According to a recent study by data and market measurement firm Nielsen, the presence of internet users in rural India is 20% higher than in urban parts of the country. Overall, India has 646 million active internet users aged two years and above as of December 2021.
The study titled India 2.0 Internet Study also revealed that around 60% of the rural population is still not actively using the Internet, leaving room for further growth. Urban India on the other hand registered 59% penetration with 294 million active internet users.
The study was based on surveys conducted across states from September 2021 to December 2021, covering 110,000 household members in 27,900 households.
In addition, there are 592 million active Internet users aged 12 and over. Compared to 2019, the internet user base active for 12 years and above has seen an increase of 37%. The growth of rural users at 45% is outpacing the growth of urban users at 28% as compared to 2019. Over the past two years, there has been a 61 percent increase in female Internet users compared to male users, who grew at a rate of 24%. Nielsen said that one in three India is actively using the Internet.
About 90% use the internet on a daily basis. Users aged 50 and over are also active, with 81% accessing it daily. The mobile phone remains the dominant device for internet access in all regions.
“Powered by the Government of India’s efforts to strengthen the existing digital infrastructure through lucrative initiatives such as Digital India, availability of budget smartphones and affordable mobile data and one of the cheapest data prices in the world enabled by telcos , has increased and accelerated the level of internet adoption across the country”, Nielsen India Managing Director, Dolly Jha said in a statement that the study shows a strong jump in the number of female active internet users in rural India, making it the highest percentage of rural India. The desire is accompanied by the desire to adopt technology at a rapid pace.
While social networking or chatting remains the top activity on the internet across India with 503 million active internet users, watching videos and listening to music online is among the top five activities performed on the internet. About 440 million users watch videos on the Internet, of whom 54% are from rural India. The male-to-female split among active Internet users is 60:40.
Despite 56% of active internet users belonging to rural India, online shopping is dominated by its urban counterparts. 47% of online shoppers are from the upper strata of the society.
Users of online banking and digital payments have been identified as urban, affluent users, of whom two-thirds are in the age group of 20 to 39 years. While usage is high in urban areas, 46% of users are from rural India. According to the study, this activity is more common among men as the division of male to female is 69:31.