Mobile cellular subscriptions in Democratic Republic of Congo
Democratic Republic of Congo: Mobile cellular subscriptions was 63.96 million in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Mobile cellular subscriptions in Democratic Republic of Congo, 1960–2024
Source: World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database, International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
Analysis
The most recent figure for mobile cellular subscriptions in Democratic Republic of Congo is 63.96 million, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 50 years on record.
That represents a change of up 13.7% on the previous year and up 72.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, mobile cellular subscriptions in Democratic Republic of Congo peaked at 63.96 million in 2024 and was at its lowest, 0, in 1960.
Democratic Republic of Congo ranks 29th of 214 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Mobile cellular subscriptions in Democratic Republic of Congo, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 0 | — |
| 1965 | 0 | — |
| 1970 | 0 | — |
| 1975 | 0 | — |
| 1976 | 0 | — |
| 1977 | 0 | — |
| 1978 | 0 | — |
| 1979 | 0 | — |
| 1980 | 0 | — |
| 1981 | 0 | — |
| 1982 | 0 | — |
| 1983 | 0 | — |
| 1984 | 0 | — |
| 1985 | 0 | — |
| 1986 | 0 | — |
| 1987 | 0 | — |
| 1988 | 0 | — |
| 1989 | 0 | — |
| 1990 | 0 | — |
| 1991 | 0 | — |
| 1995 | 8,500 | — |
| 1996 | 7,200 | -15.3% |
| 1997 | 8,900 | +23.6% |
| 1998 | 10,000 | +12.4% |
| 1999 | 12,000 | +20.0% |
| 2000 | 15,000 | +25.0% |
| 2001 | 150,000 | +900.0% |
| 2002 | 560,000 | +273.3% |
| 2003 | 1.25 million | +122.5% |
| 2004 | 1.99 million | +59.7% |
| 2005 | 2.75 million | +37.9% |
| 2006 | 4.42 million | +60.8% |
| 2007 | 6.59 million | +49.3% |
| 2008 | 9.94 million | +50.8% |
| 2009 | 9.46 million | -4.8% |
| 2010 | 11.82 million | +25.0% |
| 2011 | 15.64 million | +32.4% |
| 2012 | 20.09 million | +28.4% |
| 2013 | 28.23 million | +40.5% |
| 2014 | 37.10 million | +31.4% |
| 2015 | 37.75 million | +1.8% |
| 2016 | 28.89 million | -23.5% |
| 2017 | 35.38 million | +22.5% |
| 2018 | 36.47 million | +3.1% |
| 2019 | 37.12 million | +1.8% |
| 2020 | 40.80 million | +9.9% |
| 2021 | 46.89 million | +14.9% |
| 2022 | 49.84 million | +6.3% |
| 2023 | 56.27 million | +12.9% |
| 2024 | 63.96 million | +13.7% |
Democratic Republic of Congo compared with similar countries
- Democratic Republic of Congo's 63.96 million is above the median for low income countries, which is 15.00 million, 4.3× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- Democratic Republic of Congo's 63.96 million is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 13.69 million, 4.7× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Mobile cellular subscriptions in Democratic Republic of Congo 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | +900.0% | 15,000 | 150,000 |
| 2002 | +273.3% | 150,000 | 560,000 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 1970s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| 1980s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 1990s | 6,657 | 0 | 12,000 | 7 |
| 2000s | 3.71 million | 15,000 | 9.94 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 28.85 million | 11.82 million | 37.75 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 51.55 million | 40.80 million | 63.96 million | 5 |
Countries ranked near Democratic Republic of Congo
More infrastructure data for Democratic Republic of Congo
- Mobile cellular subscriptions 58.53 per 100 people (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions 0 (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions 0 per 100 people (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions, per capita 0 units per person (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions, annual growth rate -100 % change on previous year (2013)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions, gaps filled 0 (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions, per capita 0.5853 units per person (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions, per unit of GDP 0.0008 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions, gaps filled 63.96 million (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is mobile cellular subscriptions in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- Mobile cellular subscriptions in Democratic Republic of Congo was 63.96 million in 2024, according to World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database, International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
- What is the highest mobile cellular subscriptions recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- The highest recorded value was 63.96 million in 2024.
- What is the lowest mobile cellular subscriptions recorded in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- The lowest recorded value was 0 in 1960.
- How does Democratic Republic of Congo rank for mobile cellular subscriptions?
- Democratic Republic of Congo ranks 29th out of 214 countries with data for 2024.
- Is mobile cellular subscriptions rising or falling in Democratic Republic of Congo?
- Over the last ten years it is up 72.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Democratic Republic of Congo data come from?
- The figures come from World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database, International Telecommunication Union (ITU), published as part of Mobile cellular subscriptions. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 50 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.