Vodafone Idea Faces Subscriber Decline as Competitors Thrive in January 2026

Mumbai, March 21: Indian telecom operators Bharti Airtel, BSNL, and Reliance Jio experienced growth in wireless subscribers in January 2026, while Vodafone Idea (Vi) reported a decline. According to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), the total number of wireless subscribers rose from 1,258.77 million at the end of December 2025 to 1,266.34 million by January 31, 2026, marking a monthly growth rate of 0.60 percent. The number of mobile subscribers increased from 1,244.20 million to 1,250.89 million, reflecting a growth rate of 0.54 percent. Wireless tele-density in India also improved, rising from 88.41 percent to 88.87 percent.

FWA Subscribers — 5G and UBR Breakdown

The total number of wireless 5G Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) subscribers grew from 10.99 million in December 2025 to 11.53 million by the end of January 2026. Urban areas accounted for 5.83 million (50.55 percent) of these subscribers, while rural areas had 5.70 million (49.45 percent).

As of January 2026, Bharti Airtel reported 3,359,437 5G FWA subscribers, an increase of 287,621. Reliance Jio had 8,167,604 5G FWA users, adding 245,716, bringing the total to 11,527,041.

Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited was the only operator to report UBR FWA subscribers, increasing its base from 3,579,406 in December to 3,919,220 in January, adding 339,814 users and achieving a monthly growth of 9.49 percent.

Gain and Loss of Wireless Subscribers

Bharti Airtel gained 4,406,661 (4.41 million) wireless subscribers, while Reliance Jio added 2,437,550 (2.44 million) during January. Conversely, Vodafone Idea lost 411,337 (0.41 million) wireless subscribers. BSNL gained 271,486 subscribers, while MTNL saw a loss of 6,562 subscribers during the same month.

All Licensed Service Areas (LSAs) except Kolkata reported growth in wireless subscribers in January 2026.

Wireless Market Share of Operators

As of January 31, 2026, private access service providers held 92.54 percent of the wireless market, with BSNL and MTNL accounting for 7.46 percent. Reliance Jio led with a 39.29 percent market share and 491.49 million wireless subscribers, followed by Bharti Airtel with 37.40 percent and 467.79 million subscribers. Vodafone Idea held a 15.86 percent market share with 198.36 million subscribers, while BSNL and MTNL had 7.44 percent and 0.02 percent market shares, respectively.

Wireless Access Broadband Subscribers

As of January 31, 2026, Reliance Jio reported the highest number of wireless broadband subscribers at 503.57 million, followed by Bharti Airtel with 348.91 million, Vodafone Idea with 128.97 million, and BSNL with 25.17 million subscribers.

Wireline Telephone Subscriber Base

Wireline subscribers increased from 47.37 million at the end of December 2025 to 47.66 million by the end of January 2026, reflecting a net increase of 0.29 million.

In the wireline segment:

• Reliance Jio held a 31.32 percent market share with 14,931,095 subscribers, adding 179,166 during the month.
• Bharti Airtel accounted for a 23.43 percent share with 11,165,055 subscribers, adding 209,890.
• Vodafone Idea held a 1.71 percent market share with 815,071 subscribers, losing 122.
• BSNL had a 15.65 percent market share with 7,459,040 subscribers, losing 28,098 during January 2026.

M2M Cellular Connections

The number of M2M (Machine-to-Machine) cellular mobile connections rose from 109.19 million at the end of December 2025 to 113.46 million by January 2026. Bharti Airtel led with 70.17 million M2M connections, followed by Reliance Jio with 20.60 million, Vodafone Idea with 18.8 million, and BSNL with 3.88 million.

Active Wireless Subscribers

Out of the total 1,250.89 million wireless subscribers, 1,172.10 million were active as of the peak VLR in January 2026, representing approximately 93.70 percent of the total. Bharti Airtel reported a peak VLR of 99.64 percent, BSNL 57.46 percent, Vodafone Idea 85.28 percent, MTNL 144.87 percent, and Reliance Jio 98.29 percent.