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Number of internet users worldwide 2005-2018
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Number of internet users worldwide 2005-2018
Number of internet users worldwide from 2005 to 2018 (in millions)
This statistic gives information on the total number of internet users worldwide from 2005 to 2018. As of the most recent reported period, the number of internet users worldwide was 3.9 billion, up from 3.65 billion in the previous year.
Easier access to computers, the modernization of countries around the world and an increased utilization of smartphones has given people the opportunity to use the internet more frequently and with more convenience. However, internet penetration often pertains to the current state of development regarding communications networks. As of December 2017, there were approximately 772 million total internet users in China and 312 million total internet users in the United States. However, broadband internet usage is not equally present in many countries and due to infrastructure reasons, developing online markets rely strongly on mobile connections. Subsequently, global mobile data traffic is set to surpass 77 exabytes per month in 2022, up from 11.5 exabytes per month as of 2017.
Social networking is one of the most popular online activities and Facebook is the most popular online network based on active usage. As of the third quarter of 2018, there were over 2.2 billion monthly active Facebook users, accounting for almost half of internet users worldwide. Connecting with family and friends, expressing opinions, entertainment and online shopping are amongst the most popular reasons for internet usage.
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This statistic gives information on the total number of internet users worldwide from 2005 to 2018. As of the most recent reported period, the number of internet users worldwide was 3.9 billion, up from 3.65 billion in the previous year.
Easier access to computers, the modernization of countries around the world and an increased utilization of smartphones has given people the opportunity to use the internet more frequently and with more convenience. However, internet penetration often pertains to the current state of development regarding communications networks. As of December 2017, there were approximately 772 million total internet users in China and 312 million total internet users in the United States. However, broadband internet usage is not equally present in many countries and due to infrastructure reasons, developing online markets rely strongly on mobile connections. Subsequently, global mobile data traffic is set to surpass 77 exabytes per month in 2022, up from 11.5 exabytes per month as of 2017.
Social networking is one of the most popular online activities and Facebook is the most popular online network based on active usage. As of the third quarter of 2018, there were over 2.2 billion monthly active Facebook users, accounting for almost half of internet users worldwide. Connecting with family and friends, expressing opinions, entertainment and online shopping are amongst the most popular reasons for internet usage.
Show moreEasier access to computers, the modernization of countries around the world and an increased utilization of smartphones has given people the opportunity to use the internet more frequently and with more convenience. However, internet penetration often pertains to the current state of development regarding communications networks. As of December 2017, there were approximately 772 million total internet users in China and 312 million total internet users in the United States. However, broadband internet usage is not equally present in many countries and due to infrastructure reasons, developing online markets rely strongly on mobile connections. Subsequently, global mobile data traffic is set to surpass 77 exabytes per month in 2022, up from 11.5 exabytes per month as of 2017.
Social networking is one of the most popular online activities and Facebook is the most popular online network based on active usage. As of the third quarter of 2018, there were over 2.2 billion monthly active Facebook users, accounting for almost half of internet users worldwide. Connecting with family and friends, expressing opinions, entertainment and online shopping are amongst the most popular reasons for internet usage.
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- Release date
- December 2018
- Region
- Worldwide
- Survey time period
- 2005 to 2018
- Supplementary notes
- *Estimate
Source
- Show sources information
- Show publisher information
- Release date
- December 2018
More information
- Region
- Worldwide
- Survey time period
- 2005 to 2018
- Supplementary notes
- *Estimate
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Statistics on "Internet usage worldwide"
- Online users
The most important statistics
- Global digital population as of January 2019 (in millions)Worldwide digital population as of January 2019
- Number of internet users worldwide from 2005 to 2018 (in millions)Global number of internet users 2005-2018
- Number of internet users worldwide from 2009 to 2017, by region (in millions)Number of worldwide internet users 2009-2017, by region
- Number of worldwide internet users as of January 2019, by region (in millions)Number of internet users worldwide 2019, by region
- Global internet penetration rate as of September 2017, by regionInternet penetration rate worldwide 2017, by region
