India's telecom sector has witnessed an accelerated growth in recent years. In just over three years since commercial services were introduced, 5G has gone from a high-profile launch announcement to an everyday reality for hundreds of millions of users. Recent government data and industry reports have highlighted key milestones in the adoption and expansion of next-generation networks, including subscriber numbers, infrastructure rollout, affordability and future forecasts.
As India becomes the world's second-largest 5G base, here are five things you need to know.
- 5G Subscriber Count Crosses 400 Million - India's 5G ecosystem has hit a significant milestone with its subscriber base crossing 400 million 5G connections, according to Jyotiraditya Scindia, Union Minister of Communications and Development of North Eastern Region. The country is now the world's second-largest subscriber base, following China, which has over one billion 5G users. India is closely followed by the US (350 million), the EU (250 million), and Japan (190 million). This achievement places India among the world's fastest-growing 5G markets, the minister said. The country's 5G subscriber base crossed previous predictions, which estimated about 394 million 5G users in the country by the end of 2025.
- Introduction of 5G Services in India – The foundation for this growth was laid in October 2022, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi formally launched 5G services in India at the inauguration ceremony of the India Mobile Congress. It was aimed at providing ultra-high-speed internet services on smartphones and other networking devices, as well as advancing the 'Digital India' vision. The three major telecom operators—Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel, and Vodafone Idea—demonstrated use cases to showcase the potential of 5G technology in India.
- Adoption by Telecom Service Operators – Among all of the telecom service providers (TSPs) in India, Reliance Jio was the first operator to roll out 5G services commercially, launching its Jio True 5G network in October 2022, shortly after the official inauguration. Bharti Airtel became the second player and introduced their 5G Plus network in October 2022. Meanwhile, Vodafone Idea (Vi) took much longer and finally decided to enter the 5G competition in 2024, and to extend their network further in 2025, after raising additional funds and enhancing their network infrastructure. Operators invested heavily in new towers, fibre backhaul, and standalone (SA) and non-standalone (NSA) network architectures.
- Reason Behind India's Rapid 5G Growth – One of the main factors for India's accelerated adoption rate for 5G technology has been its affordability. The average 1GB data rate in India costs much less compared to other countries, including the US, UK, or the EU, even for 5G network services. Although the data tariffs have experienced a surge in recent years, India continues to be one of the least expensive large countries for mobile data services. Apart from this, telecom companies continue to offer 5G services complementary to existing services.
- Future Predictions – The accelerated growth in 5G adoption is expected to continue. In the Mobility Report for November 2025, Swedish telecom equipment manufacturer Ericsson predicted that India will account for 1 billion 5G subscriptions by the end of 2031, translating into a penetration rate of 79 percent. Ericsson also reported that the mobile data traffic per active smartphone in India stands at 36GB per month, the highest in the world, and is expected to grow to 65GB per month by 2031.