Telecommunications operators MTN Nigeria and Airtel Nigeria have reported record-breaking revenues from data services, as mobile internet usage continues to rise across the country.
Both companies’ latest financial results reveal that data now constitutes a significant proportion of their total earnings, with double-digit growth in data revenue for the second quarter of 2025.
MTN Nigeria recorded an 85.6% increase in data revenue for Q2 2025, rising to ₦701 billion from ₦377 billion in the same period last year.
Airtel Nigeria reported a 60.3% increase in data revenue over the same period, reaching ₦260 billion (£168 million), compared with ₦185.4 billion (£117 million) in Q2 2024.
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Industry analysts note that recent tariff adjustments, alongside rising data consumption, have contributed to the surge.
Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, figures show that Nigerians used 1.04 million terabytes of data in May 2025, the highest monthly total since records began in January 2023.
MTN confirmed that its data traffic rose by 41.2% year-on-year, with average monthly usage per subscriber increasing by 26.3% to 13.2 GB.
Airtel reported a 27.3% increase in average monthly data use per customer, from 7.3 GB to 9.3 GB, and a 4.8% rise in smartphone penetration to 51.4%.
“Smartphone data usage per customer reached 11.8 GB per month compared to 9.9 GB per month in the prior period,” Airtel stated in its latest results.
Industry experts attribute the surge to changing consumer behaviour, including the popularity of short-form video content and online streaming platforms.
“I don’t even remember the last time I made a traditional phone call,” said Abraham Aduloju, a 28-year-old content creator in Lagos.
“Everything I do is online—Zoom meetings, WhatsApp voice notes, WhatsApp calls, editing and uploading videos. I use at least 30 GB a week.”
Telecom consultant Adewale Adeoye said: “Apps that autoplay videos by default consume significant bandwidth, and many users are now adjusting their budgets to accommodate the habit. Online gaming, livestreams, and remote work tools have also contributed to rising data consumption.”
Chief Executive of K-Chronos Global Tech Limited, Presley Ibadin, observed that mobile data has become a necessity for many Nigerians.
“An average Nigerian today may not have food at home but will ensure he has data on his phone because with that he can reach out to friends or family for assistance.”
Ibadin added that operators need to increase investment in service quality to meet growing expectations, noting that many customers subscribe to multiple networks to switch when service falters.
MTN reported investing ₦565.7 billion in the first half of 2025 to expand network infrastructure, a 288.4% increase in capital expenditure compared with the same period last year.
The company said this investment, excluding lease payments, was aimed at accommodating rising data traffic and improving service for its more than 84 million subscribers.
Airtel Africa, parent company of Airtel Nigeria, also increased capital spending in the country to $39 million in Q2 2025, up 1.7% from $38 million in the same period last year.
In May, Airtel Nigeria announced plans to double its capital investment this year, focusing on 5G deployment, rural network expansion, data centre upgrades, and broader service coverage.
The operator said it is preparing its data centres to leverage the 2Africa submarine cable landing stations, increasing international bandwidth and data throughput.
As mobile internet use continues to expand, both MTN and Airtel are positioning themselves to capture the growing demand with significant infrastructure upgrades and service expansion initiatives.
