Mobile Connectivity Index: Methodology

In 2023, more than 150 million people connected to mobile internet for the first time, bringing the total connected population to more than 4.6 billion people globally (or 57% of the global population). For many of these individuals, mobile is the only method of accessing the internet, so growth in mobile internet adoption also drives digital inclusion, especially in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).

Mobile internet connectivity is not, however, equitable; in 2023, almost 50% of the LMIC population (more than 3 billion people) were connected, compared to 80% of the population in high-income countries, while in least developed countries (LDCs) only 26% were connected. More than 40% of the world’s population are therefore still unable to realise the social and economic benefits that mobile internet can enable. 

To support the mobile industry’s efforts to drive mobile internet connectivity and accelerate digital inclusion, the Mobile Connectivity Index (MCI) measures and tracks enablers of mobile internet connectivity. The MCI has been constructed according to the steps set out in the guidelines developed by the OECD and the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC). This methodology presents the theoretical framework that underpins the MCI; the process for selecting the indicators, along with how they are structured; the approach used to normalise the data; the weights used in the MCI; and the approach to aggregation.

Visit the Mobile Connectivity Index here.