Nigerians are opting for mobile networks over traditional ISPs to save money
What factors are pushing Nigerians into cheaper mobile data options?
Rising living costs in Nigeria are quietly reshaping how people connect to the internet. With inflation pushing essential bills higher, many Nigerians are dropping high-end internet service providers in favor of cheaper mobile alternatives. And the numbers now back up what many already suspected.
According to new data from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), over 18,000 customers abandoned Internet service providers (ISPs) between Q3 2024 and Q1 2025. That brought the total number of active subscribers across 127 providers down to 289,369—a steep drop from the 307,946 recorded just six months earlier.
This decline hit major players hard. Starlink, once hailed as the rising star of Nigeria’s ISP market, recorded its first subscriber loss. Its customer base dropped by more than 6,000, from 65,564 to 59,509. Spectranet, still the largest ISP by subscriber count, lost over 2,000 users. But the hardest hit was FibreOne, which shed more than 14,000 customers and now serves just 19,000 people.
This shift reflects a growing preference for mobile networks, which many users now view as more affordable and practical. Unlike ISPs that often require upfront hardware and installation costs, mobile data plans are easier to start, pause, and manage, especially as prices climb.
The impact of a 50% tariff increase implemented in February also played a role. While all operators were affected, ISPs—many already seen as premium services—felt the pinch more acutely. Some, like Starlink, raised monthly prices significantly, pushing cost-conscious users to switch.
Kelechi Edeh
Tech analyst Jide Awe sees this as part of a broader trend. “For a lot of Nigerians, internet subscriptions are becoming a luxury,” he said. “With the cost of data, equipment, and even power going up, families and small businesses are sticking to the basics.”
Meanwhile, the competition has also intensified. Mobile operators have also started expanding into fixed broadband territory. MTN, Airtel, Glo, and 9mobile now offer Fibre to the Home (FTTH) services, once a niche space dominated by ISPs. This is drawing even more customers away from traditional providers.
And of course, mobile operators continue to dominate the market. As of April 2025, they maintained over 141 million active internet subscriptions, with only a marginal decline since the price adjustment. In contrast, the entire ISP sector serves fewer than 300,000.
With consumers now looking for flexibility, value, and affordability, ISPs will need to rethink their offerings, developing more cost-effective packages, improving service delivery, and finding ways to meet the needs of both individuals and businesses in a tougher economy.
Without adaptation, more users are likely to cut ties, leaving traditional ISPs in an even tighter corner.
