New Delhi: India continues to make significant strides in digital inclusion, with over 85.5% of Indian households now owning at least one smartphone, according to the latest findings from the Ministry of Statistics’ Comprehensive Modular Survey: Telecom, 2025, released on Thursday.
The report highlights the growing penetration of mobile technology, especially among youth.
In the 15–29 age group, approximately 96.8% of individuals in rural areas and 97.6% in urban regions reported using a mobile phone—whether for personal calls or internet access—at least once in the past three months.
Smartphone ownership within this age bracket is also remarkably high, with 95.5% in rural areas and 97.6% in urban areas reporting access to a smartphone.
A notable insight from the report is the widespread use of digital financial services.
Among individuals aged 15–29 who reported the ability to perform online banking, 99.5% said they could do so using Unified Payments Interface (UPI), underlining UPI’s dominance in India’s digital finance ecosystem.
The survey also found that around 86.3% of Indian households now have internet access within their premises—marking a significant step toward bridging the digital divide.
In terms of digital skills, 85.1% of individuals aged 15–29 said they had recently sent messages with attached files—such as documents, photos, or videos—via email or messaging platforms using smartphones or computers.
The national survey covered a wide geographic scope, excluding only some remote villages in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands due to accessibility issues.
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Data was gathered from 4,382 survey units—2,395 in rural areas and 1,987 in urban locations.
In total, 34,950 households were surveyed (19,071 rural and 15,879 urban), covering 1,42,065 individuals across the country.
The findings paint a promising picture of India’s ongoing digital transformation, driven by increased smartphone access, mobile internet use, and rising digital literacy among the younger population.
