India vs Russia: Mobile cellular subscriptions

India
1.15 billion
in 2024
Russia
269.52 million
in 2024
India rank
2nd
Russia rank
5th

Mobile cellular subscriptions over time

  • India
  • Russia
0250.0M500.0M750.0M1.0B1.2B196019922024

How they compare

India currently reports 1.15 billion against 269.52 million in Russia, a difference of 881.84 million.

That makes India's figure about 4.3 times Russia's.

The two have swapped places 3 times across 53 shared years of data; in 1960 it was Russia ahead.

India ranks 2nd and Russia ranks 5th of 214 countries.

India has averaged higher in every one of the 7 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade India Russia Difference Ahead
1960s 0 0 0
1970s 0 0 0
1980s 0 0 0
1990s 436,620 295,824 140,795 India
2000s 147.08 million 100.99 million 46.09 million India
2010s 996.64 million 224.18 million 772.46 million India
2020s 1.15 billion 252.62 million 899.50 million India

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher mobile cellular subscriptions, India or Russia?
India, at 1.15 billion against 269.52 million in Russia as of 2024.
What is the difference in mobile cellular subscriptions between India and Russia?
881.84 million, with India ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for India and Russia?
53 years are reported by both, from 1960 to 2024.
How do India and Russia rank globally for mobile cellular subscriptions?
India ranks 2nd and Russia ranks 5th of 214 countries.
Where does this data come from?
World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database, International Telecommunication Union (ITU), published as Mobile cellular subscriptions. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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India vs Russia: Mobile cellular subscriptions. Statizoid, drawing on World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database, International Telecommunication Union (ITU). Retrieved 22 September 2026, from https://infrastructure.statizoid.com/compare/mobile-cellular-subscriptions/india/russian-federation/

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About this data

Indicator
Mobile cellular subscriptions
Source
World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database, International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
261 places, 13,046 data points, 1960–2025
Last refreshed

Mobile cellular telephone subscriptions are subscriptions to a public mobile telephone service that provide access to the PSTN using cellular technology. The indicator includes (and is split into) the number of postpaid subscriptions, and the number of active prepaid accounts (i.e. that have been used during the last three months). The indicator applies to all mobile cellular subscriptions that offer voice communications. It excludes subscriptions via data cards or USB modems, subscriptions to public mobile data services, private trunked mobile radio, telepoint, radio paging and telemetry services.