Internet usage in Southeast Asia - statistics & facts

Southeast Asia is a vibrant emerging market with over 400 million internet users and a booming digital economy. The internet penetration rate in Southeast Asia is as high as over 70 percent in all countries except for Laos, Myanmar, and Timor-Leste. Furthermore, internet accessibility at home was still lacking in several more Southeast Asian countries. Consequently, self-perceived digital literacy among Southeast Asian youth was low, despite the perceived importance. Despite it all, Southeast Asia is home to many successful startups and is looking to expand its internet economy.

Digital economy in Southeast Asia

The digital economy in Southeast Asia is expanding rapidly and was projected to grow nearly two-fold by 2025. Digital economy segments such as e-commerce, online media, and ride-hailing have grown in the last few years while the online travel market has been recovering after it had significantly shrunk due to the pandemic. Nevertheless, all segments were forecast to see significant growth in the coming years. In particular, the e-commerce market, the largest segment, is predicted to see massive growth across all major economies, especially Indonesia and Vietnam. Indonesia is the largest Southeast Asian digital economy overall due to the sheer size of the economy. The biggest e-commerce sites in Southeast Asia are based in Singapore and Indonesia, including Shopee, Lazada, and Tokopedia, along with the leading ride-hailing apps, Grab and Gojek.

Consumer behavior

Southeast Asian internet users spend a lot of time using the internet daily. Among Asia-Pacific countries, they spend the most time using the internet, mobile internet, social media, and gaming. Internet users in Southeast Asia also appear to shop online more than some. Thai internet users make weekly online grocery purchases, and overall e-commerce purchases the most, Malaysians use mobile commerce the most, and Vietnamese online users are only behind China in terms of digital content purchases. Internet users in Southeast Asia appear to be curious about and open to new services and technologies. Value expectations for cryptocurrency and NFT among Southeast Asians are more positive than negative. Around half of those surveyed in Southeast Asia were interested in the metaverse.
This text provides general information. Statista assumes no liability for the information given being complete or correct. Due to varying update cycles, statistics can display more up-to-date data than referenced in the text.
Published by Leander von Kameke, Feb 27, 2024

Key insights

Internet penetration rate
71.6%
Internet economy size
218bn USD
E-commerce market size
139bn USD
Get more insights

Editor’s Picks Current statistics on this topic

Internet penetration in Southeast Asia as of July 2022, by country

Demographics & Use

Internet penetration SEA 2022, by country

Social media penetration in Southeast Asia as of January 2023, by country

Social Media & User-Generated Content

Social media penetration SEA 2023, by country

Average daily time spent using social media in the Asia-Pacific region in the first quarter of 2023, by country (in hours and minutes)

Social Media & User-Generated Content

Daily time spent spent using social media APAC Q1 2023, by country

Related topics

Recommended

5

Recommended statistics

Overview

5

Overview

Digital economy

7

Digital economy

Social media

4

Social media

Digital finance

5

Digital finance

Consumer preferences

4

Consumer preferences

Further reportsGet the best reports to understand your industry

Internet usage in Malaysia
Internet usage in Malaysia
Internet usage in the Philippines
Internet usage in the Philippines
Internet usage in Vietnam
Internet usage in Vietnam
Internet usage in Thailand
Internet usage in Thailand
Internet usage in the Asia-Pacific region
Internet usage in the Asia-Pacific region

Contact

Get in touch with us. We are happy to help.
Statista Locations
Contact Meredith Alda
Meredith Alda
Sales Manager– Contact (United States)
Email
support@statista.com

Mon - Fri, 9am - 6pm (EST)

Contact Yolanda Mega
Yolanda Mega
Operations Manager– Contact (Asia)
Email
asia.support@statista.com

Mon - Fri, 9am - 5pm (SGT)

Contact Kisara Mizuno
Kisara Mizuno
Senior Business Development Manager– Contact (Asia)
Email
asia.support@statista.com

Mon - Fri, 10:00am - 6:00pm (JST)

Contact Lodovica Biagi
Lodovica Biagi
Director of Operations– Contact (Europe)
Email
eu.support@statista.com

Mon - Fri, 9:30am - 5pm (GMT)

Contact Carolina Dulin
Carolina Dulin
Group Director - LATAM– Contact (Latin America)
Email
latam@statista.com

Mon - Fri, 9am - 6pm (EST)

Menu