Nigeria’s digital economy has hit a new milestone as annual data consumption surged to 13.2 million Terabytes (TB), representing a 35 per cent increase over the previous year.
According to the latest industry statistics from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), the spike in demand is being driven by the rapid expansion of 4G and 5G networks, a growing appetite for video streaming services, and the increased migration of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to cloud-based operations.
National internet traffic from major providers like MTN Nigeria, Airtel Nigeria, Globacom, T2 and others climbed from 7.27 million TB in 2023 to 9.76 million TB in 2024, a 34.3 per cent year-on-year increase.
Between January and November 2025 alone, consumption hit 11.86 million TB, up 34.96 per cent, or 3.07 million TB, from the prior year, putting daily usage at over 41,000 TB and straining networks nationwide.
According to data on the NCC’s website, national internet traffic across MTN Nigeria, Airtel Nigeria, Globacom, T2 and other internet service providers has risen consistently since the Commission began tracking monthly usage in January 2023.
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“In 2023, Nigeria recorded 7.27 million TB in total data usage. This climbed to 9.76 million TB in 2024, representing a 34.3 per cent year-on-year growth.
The momentum has intensified in 2025, with full-year consumption now projected to exceed 13.2 million TB, implying growth of about 35 per cent over 2024.
“Between January and November 2025 alone, Nigerians consumed 11.86 million TB, up from 8.79 million TB in the same period last year—an increase of 34.96 per cent, or 3.07 million TB in additional volume,” the report read.
At this pace, the country is now consuming just over 41,000 TB of data daily, placing sustained pressure on mobile and broadband networks nationwide.
A closer look at traffic patterns also reveals pronounced seasonality. December has consistently emerged as the peak month for data use.
In 2024, December traffic exceeded November by 94,502 TB, while in 2023 the jump was 67,794 TB. Month-on-month growth for December averaged 10–11 per cent in both years, driven largely by holiday travel, video streaming, social media activity and online shopping.
According to industry players, the growth is being fuelled by cheaper smartphones, wider mobile internet access, rising video content, expanding cloud services, remote-work tools and the steady digitalisation of businesses and public services.
Notably, broadband penetration crossed the 50 per cent threshold in November 2025 for the first time, a historic milestone, though still short of the 70 per cent target set under the National Broadband Plan (NBP), 2020–2025.
