India is emerging as one of the world’s fastest-growing 5G markets, with more than 1 billion 5G subscriptions expected by the end of 2031. This will translate to about 79 percent subscription penetration, according to Ericsson’s latest Mobility Report. India will reach 394 million 5G subscriptions by the close of 2025, accounting for 32 percent of all mobile users in the country.
India’s mobile data usage continues to be the highest globally, driven by affordable data plans, strong device availability, and rapid 5G expansion. The average data consumption per active smartphone in India is 36 GB per month. This figure is forecast to rise to 65 GB per month by 2031. Ericsson notes that affordable 5G FWA equipment and rising FWA adoption are major contributors to India’s data traffic surge.
The report highlights that 5G is already functioning as a core digital infrastructure layer for India’s enterprises and consumers. Expanding 5G coverage is enabling new applications across manufacturing, logistics, retail, cloud gaming, and immersive experiences.
Globally, 5G subscriptions are forecast to reach 6.4 billion by 2031, with about 4.1 billion of these being 5G Standalone connections. In 2025 alone, 5G subscriptions are expected to hit 2.9 billion, reflecting strong uptake across major markets. By the end of 2025, around half of the global population outside mainland China is expected to be covered by 5G networks.
India continues to play a significant role in global mobile traffic growth. Worldwide mobile network data traffic grew 20 percent between Q3 2024 and Q3 2025, driven primarily by India and mainland China. This trend is expected to continue, with traffic projected to rise at an annual average rate of 16 percent through 2031. By 2025, 5G networks are expected to handle 43 percent of all mobile data traffic, rising to 83 percent by 2031.
Fixed wireless access is another key growth driver. The report estimates that around 1.4 billion people will be using FWA broadband by the end of 2031, with 90 percent of these connections running on 5G. More than 150 service providers worldwide now offer 5G-based FWA services.
5G Standalone deployments are accelerating, enabling operators to introduce differentiated services such as network slicing. More than 90 operators have launched or soft-launched 5G SA networks. Ericsson has identified 118 network slicing use cases across 56 operators, with 65 already commercialized. This includes new consumer and enterprise offerings that guarantee performance through dedicated slices of the network.
Baburajan Kizhakedath