Countries by Fixed broadband subscriptions

Ranking 2023

Analysis

This metric counts fixed subscriptions to high-speed public Internet access at downstream speeds equal to or greater than 256 kbit/s. According to the source definition, it includes cable modem, DSL, fiber-to-the-home/building, other fixed (wired)-broadband subscriptions, satellite broadband, and terrestrial fixed wireless broadband, measured irrespective of the method of payment. Values are reported as absolute subscription counts, not per-capita rates, meaning larger populations generally produce higher totals. Data come from the World Bank World Development Indicators, indicator code IT.NET.BBND, for the year 2023. The dataset covers 208 countries, with 100% of datapoints classified as official-quality and 76% of countries reporting data from 2023 specifically. Average year-over-year change across the dataset is 17.0%, and 12 extreme outliers were identified at the 3-sigma threshold, with China being the most prominent.

China's 636,306,000 subscriptions (rank 1) are nearly five times the United States total of 131,028,000 (rank 2). Japan (rank 3, 48,046,000) and Brazil (rank 4, 47,336,100) are closely matched, followed by India (rank 5, 39,480,000) and Germany (rank 6, 38,368,400). The top ten also includes Russian Federation (rank 7, 37,558,400), France (rank 8, 32,335,000), United Kingdom (rank 9, 28,460,000), and Mexico (rank 10, 26,062,400). High absolute totals in this group reflect large populations combined with established fixed-line infrastructure.

Several mid-ranking placements stand out. Bangladesh (rank 19, 13,533,000) places just below Indonesia (rank 18, 13,543,900) despite a much smaller geographic footprint, and above larger economies such as Poland (rank 25, 10,122,500). Uzbekistan (rank 24, 10,791,900) ranks higher than Australia (rank 26, 9,682,370). At the lower end, Nigeria (rank 127, 116,867) — one of Africa's most populous countries — ranks below Somalia (rank 126, 132,726) and Angola (rank 125, 137,323). Countries in the bottom tier, such as Kiribati (rank 207, 53) and Chad (rank 208, 0), have negligible or no recorded fixed broadband subscriptions.

Because this metric measures absolute subscription counts, it systematically favors countries with large populations regardless of penetration rate or service quality. A densely populated country with low per-capita connectivity can outrank a smaller, highly connected country. The 2023 consistency rate of 76% means that approximately one quarter of countries use data interpolated or carried forward from prior years, introducing potential inaccuracies for those entries. Satellite broadband and terrestrial fixed wireless are included alongside fiber and cable, which means infrastructure quality is not distinguished. Reporting practices vary across national statistical agencies, and some lower-income countries may undercount subscriptions due to limited data collection capacity.

Methodology

Data are drawn from the World Bank World Development Indicators, indicator code IT.NET.BBND, reference year 2023. Fixed broadband subscriptions refers to fixed subscriptions to high-speed access to the public Internet (a TCP/IP connection), at downstream speeds equal to, or greater than, 256 kbit/s. This includes cable modem, DSL, fiber-to-the-home/building, other fixed (wired)-broadband subscriptions, satellite broadband and terrestrial fixed wireless broadband. This total is measured irrespective of the method of payment. The ranking covers 208 countries. All 208 countries have data from within the last 7 years, and 100% of datapoints are classified as official quality. Approximately 76% of countries (158 of 208) report data specifically from 2023; the remainder use the most recent available year. The dataset exhibits an average year-over-year change of 17.0% and a value range of 0 to 636,306,000, representing a spread of 999%. Twelve extreme outliers were identified using a 3-sigma threshold. Values represent absolute subscription counts and are not adjusted for population size.

Sources

• World Bank