An internet user is anyone who has used the internet at least once in the last three months from any location and device, including a mobile phone, digital television, computer, or other technological device.[1]
Higher internet use by a population leads to increased access to opportunities and heightened productivity, as well as the search and purchase of goods online due to increased e-commerce and access to government services online.
Data from the World Bank shows that 28.8% of the Kenyan population used the internet in 2021. This was lower than in Tanzania, where 31.6% of the population had used the internet. The percentage of the population using the Internet in Uganda was 10.3%.[2]
The share of the population using the internet in Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania was still lower than the world average of 63.1% and the Sub-Saharan Africa average of 35.9%, suggesting that more still needs to be done to increase internet access in Africa.[3]
How many people use the internet in Kenya?
According to the International Telecommunications Union, 15.34 million people in Kenya used the internet in 2020. In Uganda, 8.84 million people used the internet, while 13.57 million were internet users in Tanzania.[1]
Internet users in Kenya, according to the 2019 census
Data from the 2019 census provides vital insights into internet access in Kenya. In 2019, 22.6% of Kenya's population aged three years and above used the internet.[4]
The number of people using the internet was 9,869,962.
More men than women had access to the internet in Kenya
In 2019, the number of men with access to the internet in Kenya was 5,408,981, comprising 25.1% of the population using the internet.
On the other hand, the number of females using the internet was slightly lower, at 20.1%, or 4,460,639 women.
More Data: Share of the population in Kenya using the internet by constituency
Internet use in Kenya was higher in urban than rural areas
In urban areas, 5,730,367 people used the internet in 2019, comprising 42.5% of the population. On the contrary, only 13.7% of the population in rural areas had used the internet, or a total of 4,139,595 people.[4]
The share of the population using the internet in urban areas was highest in males at 45.3% or 3,003,990 people compared to females at 39.8% or 2,726,137 people.
In rural areas, internet use was also high among males, at 16.1% or 2,404,991, compared to females, at 11.3% or 1,734,502 people.
Nairobi County had the highest percentage of the population using the internet.
The chart below shows the share of people using the internet in each county. Nairobi had the highest percentage of the population using the internet, at 52.4%, followed by Kiambu, at 42.7%, Mombasa, at 39.2%, Kajiado, at 33.1%, Nyeri, at 29.9%, Uasin Gishu, at 28%, and Nakuru, at 26.8%.
The counties with the lowest share of the population using the internet were Turkana (6.9%), Mandera (7.8%), West Pokot (8.1%), Marsabit (8.3%), Wajir (8.3%), Tana River (8.9%), Samburu (9.7%), Narok (12%), Garissa (12.2%), and Kwale (12.4%).
See Also
- Access to the internet in Kenya by constituency
- Access to electricity in Kenya by constituency
- Poverty rates in Kenya by constituency
- Access to safe drinking water in Kenya by constituency
References
[1] International Telecommunication Union (via World Bank); Gapminder (2019); UN (2022); HYDE (2017); Gapminder (Systema Globalis) – processed by Our World in Data. “Number of Internet users” [dataset]. International Telecommunication Union (via World Bank); Gapminder (2019); UN (2022); HYDE (2017); Gapminder (Systema Globalis) [original data].
[2] World Bank. World Development Indicators.
[3] World Bank (2023) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. “Share of the population using the Internet – International Telecommunication Union” [dataset]. World Bank, “World Bank World Development Indicators” [original data].
[4] 2019 Kenya Population and Housing Census: Distribution of the population by socioeconomic characteristics.
