Reliance Jio has emerged as the strongest driver of India’s 5G expansion, accelerating subscriber adoption, and boosting revenue market share.
Together with Bharti Airtel, Jio has added combined 401 million 5G mobile subscribers since nationwide rollouts began in late 2023 and early 2024, transforming India into one of the world’s fastest-growing 5G markets, according to CLSA report.
Jio’s leadership is evident in both mobile and home broadband segments as its standalone 5G network enables faster adoption and deeper coverage. India’s 5G mobile penetration now stands at 42 percent of total data subscribers, despite 5G tariffs being priced at an average 17 percent premium over 4G plans. With Vodafone Idea only recently expanding its 5G rollout, Jio and Airtel continue to dominate new subscriber additions and revenue growth, the CLSA report prepared by Deepti Chaturvedi and Saurabh Mehrotra indicated.
Jio’s 5G subscriber base has reached 234 million, representing 46 percent of its total 506 million mobile users. Airtel’s 5G footprint is also expanding rapidly, with 58 percent of its 289 million data subscribers and 46 percent of its 364 million mobile subscribers now on 5G. The two operators together command 793 million of India’s 951 million data subscribers, accounting for 83 percent of the segment. Nearly all new data additions since the introduction of 5G have gone to the two leaders.
The rapid migration to 5G has delivered share gains in revenue as well. Jio and Airtel have increased their combined revenue market share by three percentage points to 81 percent since launch, with Airtel posting a stronger 250 basis-point gain. Vodafone Idea has not lost data subscribers but has ceded two percentage points of revenue share since the advent of 5G services.
Despite a tariff premium of about 17 percent over 4G bundles, Jio and Airtel continue to see strong customer uptake on 5G. Vodafone Idea’s introductory 5G plan at Rs 299 — initially priced lower than rivals — has gradually been replaced with a Rs 349 plan, matching the competition.
Beyond mobile connectivity, Jio is also spearheading growth in 5G fixed wireless access. Its standalone 5G network has enabled the operator to scale 5G FWA services to 9.5 million of its 23 million home broadband users. India’s wired home broadband base remains relatively small at 45 million subscribers across more than 300 million households, giving Jio and Airtel a significant opportunity to expand through 5G FWA. Together, the two leaders have reached 35 million home broadband subscribers, and 5G FWA is expected to accelerate gains.
By FY28, the combined mobile market share of Jio and Airtel is projected to rise by four percentage points to 85 percent. Average revenue per user is also set to climb by 21 to 22 percent to the range of Rs 258 to Rs 311, with 5G services providing additional uplift.
Reliance Jio’s technology leadership, early nationwide rollout, and rapid expansion into 5G FWA are playing a pivotal role in driving India’s 5G transformation. As adoption deepens across both mobile and home broadband, Jio is positioned to lead the next phase of growth, setting the pace for the country’s digital connectivity landscape.
Baburajan Kizhakedath
