Kenyans consume more data as 5G users average 46.4 GB per month
By Kenneth Mwenda, April 16, 2026Kenya’s mobile data subscriptions climbed to 61.9 million in the three months to December 2025, the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) reported this month. The Second Quarter Sector Statistics Report for FY 2025/2026 shows steady growth in digital services as Kenyans shift to faster networks.
Mobile (SIM) subscriptions stood at 78.4 million at the end of December 2025.
This marked a small 0.1 per cent rise from 78.3 million in the previous quarter and delivered a penetration rate of 149.5 per cent against Kenya’s population. Smartphones drove much of the activity. Their numbers grew 9.1 per cent to 48.7 million, while feature phones fell 2.6 per cent to 29.6 million.
Mobile broadband subscriptions jumped 9.3 per cent to 51.5 million. These now make up 83.2 per cent of all mobile data connections. The report notes that 4G and 5G subscriptions kept rising while 2G and 3G continued to drop. 4G reached about 44.2 million users.
5G subscriptions hit 1.735 million, up 15.9 per cent from the September quarter and 71.7 per cent from December 2024.
News outlets often round this figure to 1.7 million. Data consumption also rose. Mobile broadband traffic grew 12 per cent to 755,095 terabytes in the quarter. Average use per broadband subscription increased to 14.6 GB from 14.3 GB. 5G users led the way with the highest average of 46.4 GB per subscription – more than three times the overall average.
“5G users recorded the highest consumption at 46.4 GB,” the CA report states.
Safaricom leads, threats rise
Safaricom kept the largest market share. It held 66.8 per cent of mobile subscriptions, 64.3 per cent of mobile broadband, and 89 per cent of mobile money services. Airtel followed in most segments. Mobile money subscriptions grew 5.6 per cent to 51.4 million during the festive period, pushing penetration to 98 per cent.
The number of registered agents rose 4.4 per cent to 501,399. Domestic voice traffic increased 5.2 per cent to 31.5 billion minutes, but SMS traffic fell slightly as more people turned to internet messaging.