Adoption of communication technologies in United Kingdom

United Kingdom: Adoption of communication technologies was 23.77 million in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
23.77 million
Change on year
down 11.5%
World rank
9th
of 212 countries
All-time high
35.23 million
in 2000
All-time low
5.04 million
in 1960
Years of data
65
1960–2024

Adoption of communication technologies in United Kingdom, 1960–2024

10.0M20.0M30.0M40.0M196019922024

Source: International Telecommunication Union (ITU), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

Analysis

United Kingdom recorded 23.77 million for adoption of communication technologies in 2024.

That represents a change of down 11.5% on the previous year and down 28.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, adoption of communication technologies in United Kingdom peaked at 35.23 million in 2000 and was at its lowest, 5.04 million, in 1960.

United Kingdom ranks 9th of 212 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 65 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1960s 5.79 million 5.04 million 6.53 million 10
1970s 12.20 million 9.21 million 17.33 million 10
1980s 21.07 million 18.16 million 24.80 million 10
1990s 29.23 million 25.37 million 34.02 million 10
2000s 34.27 million 33.46 million 35.23 million 10
2010s 32.84 million 31.51 million 33.41 million 10
2020s 29.06 million 23.77 million 32.73 million 5

Countries ranked near United Kingdom

  1. 6 France 37.28 million compare
  2. 7 Mexico 29.52 million compare
  3. 8 Iran 28.23 million compare
  4. 10 Brazil 22.55 million compare
  5. 11 South Korea 21.29 million compare
  6. 12 Russia 20.82 million compare

See the full ranking of 212 places →

More reference data data for United Kingdom

All data for United Kingdom →

Frequently asked questions

What is adoption of communication technologies in United Kingdom?
Adoption of communication technologies in United Kingdom was 23.77 million in 2024, according to International Telecommunication Union (ITU), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest adoption of communication technologies recorded in United Kingdom?
The highest recorded value was 35.23 million in 2000.
What is the lowest adoption of communication technologies recorded in United Kingdom?
The lowest recorded value was 5.04 million in 1960.
How does United Kingdom rank for adoption of communication technologies?
United Kingdom ranks 9th out of 212 countries with data for 2024.
Is adoption of communication technologies rising or falling in United Kingdom?
Over the last ten years it is down 28.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this United Kingdom data come from?
The figures come from International Telecommunication Union (ITU), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Adoption of communication technologies. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

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About this data

Indicator
Adoption of communication technologies
Source
International Telecommunication Union (ITU), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
212 places, 11,803 data points, 1960–2024
Last refreshed