India’s broadband subscriber base crosses 1.1 billion in August: TRAI
India added 6.73 million broadband subscriptions in August 2026, taking the total past 1.1 billion, while the overall telephone subscriber base rose to 1.36 billion, TRAI data showed.
Total broadband subscriptions increased from 1,094.48 million at the end of July to 1,101.21 million at the end of August, registering monthly growth of 0.61%. The data was compiled from information provided by 159 operators.
NEW DELHI: India’s broadband subscriber base crossed the 1.1-billion mark in August 2026, driven by growth in mobile wireless, fixed wireless and wired broadband connections, according to the latest telecom subscription data released by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI).
Total broadband subscriptions increased from 1,094.48 million at the end of July to 1,101.21 million at the end of August, registering monthly growth of 0.61%. The data was compiled from information provided by 159 operators.
Mobile wireless access continued to dominate broadband connectivity, increasing from 1,027.50 million subscriptions in July to 1,033.24 million in August, a rise of 0.56%.
Fixed Wireless Access, which includes technologies such as 5G FWA, Wi-Fi, Wi-Max, radio and satellite connectivity, recorded stronger monthly growth of 2.68%, with subscriptions rising from 18.84 million to 19.34 million.
Fixed wired broadband connections increased 1.01% from 48.14 million to 48.63 million during the month.
Jio remains largest broadband provider
Reliance Jio Infocomm remained India’s largest broadband service provider with 538.03 million subscribers at the end of August, followed by Bharti Airtel with 386.39 million and Vodafone Idea with 130.88 million.
BSNL had 27.82 million broadband subscribers, while Atria Convergence Technologies had 2.48 million. Together, the five largest providers accounted for 98.58% of India’s wired and wireless broadband subscriber base.
In fixed wired broadband, Jio led with 14.81 million subscribers, followed by Airtel with 11.44 million and BSNL with 4.56 million. Atria Convergence Technologies had 2.48 million subscribers and Kerala Vision Broadband 1.56 million. The five providers together accounted for 71.66% of the fixed wired broadband market.
Among wireless broadband providers, including fixed wireless and mobile access, Jio had 523.22 million subscribers, followed by Airtel with 374.96 million, Vodafone Idea with 130.87 million and BSNL with 23.26 million. The top five providers accounted for 99.99% of wireless broadband subscriptions.
Total telephone subscribers reach 1.36 billion
India’s total telephone subscriber base, including wireless and wireline connections, increased by 6.42 million during August to 1,360.70 million, representing monthly growth of 0.47%.
Wireless subscribers stood at 1,312.25 million, with a net addition of 5.98 million during the month. Wireline subscriptions increased by 0.44 million to 48.45 million.
Urban telephone subscribers rose by 5.59 million to 802.28 million, while the rural subscriber base increased by 0.83 million to 558.43 million.
Overall tele-density, including machine-to-machine cellular connections, stood at 95.07%. Urban tele-density was 155%, compared with 61.12% in rural India. Excluding M2M cellular connections, overall tele-density stood at 85.26%.
The data also showed that 15.83 million subscribers submitted requests for Mobile Number Portability during August. The number of active wireless subscribers on the date of peak Visitor Location Register stood at 1,207.59 million.
Wireline subscriptions, meanwhile, increased from 48.01 million at the end of July to 48.45 million in August, recording monthly growth of 0.93%. Public-sector operators BSNL, MTNL and APSFL together held 16.05% of the wireline market at the end of the month.
