India sees rising web traffic despite global slowdown in Q1, CY26: Report

While global web usage has been slowing since 2024, India remains among the few major markets still recording growth in internet activity, driven largely by smartphones and rising mobile-first usage

Global web usage has been slowing over the last two years, with several countries seeing fewer website visits and lower time spent online. According to the Sensor Tower’s State of Web 2026 report, global web visits across 56 markets fell 1.8 per cent in 2025, while overall time spent on the web dropped nearly 5 per cent. Sensor Tower says growing use of mobile apps, changing habits after the pandemic, and the rise of AI platforms are changing how people use the internet. 

India, however, sees an uptick in web traffic. The report shows that India’s quarterly web visits continued rising steadily from 373 billion in Q1 CY2025 to 397 billion in Q1 CY2026, making it one of the few major markets still witnessing growth in overall web activity. 

 

Smartphones remain central to this expansion, with mobile devices now accounting for nearly two-thirds of the country’s total web traffic, the report added. 

The report highlights a growing gap between global internet trends and India’s digital growth story. While several markets are seeing web activity stabilise, India continues to record rising internet usage, driven largely by smartphones and mobile apps.

India’s web traffic continues to rise while global growth slows

 

One of the clearest trends highlighted in the report is the widening gap between global web activity and India’s internet growth trajectory. The global trend line shows web traffic gradually softening since 2024 as users spend more time inside apps instead of traditional browser-based websites. Several internet markets, including the US, Japan, and parts of Western Europe, have seen web activity stabilise after the pandemic-era surge in internet usage. 

India, however, has continued to record consistent growth across the same period. Between Q4 CY2024 and Q1 CY2026, India’s quarterly web visits increased from 353 billion to 397 billion. The report suggests that India remains one of the few large internet markets where overall web activity is still expanding rather than flattening.  READ: Why Google's AI Search rollout may change how people navigate internet

Smartphones are driving India’s internet growth

The report’s smartphone traffic data shows how India’s internet usage is becoming increasingly mobile-focused. Smartphone share of web traffic in the country rose from 63.9 per cent in Q1 CY2024 to 65.7 per cent in Q1 CY2026. This means nearly two-thirds of all web traffic in India now comes from mobile phones.  

The report also shows that mobile phones continued to dominate internet usage in India throughout 2025. For most of the year, around 65 per cent of all web traffic came from smartphones, showing that users relied far more on mobile devices than desktops or laptops to access the internet. Mobile traffic even briefly crossed 68 per cent during late 2025, indicating a further rise in smartphone usage before settling back slightly in early 2026. 

The figures place India well ahead of the global average. Worldwide, mobile devices accounted for 47.6 per cent of all web visits in 2025, compared to India’s 65.7 per cent. India also remained ahead of markets such as the US, the UK, Germany, and France in terms of mobile web traffic share. 

The data reflects how smartphones have become the primary gateway to the internet for millions of users in the country. Affordable smartphones, cheaper data plans, and expanding 4G and 5G networks have continued pushing internet access beyond major cities.

Apps usage behind stabilising global web traffic

The report suggests that internet habits globally are gradually shifting away from traditional browser-led discovery toward app ecosystems and AI-driven interactions. Users are increasingly spending more time inside apps for entertainment, shopping, communication, and payments instead of manually browsing websites. Streaming services, social media platforms, messaging apps, and short-video platforms now account for a large share of digital engagement across several markets. 

In contrast, it is the direct discovery, and not app usage, driving India’s web traffic. In 2025, mobile devices accounted for 65.7 per cent of India’s total web traffic, significantly higher than the global average of 47.6 per cent. India also recorded a higher mobile traffic share than countries such as the United States (44.3 per cent) and Japan (53 per cent). The figures suggest that internet usage in India is becoming increasingly smartphone-led rather than desktop-driven, but the rising web traffic highlights a laggard with respect to app adoption.

Google, YouTube and social media still dominate web traffic

Despite changing internet habits and the rise of AI platforms, traditional internet giants continue to dominate overall web traffic. According to the report, Google.com and YouTube.com remained the world’s top two websites in 2025, generating more than 1.6 trillion visits combined. 

Google continued recording strong traffic across both desktop and mobile devices, while YouTube maintained particularly strong usage across larger screens and mobile platforms. 

The report also highlights the dominance of mobile traffic across social media platforms. Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, and X all recorded significantly higher mobile traffic compared to desktop usage, underlining how social networking and messaging have become heavily smartphone-driven activities. 

The broader trend suggests that while internet discovery methods are evolving, search engines, video platforms, and social media apps still remain central to online activity.

AI assistants are emerging as one of the fastest-growing categories

According to the report, the AI assistant category recorded 86 per cent year-on-year growth globally in 2025. Platforms such as ChatGPT and Google Gemini were among the biggest contributors to this growth. The report noted that ChatGPT recorded 73 per cent growth globally, while Gemini traffic rose 142 per cent year-on-year. 

India recorded even stronger momentum in the category, with AI assistant traffic growing 92 per cent year-on-year. The report also shows that India continues to record growth across several traditional internet categories at the same time. Browsers and search engines grew 9 per cent in India compared to flat global growth, while social media traffic rose 8 per cent in the country. News traffic in India also increased 2 per cent, unlike the 6 per cent decline recorded globally. 

The data suggests that India’s internet market is expanding across both traditional web categories and newer AI-driven platforms simultaneously.

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Organic search still remains the biggest source of traffic

While AI assistants are growing rapidly, traditional web discovery methods continue to dominate internet traffic. According to the report, direct traffic accounted for 68.1 per cent of website visits in India during Q1 CT2026. Organic search contributed 14.5 per cent of total traffic, while social media platforms accounted for 14.7 per cent. 

By comparison, Gen AI referrals contributed only 0.7 per cent of total traffic during the same period. The figures suggest that although AI-powered search and chatbot platforms are expanding rapidly, users still rely heavily on direct browsing and traditional search engines to discover websites and online content.  READ: Meta's Forum app brings Reddit-style conversations to Facebook Groups

India’s internet growth story still has room to expand

Despite the broader slowdown in global web activity, India’s internet market still appears to have significant room for growth. 

The expansion of affordable 5G smartphones, cheaper data plans, and increasing internet access across smaller towns and rural regions could continue driving higher web activity in the coming years. At the same time, AI-powered tools, streaming services, digital payments, and short-video apps are becoming increasingly integrated into everyday digital behaviour. 

The broader trend, as noted by Sensor Tower in its report, suggests that while several markets are witnessing stabilising web activity, India continues to remain one of the world’s fastest-growing mobile-first internet markets.