Ericsson, a Swedish telecom equipment maker, predicts that by the end of 2031, the number of 5G subscriptions in India will have surpassed 1.1 billion, making up 81% of the global total.
According to the Ericsson Mobility Study, 5G subscriptions reached 430 million by the end of 2025, making up 35% of all mobile subscriptions.
The average monthly usage is presently at 37 GB and is projected to nearly double to 70 GB by 2031, putting India at the top of the global rankings for mobile data consumption per smartphone. Reasonably priced 5G devices, widespread network coverage, and increasing demand for Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) services are propelling the country’s 5G adoption at a quick pace.
With some providers reporting “significantly faster” growth, uplink traffic is outpacing downlink growth for several service providers.
Affordable 5G-enabled smartphones and gadgets, increased network coverage across nearly all districts, and the expanding implementation of 5G Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) services are driving 5G adoption in India, according to the report.
The report predicted that when customers transition to 5G, subscriptions will fall from over 570 million in 2025 to nearly 160 million by 2031, even though 4G remains the dominating technology at 46%.
According to Nitin Bansal, Managing Director of Ericsson India, “improved mobile broadband” is the foundation for India’s fast expanding 5G adoption.He went on to say that the country’s 5G infrastructure is a strong basis for Digital India and is fostering widespread innovation, better governance, and inclusivity.
Though it did not specifically mention Airtel, the article did highlight “a significant development” in which an Indian service provider, signalling the maturation of advanced 5G use cases, offered postpaid 5G consumers specialised connectivity packages based on network slicing.
The number of 5G mobile subscriptions surpassed three billion in the first quarter of 2026. Communications service providers’ 5G Standalone (SA) network slicing commercial offerings are experiencing substantial growth. Additionally, many service providers are seeing uplink mobile data traffic growth surpassing downlink growth.
Total subscribers reached 3.1 billion in the first quarter of 2026, with 162 million new 5G subscriptions added globally. By the end of 2031, this number is predicted to have more than doubled, reaching 6.4 billion. It is clear that this statistic is growing rapidly.
More than 90 of the 390 service providers that have introduced 5G Standalone services have already launched their commercial 5G offerings.
We anticipate that by the end of 2031, 5G networks will have handled 85% of all mobile data traffic, up from 48% at the end of 2025.
According to the analysis by Ericsson, 5G mobile subscriber uptake is expected to reach or exceed 90% by the end of 2031 in Western Europe, North America, North East Asia, and the GCC countries.
Image: Communication Today
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