North America holds the top spot in internet usage

Across the globe, growth in internet and mobile users is slowing after a pandemic-fueled boost. Nearly 60% of people worldwide—4.72 billion—will connect to the internet regularly this year, and 5.28 billion will use a mobile phone, according to our latest forecast. But North America comes out on top.

• 90.0% of North Americans will be internet users in 2024. Europe and Latin America will have the next-highest penetration rates.
• Smartphone usage is highest in North America. About 77% of its population will use a smartphone in 2023—more than 10 percentage points higher than Europe. North America’s penetration rate will reach just over 80% by 2027.
• Mobile usage among children is also one of the highest. Canada ranks just behind Germany and Argentina. We forecast that 25.1% of children under 12 and 95.7% of 12-to-17-year-olds in the country will use mobile phones this year. The US and Mexico won’t be far behind.