- Countries with the highest number of internet users as of December 2017 (in millions)Countries with the highest number of internet users 2017
- Countries with the highest internet penetration rate as of January 2019Leading online markets based on penetration rate 2019
- Countries with the lowest internet penetration rate as of January 2019Trailing online markets based on penetration rate 2019
- Access and traffic
The most important statistics
- Fixed broadband internet subscription rate in 2018, by regionFixed broadband internet subscription rate 2018, by region
- Mobile broadband internet subscription rate in 2018, by regionMobile broadband internet subscription rate 2018, by region
- Countries with the largest rate of high broadband connectivity as of 1st quarter 2017Countries with largest 10 Mbps broadband connectivity 2017
- Countries with the highest average internet connection speed as of 1st quarter 2017 (in Mbps)Countries with the fastest average internet connection speed 2017
- Average global internet connection speed from 1st quarter 2011 to 1st quarter 2017 (in Mbps)Average internet connection speed worldwide 2011-2017
- Number of fixed broadband internet subscriptions worldwide from 2005 to 2018 (in millions)Number of fixed broadband internet subscriptions worldwide 2005-2018
- Leading countries with the most mobile broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants in 2017Mobile broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants in 2017, by country
- Number of fixed broadband subscriptions in OECD countries as of June 2018 (in millions)OECD: number of fixed broadband subscriptions 2018
- Online usage
The most important statistics
- Media usage in an internet minute as of June 2018Media usage in an online minute 2018
- Average number of online activities per device among internet users worldwide as of 2nd quarter 2017Number of distinct online activities worldwide Q2 2017, by device
- Digital device usage for selected online content activities worldwide as of 2nd half 2017, by deviceDigital content access of internet users worldwide 2017, by device
- Distribution of time spent online by internet users worldwide from 1st quarter to 2nd quarter 2017, by region and deviceInternet users time spent online 2017, by region and device
- Daily internet access of users in selected global online markets as of January 2018Global daily internet usage frequency 2018
- Most popular social networks worldwide as of January 2019, ranked by number of active users (in millions)Global social networks ranked by number of users 2019
- Daily time spent on social networking by internet users worldwide from 2012 to 2017 (in minutes)Daily social media usage worldwide 2012-2017
- Share of internet users worldwide who have used a VPN in the past month as of 1st quarter 2018, by regionGlobal VPN usage reach 2018, by region
- Mobile internet
The most important statistics
- Mobile internet user penetration rate in selected countries as of 3rd quarter 2017Mobile internet penetration rate worldwide 2017
- Mobile internet traffic as percentage of total web traffic in February 2019, by regionShare of mobile internet traffic in global regions 2019
- Mobile share of total digital minutes in leading online markets as of May 2017Mobile share of digital minutes in selected countries 2017
- App share of total mobile minutes in leading online markets as of May 2017App share of mobile minutes in selected countries 2017
- Number of mobile app downloads worldwide in 2017, 2018 and 2022 (in billions)Annual number of global mobile app downloads 2017-2022
- Worldwide consumer spending on mobile apps in 2017, 2018 and 2022, by region (in billion U.S. dollars)Global gross consumer spend on mobile apps 2017-2022, by region
- Year-on-year growth in time spent per mobile app category in 2017Fastest growing mobile app categories 2017
- Most popular mobile internet activities according to internet users worldwide as of 2nd half 2017, by deviceLeading smartphone and tablet activities 2017, by device
- Digital commerce
The most important statistics
- Retail e-commerce sales worldwide from 2014 to 2021 (in billion U.S. dollars)Global retail e-commerce sales 2014-2021
- Annual retail e-commerce sales growth worldwide from 2014 to 2021Retail e-commerce sales growth worldwide 2014-2021
- Retail e-commerce sales CAGR forecast in selected countries from 2018 to 2022Digital Market Outlook: retail e-commerce sales CAGR in selected markets 2018-2022
- Share of population who bought something online via phone in the past month as of 3rd quarter 2017, by countryMobile phone commerce reach in selected countries 2017
- Average value of global online shopping orders as of 3rd quarter 2018, by platform (in U.S. dollars)Global online shopping order value 2018, by platform
- Conversion rate of online shoppers worldwide as of 3rd quarter 2018, by platformGlobal online shopper conversion rate 2018, by platform
- Average e-commerce spending per online shopper worldwide per visit as of 4th quarter 2018, by vertical (in U.S. dollars)Global online shopper per visit spend 2018, by vertical
- Distribution of retail website visits and orders worldwide as of 4th quarter 2018, by deviceGlobal online retail website visits and orders 2018, by device
- Digital awareness
The most important statistics
- Most commonly encountered cyber threats according to global internet users as of 2nd half 2017Leading cyber threats encountered by internet users worldwide 2017
- Share of internet users who are more concerned about their online privacy compared to a year ago as of March 2018, by regionGlobal opinion on concern about online privacy 2018, by region
