Rural India fuels internet use, growing 4 times at pace of urban: Report

India's total internet user base is now inching close to a billion users, with the active internet user (AIU) base at 958 million

Rural India accounts for more than 57 per cent of India’s active internet users and the number is growing almost four times the pace of urban areas, said a report on Thursday, signalling a structural shift in digital adoption.

 

India has almost a billion internet users and the active internet user (AIU) base stands at 958 million. The active user base in rural areas stands at 548 million, according to the ‘Internet in India Report 2025’ by the Internet and Mobile Association of India and Kantar.

 

The national user base grew 8 per cent from 2024, reinforcing India’s position as one of the world’s largest and fastest evolving digital markets. The usage is also growing on the back of rising popularity of short-video consumption and adoption of artificial intelligence (AI).

 

The report said that 44 per cent of internet users engage with AI-enabled features such as voice and image searches and chatbots. As many as 57 per cent of AI users are 15 to 24 years old and 52 per cent 25 to 44 years.

 

Short-video consumption is a key growth driver in internet use. Last year, 588 million (61 per cent) internet users consumed short-video content, with those in rural areas overtaking urban centres. Adoption is strongest among younger audiences, cementing their role as a key driver of digital engagement.

 

Quick commerce leads the shift in how Indians shop online, with social commerce close behind, as the ecommerce ecosystem expands beyond traditional online marketplaces. Among urban users, 230 million people (56 per cent) of the active internet base shopped online in the past year, with quick commerce and social commerce gaining prominence alongside established marketplaces.

 

India has 193 million multi-device internet users, representing 20 per cent of all active internet users, up from 165 million in 2024. Urban adoption stands at 31 per cent, while rural India is catching up at 12 per cent.

 

Shared device usage also continues to be a key enabler of digital access. One in five internet users in India access the internet using someone else’s mobile device. Nearly 80 per cent of these users are based in rural areas.