Nigerians spent a total of ₦6.98 trillion (approximately ₦7 trillion) on internet data between January and June 2026, according to industry data released by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and analysed by Technext.

The scale of that spending comes into focus through a comparison with national budgeting. The combined 2026 fiscal budgets of the Ministry of Defence (₦3.15 trillion), Education (₦2.40 trillion) and Health (₦2.15 trillion) amount to only ₦700 million more than what Nigerians paid for data in six months.

Consumption over the period accumulated to 8.5 million terabytes, the highest yet recorded, pointing to a steadily growing pattern of internet usage in Nigeria. It also shows that data costs now make up a significant share of monthly household spending.

In June 2026, Nigerians consumed 1.532 million terabytes of data, the highest monthly figure of the first six months. That number has since been surpassed by the 1.66 million terabytes recorded in July 2026, making July the biggest month yet and giving the second half a record-setting start.

About 156 million Nigerians spent the ₦7 trillion on data, a figure that reveals the pace of internet adoption and what connectivity now means for the average Nigerian. Every single transaction on OPay, Moniepoint or GTBank counts toward the total, as does every click to open TikTok, X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, Telegram and other apps.

The usage counts reveal a growing rate of internet connectivity, and the digital space has shifted from a luxury to an essential daily tool for survival, business and communication. Compared with three years ago, groups such as traders, artisans, students and remote workers rely heavily on online platforms, digital banking, social media marketing and virtual meetings to make a living.

Recent smartphone upgrades are a leading contributor as well. Smartphones now act as constantly connected computers, where short-form videos, cloud services and heavy background updates consume data much faster than basic text messaging or web browsing.

Month-by-Month Breakdown

Except for the drop recorded between January and February and a slight slip between March and April, the first six months of 2026 showed a monthly increase in Nigeria's data consumption, with every month from March to June delivering a month-on-month rise.

In January, 151.5 million internet users consumed 1.385 million terabytes of data. In monetary terms, about ₦1.133 trillion was spent on data during the month, based on an average rate of ₦800 per gigabyte. On a per-user count, 9.6 GB of data, or about ₦7,680, was expended by each subscriber during the month.

Data consumption dropped to 1.26 terabytes in February, a decline attributed to the slowing spending patterns that follow the December holidays. The 153.1 million internet users recorded during the month paid ₦1.032 trillion for internet access, which translates on a per-subscriber count to about 8.6 GB (₦6,880) of data used per head.

March saw a spike in data usage to 1.422 million terabytes, surpassing January's consumption. A further breakdown shows that ₦1.165 trillion was spent by the 153.8 million users recorded during the month, with individual usage standing at 9.7 GB (₦7,760).

Across the first three months, Nigerians spent ₦3.33 trillion on data, with cumulative consumption of 4.067 million terabytes.

Data usage in April saw a slight slip, dropping to 1.414 million terabytes from March's 1.422 million terabytes. In contrast, internet users increased to 154.7 million, with spending of ₦1.159 trillion on data during the month. Data usage per subscriber stood at 9.37 GB (₦7,492).

In May, internet usage rose to 1.504 million terabytes, surpassing all previous months. The 157.4 million internet users recorded in May spent a total of ₦1.232 trillion on consuming that data, with individual usage during the month rising to 9.79 GB at an average spend of ₦7,828.

June reflected the continuing growth in internet usage as 156.85 million users consumed 1.532 million terabytes of data, the highest figure of the first half of 2026. In monetary terms, ₦1.255 trillion was the cost of staying on the internet during the month, and data usage per subscriber rose to 10 GB (₦8,002).

For the second quarter of the year, ₦3.646 trillion was spent to consume 4.45 million terabytes of data, outpacing the ₦3.33 trillion spent and 4.067 million terabytes consumed in the first quarter.

In sum, data consumption stood at 8.519 million terabytes between January and June 2026, with ₦6.97 trillion spent on acquiring that data. The average monthly spend per subscriber also ended the half higher than it began, at ₦8,002 in June against ₦7,680 in January.

Fibre Cuts Threaten Network Quality

Fibre cuts remain a leading threat to a quality network experience. Between January and June 2026, over 5,000 fibre cuts were recorded, according to data provided by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) — an average of more than 27 incidents per day. A large part of the incidents was attributed to cuts during road construction and rehabilitation.

Every fibre cut can result in degraded network quality or a significant outage, affecting businesses and digital payments. The issue is particularly significant because telecom infrastructure is a critical national lifeline that connects key sectors such as Education, Health, Banking, Security, Communication and Government services.

The NCC, through its Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Dr Aminu Maida, has pledged periodic intervention. As part of this effort, the commission encouraged construction companies and engineers to exercise caution and adopt protective measures to prevent fibre cuts during road construction and repairs nationwide. How widely those protective measures take hold on active road projects is one of the things to watch for network quality in the second half of the year.

Rapid Data Depletion Under Scrutiny

Complaints about rapid data depletion have also mounted. Mobile network providers, especially MTN Nigeria and Airtel Nigeria, have been under serious scrutiny since the start of 2026, with the issue becoming a major source of public outrage for Nigerians.

The spending of ₦7 trillion on data usage makes the pain more understandable. The significance of mobile data in this digital age cannot be overemphasised, and when it depletes faster than anticipated or planned, it affects daily productivity and livelihood.

Nigerians, stakeholders and experts have called on regulators such as the NCC and the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) for more scrutiny and to conduct periodic technical audits on network providers. Whether those audits materialise, and how quickly, is a key thing to watch in Nigeria's telecommunications sector for the rest of 2026.