- Percentage of internet users in selected countries who have encountered any cyber threat as of 2nd half 2017Cyber crime encounter rate in selected countries 2017
- Most common types of online abuse or harassment experienced by women worldwide as of July 2017Leading types of online abuse or harassment experienced by women 2017
- Share of women in selected countries who have ever personally experienced abuse or harassment online as of July 2017Online abuse and harassment victimization rate of women 2017
- Global number of user data requests issued to Google from federal agencies and governments during 1st half 2018, by country Google: number of data requests from federal agencies and governments H1 2018
- Global number of user data requests issued to Facebook from federal agencies and governments during 1st half 2018, by country Facebook: user data requests from federal agencies and governments H1 2018
- Global number of user data requests issued to Twitter from federal agencies and governments during 1st half 2018, by country Twitter: user data requests from federal agencies and governments H1 2018
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Statistics
- Internet usage of companies in China 2014, by region
- Internet usage of companies in China 2014, by company size
- Internet usage of companies in China 2011 by sector
- Russia: number of internet users 2013-2019
- Judgements made about a website before entering personal details in the UK 2013-2015
- Confidence of internet usage in the United Kingdom (UK) 2017, by usage type
- Indonesia: number of netizens 2010-2013
- Visits to websites not used before in the UK 2017, by newer and established users
- Entering personal details online among new net users in the United Kingdom (UK) 2015
- Entering personal details online among established net users in the UK 2015
- Internet take-up and intentions in the United Kingdom (UK) 2013, by age
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- Hours online on an average day at home New Zealand 2011-2015
- Global online population 2011-2013, by region
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- Use of the internet in the United Kingdom (UK) 2012-2013, by socio-economic group
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Studies
- Internet usage in Western Europe
- Internet usage in the United States
- Mobile internet usage in the United Kingdom (UK)
- Internet usage in Canada
- Internet usage in the Netherlands
- Internet usage in the Benelux
- Internet usage in Europe
- Mobile social media usage worldwide
- Internet usage in the Nordics
- Mobile internet usage in the European Union (EU)
- Internet usage in the Baltics
- New and non-internet users in the United Kingdom (UK)
- Internet usage in Sweden
- Internet usage in Norway
- Men and women online
Statistics on "Internet usage worldwide"
- Global digital population as of January 2019 (in millions)
- Number of internet users worldwide from 2005 to 2018 (in millions)
- Number of internet users worldwide from 2009 to 2017, by region (in millions)
- Number of worldwide internet users as of January 2019, by region (in millions)
- Global internet penetration rate as of September 2017, by region
- Countries with the highest number of internet users as of December 2017 (in millions)
- Countries with the highest internet penetration rate as of January 2019
- Countries with the lowest internet penetration rate as of January 2019
- Percentage of global population accessing the internet from 2005 to 2018, by market maturity
- Percentage of individuals using the internet worldwide in 2017, by region
- Number of internet users in selected countries in 2018 (in millions)
- Number of internet users in selected countries in the Asia-Pacific region as of January 2019, by country (in millions)
- Number of internet users in selected Latin American countries as of January 2019 (in millions)
- Number of internet users in selected countries in Africa as of December 2017, by country (in millions)
- Internet penetration rate of selected countries in the Middle East in 2016
- Internet usage rate worldwide in 2017, by gender and market maturity
- Most common languages used on the internet as of March 2017, by number of speakers (in millions)
- Most common languages used on the internet as of December 2017, by share of internet users
- Market capitalization of the largest internet companies worldwide as of May 2018 (in billion U.S. dollars)
- Fixed broadband internet subscription rate in 2018, by region
- Mobile broadband internet subscription rate in 2018, by region
- Countries with the largest rate of high broadband connectivity as of 1st quarter 2017
- Countries with the highest average internet connection speed as of 1st quarter 2017 (in Mbps)
- Average global internet connection speed from 1st quarter 2011 to 1st quarter 2017 (in Mbps)
- Number of fixed broadband internet subscriptions worldwide from 2005 to 2018 (in millions)
- Leading countries with the most mobile broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants in 2017
- Number of fixed broadband subscriptions in OECD countries as of June 2018 (in millions)
- Number of fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants in OECD countries as of June 2018, by technology
- Distribution of fixed broadband subscriptions in OECD countries as of June 2018, by technology
- Media usage in an internet minute as of June 2018
- Average number of online activities per device among internet users worldwide as of 2nd quarter 2017
