Lai Lin Thomala
Research expert covering Greater China
Internet usage in China - statistics & facts
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China is home to the largest digital community in the world, with about 1.11 billion netizens as of the end of 2024. Yet, the country’s internet penetration rate was right below 80 percent, lagging behind its close neighbors South Korea and Japan , which ranged over the 88 percent mark. The main setback is the slow progress of internet infrastructures in the remote regions. While the internet adoption rate in first-tier cities, like Beijing and Shanghai, surpassed 80 percent, the average internet access rate in rural China stood below 68 percent in 2024.
With mobile and artificial intelligence dominating the global digital world, China’s hopes are dependent on its upcoming technological innovators to expand both its industrial and economic horizons.
The race to dominate 5G
Alternatively, China’s launch of the fifth generation (5G) network has propelled its telecommunication technology to new heights. Around the same time as China in 2019, the United States and South Korea also launched their 5G networks. The three countries have been in a head-to-head race to build stable networks with ultra-high speeds. In terms of the number of patents, Huawei and ZTE were leading the global 5G race as of February 2021. Alongside massive technological advancements, the country would undoubtedly catch up with the global internet access level in the next few years.Who are the Chinese silicon giants?
The Chinese internet landscape has been dominated by the three homegrown giants Tencent, Alibaba, and ByteDance. From e-commerce to entertainment to artificial intelligence, the three tech companies have gone on to build a digital ecosystem, dealing with almost every aspect of the spectrum. Meanwhile, Pinduoduo and Shein have surpassed all expectations.Not "mobile first", but "mobile only"
In fact, the second largest economy in the world is a mobile-centric nation. Almost every Chinese netizen accessed internet via mobile devices. Over the recent decade, Tencent’s WeChat has become the app for everything. Apart from its features which are similar to WhatsApp and Facebook, the super app also serves as the alternative to Amazon, PayPal, Uber, and even Expedia in the country. Thanks to the convenient mobile payment function of WeChat, the adoption rate of online payments amounted to over 85 percent in the Chinese market since 2020.With mobile and artificial intelligence dominating the global digital world, China’s hopes are dependent on its upcoming technological innovators to expand both its industrial and economic horizons.
