Kenya's mobile landscape continues its rapid expansion, with SIM penetration reaching an impressive 149.4%. The latest report from the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) highlights Safaricom's dominant grip on the mobile money sector, where its M-PESA service commands almost 90% of the market.

• Total mobile subscriptions jumped to 78.3 million, a 2.1% quarterly increase.
• Safaricom holds 65.3% of total mobile subscriptions, while its M-PESA service boasts an 89.7% share of the mobile money market.
• Mobile money subscriptions reached 48.6 million, representing 92.8% penetration, with growing smartphone use accelerating digital payments.

A recent report by the Communications Authority (CA) reveals a significant surge in data consumption among Kenyan 5G users, who now consume an average of 40GB per month. This figure is nearly triple the national average for broadband users and highlights Kenya's rapid digital transformation.

• Kenyans have 75 million active mobile devices, with a device penetration rate of 143.1%.
• Smartphones account for 44.6 million devices, reaching 85.2% penetration.
• Mobile data subscriptions hit 60.2 million, with 84.8% of broadband users on 4G.
• Average broadband data consumption is 14.3GB, while 5G users average 40GB, and 4G users average 14.1GB.
• Total 5G data consumption more than tripled between September 2024 and September 2025, from 18.5 million GB to 59.8 million GB.

Despite the rise of data-based communication platforms, domestic mobile voice traffic in Kenya grew to 29.93 billion minutes in Q1 FY 2025/26, while SMS traffic declined for yet another quarter to 14.66 billion messages. The report from the Communications Authority reveals that Airtel users are increasingly talkative, with their voice minutes significantly increasing.

• Airtel's voice minutes surged to 11.6 billion, up from 10.6 billion in the previous quarter, indicating a growing user base actively utilizing their voice services.
• Safaricom, while still dominant in overall voice traffic with 18.3 billion minutes, saw a slight decrease from 18.5 billion in the prior quarter.
• Airtel subscribers recorded the longest average on-net call duration at 2.8 minutes, substantially higher than Safaricom's 1.6 minutes, suggesting strong value perception for Airtel's voice tariffs.

Kenya's fixed broadband market continues to expand, reaching 2.29 million subscriptions in Q1 FY 2025/26, a 6.9% quarterly increase, driven by significant growth in both fibre and wireless connections.

• Total fixed data subscriptions rose from 2.144 million to 2.291 million users.
• Safaricom PLC maintains its leadership with a 35.6% market share, followed by Jamii Telecommunications Limited (JTL) at 20.4%.
• Wireless connections saw the strongest growth at +10.2%, reaching 814,782 subscriptions, while FTTH subscriptions increased by 5.4% to 1.272 million.

Despite the growing pressure from streaming services, GOtv and DStv have reported significant subscription increases, driving a strong rebound in Kenya's broadcasting sector during Q1 FY 2025/26.

• Total broadcasting subscriptions in Kenya rose by 13.7% to 1.678 million users.
• GOtv saw a 41.2% quarterly surge, reaching 444,007 subscribers, while DStv recorded a dramatic 43% jump to 270,017 subscribers.
• The growth was primarily driven by Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) and Direct-to-Home (DTH) satellite services, contrasting with a steep 29.5% decline in cable TV subscriptions.