- Digital device usage for selected online content activities worldwide as of 2nd half 2017, by device
- Distribution of time spent online by internet users worldwide from 1st quarter to 2nd quarter 2017, by region and device
- Daily internet access of users in selected global online markets as of January 2018
- Most popular social networks worldwide as of January 2019, ranked by number of active users (in millions)
- Daily time spent on social networking by internet users worldwide from 2012 to 2017 (in minutes)
- Share of internet users worldwide who have used a VPN in the past month as of 1st quarter 2018, by region
- Leading motivations for VPN usage worldwide as of 1st quarter 2018, by device
- Mobile internet user penetration rate in selected countries as of 3rd quarter 2017
- Mobile internet traffic as percentage of total web traffic in February 2019, by region
- Mobile share of total digital minutes in leading online markets as of May 2017
- App share of total mobile minutes in leading online markets as of May 2017
- Number of mobile app downloads worldwide in 2017, 2018 and 2022 (in billions)
- Worldwide consumer spending on mobile apps in 2017, 2018 and 2022, by region (in billion U.S. dollars)
- Year-on-year growth in time spent per mobile app category in 2017
- Most popular mobile internet activities according to internet users worldwide as of 2nd half 2017, by device
- Leading mobile-first online activities as of 2nd quarter 2017
- Most popular global mobile messenger apps as of January 2019, based on number of monthly active users (in millions)
- Number of mobile messages sent through WhatsApp as of 4th quarter 2017 (in billions)
- Number of photo messages created by Snapchat users every day from 3rd quarter 2016 to 3rd quarter 2017 (in billions)
- Retail e-commerce sales worldwide from 2014 to 2021 (in billion U.S. dollars)
- Annual retail e-commerce sales growth worldwide from 2014 to 2021
- Retail e-commerce sales CAGR forecast in selected countries from 2018 to 2022
- Share of population who bought something online via phone in the past month as of 3rd quarter 2017, by country
- Average value of global online shopping orders as of 3rd quarter 2018, by platform (in U.S. dollars)
- Conversion rate of online shoppers worldwide as of 3rd quarter 2018, by platform
- Average e-commerce spending per online shopper worldwide per visit as of 4th quarter 2018, by vertical (in U.S. dollars)
- Distribution of retail website visits and orders worldwide as of 4th quarter 2018, by device
- Distribution of online shopping customers vs. share of retail sales worldwide as of 4th quarter 2017, by platform
- Most popular payment methods for everyday transactions according to internet users worldwide as of September 2017
- Most important online shopping delivery elements to be actioned by e-retailers according to global online shoppers as of October 2017
- Preferred online shopping device according to global cross-border online shoppers as of October 2017
- Most commonly encountered cyber threats according to global internet users as of 2nd half 2017
- Share of internet users who are more concerned about their online privacy compared to a year ago as of March 2018, by region
- Percentage of internet users in selected countries who have encountered any cyber threat as of 2nd half 2017
- Most common types of online abuse or harassment experienced by women worldwide as of July 2017
- Share of women in selected countries who have ever personally experienced abuse or harassment online as of July 2017
- Global number of user data requests issued to Google from federal agencies and governments during 1st half 2018, by country
- Global number of user data requests issued to Facebook from federal agencies and governments during 1st half 2018, by country
- Global number of user data requests issued to Twitter from federal agencies and governments during 1st half 2018, by country
- Internet usage of small to medium-sized companies in China in 2014, by region
- Internet usage of small to medium-sized companies in China in 2014, by company size
- Internet usage of small to medium-sized companies in China in 2011, by sector
- Number of internet users in Russia from 2013 to 2019 (in millions)
- Could you tell me whether you would make a judgement about a website before entering these types of details?*
- Confidence of internet usage in the United Kingdom (UK) in 2017, by usage type
- Number of netizens in Indonesia from 2010 to 2013 (in millions)
- In the last month, when you have gone online, have you...
- How would you feel about entering these types of personal information while using the internet?*
- How would you feel about entering these types of personal information while using the internet?*
- Do you or does anyone in your household have access to the internet at home through a laptop or computer?*
- Do you or does anyone in your household have access to the internet at home through a laptop or computer?*
- Hours online on an average day at home in New Zealand from 2011 to 2015
- Global online population from 2011 to 2013, by region (in millions)
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- Do you or does anyone in your household have access to the internet?
- Share of purchased telecommunications bundles in the European Union in 2009 and 2015, by service included
- Frequency of internet use among elderly females in England in 2012/2013, by wealth group
- Time spent online weekly per user in France in 2014, by frequency of social contact (in hours per week)
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