In January 2025, Nigeria’s internet consumption exceeded 1 million terabytes for the first time, showcasing the country’s growing dependence on digital connectivity and the increasing demand for internet services.
Despite this significant achievement, data usage in January 2025 dropped to 27,475 terabytes from 94,502 terabytes in December 2024.
Terabytes (TB) measure internet consumption, representing the amount of data transmitted over a network. Telecom providers use this scale to monitor high data usage, particularly among businesses, streamers, and gamers.
The decrease in monthly data consumption may pose challenges for telecom companies like MTN Nigeria and Airtel Nigeria, which recently raised data tariffs by 50%. The higher prices could deter users from consuming as much data, potentially affecting revenue growth.
In January 2025, MTN and Airtel saw significant growth in internet subscribers. MTN added 1.4 million new users, reaching a total of 73.7 million subscribers, while Airtel gained 1.08 million subscribers, bringing its total to 48.4 million.
In contrast, Globacom struggled after a regulatory audit in April 2024 led to a notable decline in its subscriber base. It only added 313,939 users in January 2025, while 9mobile did not gain any new subscribers.