Mobile cellular subscriptions in World
World: Mobile cellular subscriptions was 111.5 per 100 people in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Mobile cellular subscriptions in World, 1960–2025
Source: World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database, International Telecommunication Union (ITU). Measured in per 100 people.
Analysis
World recorded 111.5 per 100 people for mobile cellular subscriptions in 2025. That is the highest value across all 49 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.0% on the previous year and up 16.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, mobile cellular subscriptions in World peaked at 111.5 per 100 people in 2025 and was at its lowest, 0 per 100 people, in 1960.
World ranks 22nd of 47 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Mobile cellular subscriptions in World, year by year
| Year | per 100 people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 0 per 100 people | — |
| 1965 | 0 per 100 people | — |
| 1970 | 0 per 100 people | — |
| 1975 | 0 per 100 people | — |
| 1976 | 0 per 100 people | — |
| 1977 | 0 per 100 people | — |
| 1978 | 0 per 100 people | — |
| 1979 | 0 per 100 people | — |
| 1980 | 0.0005 per 100 people | — |
| 1981 | 0.0015 per 100 people | +180.0% |
| 1982 | 0.0023 per 100 people | +56.7% |
| 1983 | 0.0034 per 100 people | +45.2% |
| 1984 | 0.0069 per 100 people | +102.7% |
| 1985 | 0.0159 per 100 people | +131.3% |
| 1986 | 0.0296 per 100 people | +86.2% |
| 1987 | 0.051 per 100 people | +72.2% |
| 1988 | 0.0851 per 100 people | +66.9% |
| 1989 | 0.1421 per 100 people | +66.9% |
| 1990 | 0.2116 per 100 people | +48.9% |
| 1991 | 0.3023 per 100 people | +42.9% |
| 1992 | 0.4277 per 100 people | +41.5% |
| 1993 | 0.6192 per 100 people | +44.8% |
| 1994 | 0.9915 per 100 people | +60.1% |
| 1995 | 1.59 per 100 people | +60.0% |
| 1996 | 2.5 per 100 people | +57.6% |
| 1997 | 3.66 per 100 people | +46.2% |
| 1998 | 5.33 per 100 people | +45.9% |
| 1999 | 8.12 per 100 people | +52.3% |
| 2005 | 33.9 per 100 people | +317.3% |
| 2006 | 41.7 per 100 people | +23.0% |
| 2007 | 50.6 per 100 people | +21.3% |
| 2008 | 59.7 per 100 people | +18.0% |
| 2009 | 68 per 100 people | +13.9% |
| 2010 | 76.6 per 100 people | +12.6% |
| 2011 | 84.2 per 100 people | +9.9% |
| 2012 | 88.5 per 100 people | +5.1% |
| 2013 | 93.1 per 100 people | +5.2% |
| 2014 | 96.7 per 100 people | +3.9% |
| 2015 | 96.1 per 100 people | -0.6% |
| 2016 | 99.3 per 100 people | +3.3% |
| 2017 | 101.4 per 100 people | +2.1% |
| 2018 | 103.1 per 100 people | +1.7% |
| 2019 | 105.9 per 100 people | +2.7% |
| 2020 | 104.8 per 100 people | -1.0% |
| 2021 | 106.7 per 100 people | +1.8% |
| 2022 | 108 per 100 people | +1.2% |
| 2023 | 109.8 per 100 people | +1.7% |
| 2024 | 110.4 per 100 people | +0.5% |
| 2025 | 111.5 per 100 people | +1.0% |
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Mobile cellular subscriptions in World changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | +317.3% | 8.12 per 100 people | 33.9 per 100 people |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0 per 100 people | 0 per 100 people | 0 per 100 people | 2 |
| 1970s | 0 per 100 people | 0 per 100 people | 0 per 100 people | 6 |
| 1980s | 0.0338 per 100 people | 0.0005 per 100 people | 0.1421 per 100 people | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.38 per 100 people | 0.2116 per 100 people | 8.12 per 100 people | 10 |
| 2000s | 50.78 per 100 people | 33.9 per 100 people | 68 per 100 people | 5 |
| 2010s | 94.49 per 100 people | 76.6 per 100 people | 105.9 per 100 people | 10 |
| 2020s | 108.53 per 100 people | 104.8 per 100 people | 111.5 per 100 people | 6 |
Countries ranked near World
More infrastructure data for World
- Mobile cellular subscriptions 9.17 billion (2025)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions 815.00 million (2025)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions 9.9 per 100 people (2025)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions, per capita 0.0992 units per person (2025)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions, annual growth rate -2.16 % change on previous year (2025)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions, gaps filled 815.00 million (2025)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions, per capita 1.12 units per person (2025)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions, gaps filled 9.17 billion (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is mobile cellular subscriptions in World?
- Mobile cellular subscriptions in World was 111.5 per 100 people in 2025, according to World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database, International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
- What is the highest mobile cellular subscriptions recorded in World?
- The highest recorded value was 111.5 per 100 people in 2025.
- What is the lowest mobile cellular subscriptions recorded in World?
- The lowest recorded value was 0 per 100 people in 1960.
- How does World rank for mobile cellular subscriptions?
- World ranks 22nd out of 47 groups with data for 2025.
- Is mobile cellular subscriptions rising or falling in World?
- Over the last ten years it is up 16.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this World data come from?
- The figures come from World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database, International Telecommunication Union (ITU), published as part of Mobile cellular subscriptions (per 100 people). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 49 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
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.