations totaled 250,000 by end-2023
08
China laid 1.2 million km of fiber optic cable in 2023
09
Global tower companies managed 2.8 million sites in 2023
10
India's telecom capex reached $15 billion in FY2023
11
Worldwide spectrum auctions raised $50 billion since 2010 to 2023
12
Africa mobile tower count 200,000 in 2023
13
Global CDNs handled 80% of internet traffic in 2023
14
Brazil invested $10 billion in telecom infra 2023
15
Number of satellites in low Earth orbit exceeded 6,000 in 2023
16
Global dark fiber length 20 million km in 2023
17
Australia's NBN network passed 12 million premises in 2023
18
Middle East telecom revenue $60 billion in 2023
19
Global IP backbone capacity grew 30% to 2,500 Tbps in 2023
20
Japan had 99.9% fiber coverage in 2023
21
Worldwide microwave backhaul links 1.5 million in 2023
22
South Korea 5G sites over 80,000 in 2023
23
Global edge computing nodes reached 500,000 in 2023
Interpretation
Communication Infrastructure Interpretation
The planet has quite literally wired itself with a nervous system of staggering scale and cost—from the ocean floor to low Earth orbit—just so you could complain about the Wi-Fi during your video call.
02 · Category
Internet and Broadband27 stats
01
Worldwide fixed broadband subscriptions reached 1.52 billion in 2023, representing 19 per 100 people
02
Global home internet penetration was 65% in households by 2023
03
In 2023, average fixed broadband speed globally was 91 Mbps download
04
By end-2023, fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) connections totaled 650 million worldwide
05
US fixed broadband subscribers numbered 123 million in 2023
06
Global internet traffic grew 10% year-over-year to 5,200 EB in 2023
07
In China, fixed broadband users reached 600 million in 2023
08
Europe had 280 million fixed broadband subscriptions in 2023
09
Global median fixed broadband download speed hit 100 Mbps in H2 2023
10
India's fixed broadband subscribers grew to 35 million in 2023
11
By 2023, 50% of global fixed broadband was fibre optic
12
Brazil's fixed broadband access reached 40 million households in 2023
13
Average global fixed internet latency was 25 ms in 2023
14
Japan led with 350 Mbps average fixed broadband speed in 2023
15
Africa had only 25 million fixed broadband subscriptions in 2023
16
Global cable broadband subscribers totaled 280 million in 2023
17
South Korea's fixed broadband penetration was 98% of households in 2023
18
In 2023, global Wi-Fi 6 deployments covered 40% of hotspots
19
Germany's fixed broadband lines numbered 34 million in 2023
20
Worldwide DSL subscriptions declined to 400 million in 2023
21
Australia's NBN fixed broadband connections hit 8.5 million in 2023
22
Global satellite broadband users grew to 5 million in 2023
23
Fixed broadband ARPU averaged $25monthly worldwide in 2023
24
In France, 90% household fixed broadband coverage in 2023
25
Global IP traffic from fixed networks was 3,500 EB in 2023
26
Canada's fixed broadband subscribers reached 15 million in 2023
27
In 2023, 4.9 billion people used the internet, 59.5% of global population
Interpretation
Internet and Broadband Interpretation
While the world's fixed broadband weaves a faster fibre-rich network serving 1.52 billion subscriptions, the digital divide gapes with Africa's mere 25 million against South Korea's 98% household penetration, even as 4.9 billion people online drive traffic up 10% to 5,200 exabytes.
