The face of the internet changed in 10 years – ..

Mobile data prices in India have dropped astonishingly in the last decade. While in 2014 internet usage was limited to only a select class, today it has become an everyday need for millions of people. Mobile data has now become so cheap that people of every age group are using it. According to BizzBuzz report, it was told in Parliament that the average price of 1GB data in March 2014 was ₹269, which has now come down to just ₹9.08. This decline is of 96.6%.

2004: Early days of the Internet

Internet access was very limited in 2004. At that time, the price of mobile data was fixed on per megabyte (MB) basis. The cost of 1MB data was between ₹10 to ₹15.

• Data speeds increased after the advent of 3G networks in 2010, but prices were still quite expensive.
• 1GB of data had to cost users ₹300 to ₹500, which was a huge expense at that time.

2016: Jio brought data revolution

Reliance Jio’s market entry in 2016 changed the world of mobile data.

• Jio provided 4G high-speed data at cheap prices.
• The price of 1GB data was reduced to less than ₹50.
• Jio also added features like unlimited calling, texting and streaming to its plans.

Due to this, other telecom companies also had to reduce the prices of their data plans. As a result, data prices fell by 95%, and the average price of 1GB data went from ₹10 to ₹20.

2020: Covid pandemic and increasing demand for data

The Covid pandemic increased data consumption manifold.

• Due to closure of schools, colleges, and offices, data usage increased for work from home and online education.
• During this period, telecom companies offered cheap and attractive plans, due to which data consumption increased further.
• According to World Bank data, by 2023 India is set to be among the cheapest countries in the world in terms of mobile data prices, with an average 1MB data costing ₹0.09.

2024: Slight increase in prices with the arrival of 5G

Data prices saw a slight increase with the introduction of 5G services.

• Jio and Airtel made their prepaid and postpaid plans expensive from July 3, 2024.
• However, data is still cheaper than most countries.

Current price of 1GB data

Data plans in India usually range between ₹10 to ₹20 per GB.