5G users in India consume 3.6 times more data than 4G: Report

In 2023, the average monthly data traffic per user witnessed a 24% year-on-year increase, reaching 24.1 gigabytes per user per month.

New Delhi: 5G users in India are using approximately 3.6 times as much mobile data traffic compared to 4G since its launch in October 2022 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a report showed on Wednesday.

The average monthly data traffic per user also surged by 24 per cent year-on-year in 2023, reaching 24.1 gigabytes per user per month.

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The 5G device ecosystem in India is rapidly evolving, with approximately 17 per cent of active 4G devices, totalling 134 million out of 796 million, now being 5G capable.

“5G data consumption has been four times faster than 4G in India”, according to the ‘Nokia Mobile Broadband Index’ report.

In 2023, users consumed 17.4 exabytes per month with a CAGR of 26 per cent over the past five years.

The launch of 5G has emerged as a significant catalyst for the growth in data usage, contributing to 15 per cent of all data traffic in 2023, the findings showed.

“What is immediately obvious is the incredible proliferation of 5G technology across India and the increasing demand for super-fast 5G data speeds,” said Tarun Chhabra, Head of Mobile Networks Business at Nokia (India).

5G traffic has shown substantial growth across all telecom circles, with metro circles leading the charge and reaching a 20 per cent share in the overall mobile data traffic.

Enhanced 5G availability and performance, coupled with the availability of a wide range of affordable devices, as well as the introduction of new data-intensive apps and services, will accelerate future 5G growth, the report showed.

The rise of 5G Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) will also serve as a key enabler for new services in both the home and business with FWA users expected to consume an estimated 2.5 times more data than average 5G users, the report noted.