Share of the population that owns a mobile phone in Malawi

Malawi: Share of the population that owns a mobile phone was 56.6% in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)
56.6%
Change on year
up 5.8%
World rank
134th
of 141 countries
All-time high
56.6%
in 2023
All-time low
42.4%
in 2016
Years of data
6
2016–2023

Share of the population that owns a mobile phone in Malawi, 2016–2023

02040602016201920232016: 42.4 %2019: 43.8 %2020: 45.7 %2021: 52.3 %2022: 53.5 %2023: 56.6 %

Source: International Telecommunication Union – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

Malawi recorded 56.6% for share of the population that owns a mobile phone in 2023. That is the highest value across all 6 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 5.8% on the previous year and up 33.5% over ten years.

That places Malawi 134th out of 141 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the bottom quarter.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2010s 43.1% 42.4% 43.8% 2
2020s 52.0% 45.7% 56.6% 4

Countries ranked near Malawi

  1. 131 Ecuador 61.3% compare
  2. 132 Togo 59.9% compare
  3. 133 Liberia 59.0% compare
  4. 135 Rwanda 56.2% compare
  5. 136 Burkina Faso 55.9% compare
  6. 136 Solomon Islands 55.9% compare

See the full ranking of 141 places →

More science & technology data for Malawi

All data for Malawi →

Frequently asked questions

What is share of the population that owns a mobile phone in Malawi?
Share of the population that owns a mobile phone in Malawi was 56.6% in 2023, according to International Telecommunication Union – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest share of the population that owns a mobile phone recorded in Malawi?
The highest recorded value was 56.6% in 2023.
What is the lowest share of the population that owns a mobile phone recorded in Malawi?
The lowest recorded value was 42.4% in 2016.
How does Malawi rank for share of the population that owns a mobile phone?
Malawi ranks 134th out of 141 countries with data for 2023.
Is share of the population that owns a mobile phone rising or falling in Malawi?
Over the last ten years it is up 33.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Malawi data come from?
The figures come from International Telecommunication Union – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of the population that owns a mobile phone. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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About this data

Indicator
Share of the population that owns a mobile phone
Unit
%
Source
International Telecommunication Union – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
141 places, 918 data points, 2013–2024
Last refreshed

Proportion of individuals who own a mobile telephone, by sex (%)