Jio Dominates Telecom Market Despite Slower Subscriber Growth | Latest Updates

New Delhi – Reliance Jio continues to lead India’s telecom subscriber growth, adding 1.6 million users in January 2026, while Vodafone Idea (Vi) continues to struggle with subscriber losses, according to a report by JM Financial. Bharti Airtel also saw gains, adding 1.2 million subscribers during the same period, while Bharat Sanchar Nigam added 0.4 million.

The overall net wireless subscriber additions for the Indian telecom industry – excluding machine-to-machine (M2M) subscribers and 5G fixed wireless access (FWA) – showed a recovery in January, reaching 2.4 million, up from 1.5 million in December 2025, 0.9 million in November 2025, and 0.4 million in October 2025.

Vi’s subscriber base continued to shrink, losing 0.7 million subscribers in January, despite ongoing efforts to expand its 4G and 5G coverage. This contrasts sharply with Jio’s consistent gains and Airtel’s steady growth.

Jio’s net overall wireless subscriber gain, excluding M2M subscribers, stood at 1.6 million in January, slightly lower than the 1.8 million added in December 2025. The company’s Visitor Location Register (VLR), a measure of active subscribers, remained stable at 98.3% in January.

Jio Dominates Home Broadband Segment

Jio also continues to dominate the home broadband segment, driven by the aggressive expansion of JioAirFiber using Universal Broadband Radio (UBR) technology. The JM Financial report highlights robust subscriber additions in January, further solidifying Jio’s leadership in this space.

Recent data from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) for April 2025, shows Jio added 2.6 million overall subscribers in April, following additions of 2.2 million in March and 1.8 million in February. In contrast, Bharti Airtel’s subscriber addition was a more modest 0.2 million, while Vodafone Idea lost 0.6 million subscribers.

Active Subscriber Base Trends

The active subscriber base also reflects Jio’s strength. In April 2025, Jio added a record 5.5 million active subscribers, marking its second consecutive month of 5+ million Visitor Location Register (VLR) additions. Airtel, however, experienced a decline of 4.1 million active users, potentially indicating challenges in retaining quality subscribers. Vi’s active user base eroded by 1.1 million, and BSNL also lost 1.8 million.

Jio’s VLR ratio, a key indicator of active user base quality, improved to 96.6 percent in April 2025, nearing Airtel’s 98.9 percent while maintaining a significant lead over Vi (85.1 percent) and BSNL (61.4 percent).

Fixed Wireless Access Leadership

Jio’s push in the Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) segment through JioAirFiber continues to yield strong results. The company added 0.57 million new FWA subscribers in April 2025, up from 0.33 million in March. Jio now holds an 82 percent market share in the FWA space with a 6.14 million subscriber base, leaving Airtel trailing with an 18 percent share.

JioAirFiber’s widespread availability across 5,900+ cities/towns has been a key driver of this success. While Bharti Airtel is showing some growth in 5G FWA, adding 0.16 million in April 2025, it remains significantly behind Jio’s scale.

Vodafone Idea’s Ongoing Struggles

Vodafone Idea’s struggles are evident in the continued subscriber losses. The company lost 600,000 users overall and 1.1 million active users in April 2025, despite expanding its 4G and 5G coverage. This trend continued into January 2026, with the company losing 0.7 million subscribers.

The telecom sector as a whole added 1.9 million users in April 2025, bringing the total broadband subscriber base to 943.09 million and marking a sustained recovery after a period of SIM consolidation-induced losses.

The competitive landscape remains intense, with Jio solidifying its position as the market leader, Airtel maintaining a strong presence, and Vodafone Idea facing significant challenges in attracting and retaining subscribers.