03 · Category
Mobile Communications30 stats
01
In 2023, the global number of mobile cellular subscriptions reached 8.58 billion, equivalent to 108 percent of the world's population
02
As of 2024, there were 5.64 billion unique mobile internet users worldwide, representing 68.7% penetration rate
03
In Q4 2023, global smartphone shipments totaled 403.5 million units, a 5.6% year-over-year increase
04
By 2025, the number of 5G connections worldwide is projected to reach 1.76 billion
05
In 2022, mobile network data traffic grew by 25% to 771 exabytes globally
06
India had 1.17 billion mobile subscribers in 2023, with a penetration rate of 81.4%
07
In the US, mobile penetration stood at 128% in 2023 with 345 million subscriptions
08
Global mobile voice traffic in 2023 was estimated at 12.5 trillion minutes
09
4G connections accounted for 60% of global mobile connections in 2023
10
In Africa, mobile money transactions reached $912 billion in value in 2023
11
China's mobile subscribers numbered 1.65 billion in 2023
12
Average global mobile data usage per smartphone user was 13.1 GB per month in 2023
13
In 2023, 55% of global mobile connections were broadband
14
Brazil had 260 million mobile lines in 2023, penetration 122%
15
Global SMS traffic in 2023 exceeded 2.3 trillion messages
16
5G standalone networks covered 320 million people globally by end-2023
17
In Europe, mobile subscriptions totaled 750 million in 2023
18
Average mobile ARPU worldwide was $4.50per month in 2023
19
Nigeria's mobile penetration hit 113% with 237 million subscriptions in 2023
20
Global mobile app downloads reached 257 billion in 2023
21
In Japan, 99% mobile penetration with 156 million subscriptions in 2023
22
M2M/IoT mobile connections grew to 2.1 billion globally in 2023
23
South Korea had 76 million mobile broadband subscriptions in 2023
24
Global mobile financial services users numbered 1.5 billion in 2023
25
In 2023, 45% of mobile traffic was video
26
Indonesia's mobile subscribers reached 312 million in 2023
27
Average 5G data usage was 330 GB per year per user in 2023
28
Global mobile operators' revenue hit $1.07 trillion in 2023
29
Philippines had 171 million mobile connections in 2023, penetration 150%
30
In 2023, global VoLTE subscriptions surpassed 5 billion
Interpretation
Mobile Communications Interpretation
We are more multiply subscribed than alive, drowning in data yet still starving for a signal that truly connects us.
More related reading
05 · Category
Traditional Media24 stats
01
Global TV households numbered 1.1 billion in 2023
02
Worldwide radio listeners averaged 2.5 hours daily in 2023
03
US newspaper circulation fell to 20.9 million daily in 2023
04
Global advertising spend on TV was $184 billion in 2023
05
Print magazine revenue worldwide dropped to $25 billion in 2023
06
In Europe, 70% of adults read print newspapers weekly in 2023
07
India's TV viewers numbered 900 million in 2023
08
Global podcast listeners reached 464 million monthly in 2023
09
UK radio reach was 89% of population weekly in 2023
10
Cable TV subscribers in US totaled 62 million in 2023
11
Global book publishing revenue hit $143 billion in 2023
12
China's state TV audience was 1.2 billion in 2023
13
Average daily TV viewing time globally was 2.8 hours in 2023
14
US magazine print circulation was 130 million in 2023
15
World radio stations numbered over 45,000 in 2023
16
Brazil's TV homes reached 73 million in 2023
17
Global news consumption via TV was 40% in 2023 survey
18
Australia radio listeners averaged 14.5 hours weekly in 2023
19
Print media ad spend globally $80 billion in 2023
20
Japan newspaper subscribers 32 million daily in 2023
21
Satellite TV users worldwide 300 million in 2023
22
Global outdoor media spend $25 billion in 2023
23
France TV audience share 80% daily reach in 2023
24
Cinema box office global $33 billion in 2023
Interpretation
Traditional Media Interpretation
The story these numbers tell is of a world still bewitched by the glowing screen—with television’s vast reach and advertising dollars towering over the media landscape—yet stubbornly charmed by the tactile hum of radio and the rustle of print, proving our habits are both global in scale and deeply, quaintly local.
Reference
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
Daniel Varga. (2026, February 13). Communications Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/communications-statistics
MLA
Daniel Varga. "Communications Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/communications-statistics.
Chicago
Daniel Varga. 2026. "Communications Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/communications-statistics.
Sources & references
78 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
business.instagram.com