The line graph compares the percentage of urban and rural households with internet access in one country between 2005 and 2023.
Overall, internet access rose substantially in both areas, with urban households ahead at every point. However, rural areas grew faster in later years, so the gap, which widened at first, had narrowed considerably by 2023.
In 2005 just 35% of urban households were connected, compared with only 8% of rural ones. Urban access then rose quickly to 52% in 2008, 68% in 2011 and 80% in 2014, before growth slowed as it approached saturation, at 89% in 2017, 94% in 2020 and 97% in 2023.
Rural access started from a much lower base and grew more slowly in the early years, reaching 15% in 2008 and 28% in 2011. The difference between the two areas therefore widened from 27 percentage points in 2005 to a maximum of 40 points in 2011. After that, rural access accelerated, at 45% in 2014 and 62% in 2017, and then 78% in 2020. It reached 89% in 2023, leaving a gap of just 8 percentage points.