Summary:
In October 2025, Bharti Airtel, BSNL and Reliance Jio added a significant number of wireless users, while Vodafone Idea saw a steep drop. According to regulator data, India’s total wireless subscriber base rose by 1.43 million reflecting continuing growth for major operators despite challenges for some.
Airtel, BSNL and Jio reported net gains in new subscribers for October. Airtel added 1.25 million, BSNL added 0.27 million, and Jio led with 1.99 million new wireless users. At the same time, Vodafone Idea lost over 2.08 million subscribers, continuing a downward trend amid tough competition.
This shift slightly altered the market share. As of end-October 2025, Jio held about 41.36% of wireless subscribers, Airtel had roughly 33.59%, Vodafone Idea dropped to 17.13%, and BSNL held about 7.92%.
The fixed-wireless (5G FWA) segment also saw growth. Jio reported 7.4 million 5G FWA users, while Airtel’s FWA base reached 2.51 million, but the gap indicates Jio’s stronger recent push in wireless broadband expansion.
Overall, India’s telecom market continues to expand, but the contrasting fortunes of operators show increasing consolidation. Jio and Airtel are strengthening, BSNL seeing modest gains, and Vodafone Idea facing decline.
