Share of the population that owns a mobile phone in Tanzania
Tanzania: Share of the population that owns a mobile phone was 85.3% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of the population that owns a mobile phone in Tanzania, 2016–2024
Source: International Telecommunication Union – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of the population that owns a mobile phone in Tanzania is 85.3%, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 7 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.7% on the previous year and up 41.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of the population that owns a mobile phone in Tanzania peaked at 85.3% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 60.5%, in 2016.
That places Tanzania 102nd out of 182 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
Share of the population that owns a mobile phone in Tanzania, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 60.5% | — |
| 2019 | 72.4% | +19.7% |
| 2020 | 74.2% | +2.5% |
| 2021 | 78.2% | +5.4% |
| 2022 | 82.5% | +5.5% |
| 2023 | 83.9% | +1.7% |
| 2024 | 85.3% | +1.7% |
Tanzania compared with similar countries
- Tanzania's 85.3% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 75.4%, 1.1× the median. (44 countries reporting)
- Tanzania's 85.3% is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 69.1%, 1.2× the median. (39 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 66.5% | 60.5% | 72.4% | 2 |
| 2020s | 80.8% | 74.2% | 85.3% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Tanzania
- 99 Saint Lucia 86.3% compare
- 100 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 85.9% compare
- 101 Saint Kitts and Nevis 85.8% compare
- 103 Costa Rica 85.2% compare
- 104 Uzbekistan 84.8% compare
- 104 Vietnam 84.8% compare
- 104 Gabon 84.8% compare
More science & technology data for Tanzania
- Mobile landline subscriptions, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Mobile landline subscriptions, gaps filled 126.56 (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, per capita 1.27 units per person (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, per unit of GDP 0.0011 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, gaps filled 86.77 million (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, per square kilometre 79.27 units per square kilometre (2023)
- Mobile landline subscriptions, annual growth rate 20.07 % change on previous year (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, annual growth rate 23.58 % change on previous year (2024)
- Scientific and technical journal articles 1,453 (2023)
- Scientific and technical journal articles, per capita 0 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of the population that owns a mobile phone in Tanzania?
- Share of the population that owns a mobile phone in Tanzania was 85.3% in 2024, 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 Tanzania?
- The highest recorded value was 85.3% in 2024.
- What is the lowest share of the population that owns a mobile phone recorded in Tanzania?
- The lowest recorded value was 60.5% in 2016.
- How does Tanzania rank for share of the population that owns a mobile phone?
- Tanzania ranks 102nd out of 182 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of the population that owns a mobile phone rising or falling in Tanzania?
- Over the last ten years it is up 41.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Tanzania 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
Proportion of individuals who own a mobile telephone, by sex (%).