India crosses 95 crore internet users in 2025, says IAMAI report

India’s internet user base crossed 950 million in 2025, driven by rapid growth in rural connectivity, rising short-video consumption and increasing adoption of artificial intelligence, according to the‘Internet in India Report 2025’ released by Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) on Thursday.

The report, jointly prepared by IAMAI and Kantar, was unveiled at the India Digital Summit in the presence of Manjula N, Secretary to the Government, Department of Electronics, IT/BT and Science and Technology, Government of Karnataka.

According to the report, India now has 958 million Active Internet Users (AIU), reflecting an approximate 8% year-on-year increase and reinforcing the country’s position as one of the world’s largest and fastest-evolving digital markets.

Rural India continues to lead this expansion, accounting for 57% of active internet users, or about 548 million people. The report noted that rural regions are growing at nearly four times the pace of urban India, signalling a structural shift in where and how digital adoption is deepening.

AI has reached mass adoption levels, the report said, with 44% of users engaging with AI-enabled features such as voice search, image-based search, chatbots and AI filters. Usage is highest among younger audiences, with 57% of users aged 15–24 years and 52% of those aged 25–44 years reporting AI usage in the past year.

Short-video consumption has emerged as a key driver of engagement. In 2025, 588 million users, or 61% of India’s internet population, consumed short-video content, with rural users marginally outnumbering urban users. Adoption is strongest among younger cohorts, underlining their role in shaping consumption patterns.

IAMAI said the growth in internet access is also reshaping online commerce. Among urban users, 230 million people, representing 56% of the urban active internet base, shopped online in the past year. Quick commerce is leading a fundamental shift in how Indians shop online, with social commerce gaining traction alongside established marketplaces.

The report highlighted rising multi-device usage, with India now home to 193 million multi-device internet users, or 20% of all active users, up from 165 million in 2024. Urban adoption stands at 31%, while rural adoption has reached 12%. Shared device usage remains a key enabler of access, with 18% of users going online through someone else’s mobile device. Nearly 80% of these users are based in rural areas.

Despite the momentum, 38% of India’s population, or about 579 million people, remains non-active internet users. The report noted that this share has been steadily declining year after year, indicating significant headroom for further digital expansion.

The 2025 edition of the Internet in India report is based on a survey of nearly 100,000 consumers across more than 400 towns and over 1,000 villages. IAMAI said India’s digital growth has been shaped by sustained investments in mobile broadband, affordable smartphones and data plans, government digital-inclusion initiatives, and the rise of locally tailored, regional-language content and applications.