India’s telecom sector recorded adjusted gross revenue (AGR) of ₹88,796 crore in the April–June 2026 quarter, registering year-on-year growth of 9.19%, according to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s (TRAI) latest performance report. Revenue increased 2.40% compared with the January–March quarter, with Reliance Jio retaining its position as the largest contributor among telecom operators. The figures reflect continued demand for mobile connectivity, broadband services and data consumption across the country.
The sector’s growth came alongside an increase in internet subscriptions and average mobile data usage. Gross revenue across the industry rose 10.50% year-on-year to ₹1,06,797 crore, while average monthly data consumption reached 28.39 GB per data subscriber. However, revenue earned per gigabyte declined, indicating that operators continue to face pressure to monetise rapidly growing data traffic. The latest figures therefore show both the scale of India’s digital connectivity market and the commercial challenge of translating usage growth into higher revenue per customer.
Key Takeaways
- Sector AGR: India’s telecom industry reported ₹88,796 crore in adjusted gross revenue in Q1 FY27, up 9.19% year-on-year.
- Reliance Jio leads: Jio reported AGR of ₹33,226 crore, with a 9.69% annual increase.
- Bharti group: The group recorded ₹29,803 crore in AGR, up 10.19% year-on-year.
- Vodafone Idea: The operator reported ₹8,448 crore, an increase of 8.27%.
- Gross revenue: Industry gross revenue rose 10.50% to ₹1,06,797 crore.
- Data usage: Average monthly mobile data usage increased 6.32% to 28.39 GB per data subscriber.
- Revenue per GB: Average revenue earned per gigabyte fell 5.07% to ₹7.13.
- Internet subscriptions: India had 1.11 billion internet subscriptions at the end of June 2026.
Telecom AGR Reaches ₹88,796 Crore in Q1 FY27
The April–June 2026 quarter, the first quarter of financial year 2026–27, saw India’s telecom sector continue to expand its revenue base. AGR rose to ₹88,796 crore, compared with the corresponding quarter a year earlier, while sequential growth reached 2.40%.
Adjusted gross revenue is an important regulatory measure in India’s telecom industry. It is used as the revenue base for calculating licence fees and certain spectrum-related charges payable by telecom operators. It should not be confused with net profit, cash flow or the amount of money an operator retains after expenses.
The distinction matters because operators face substantial costs associated with spectrum, network infrastructure, technology upgrades, employee expenses and customer acquisition. Rising AGR indicates growth in the regulatory revenue base, but it does not independently establish that profitability has increased at the same rate.
TRAI’s reported figures also show that gross revenue grew faster than AGR. Gross revenue reached ₹1,06,797 crore in the June quarter, an increase of 10.50% year-on-year and 1.60% sequentially. The difference reflects the fact that gross revenue and adjusted gross revenue are separate measures used for different purposes.
Telecom sector revenue at a glance
| Metric | April–June 2026 | Reported change |
|---|---|---|
| Adjusted gross revenue | ₹88,796 crore | +9.19% YoY |
| Adjusted gross revenue, sequentially | ₹88,796 crore | +2.40% QoQ |
| Gross revenue | ₹1,06,797 crore | +10.50% YoY |
| Gross revenue, sequentially | ₹1,06,797 crore | +1.60% QoQ |
| Licence fees | ₹17,103 crore | +9.18% YoY |
| Access services’ share of sector AGR | 83.85% | — |
Source: TRAI performance data as reported by The Economic Times. YoY means year-on-year; QoQ means quarter-on-quarter.
Access services, which include mobile and fixed-line connectivity, accounted for 83.85% of the industry’s total AGR. The concentration highlights the central role played by connectivity services in telecom operators’ revenue generation.
Licence fees increased 9.18% year-on-year to ₹17,103 crore. Because licence fees are linked to the applicable revenue base, changes in reported revenue are also relevant to operators’ regulatory payment obligations.
Reliance Jio Leads Telecom Revenue
Reliance Jio remained the largest contributor to the sector’s reported access-service revenue in the June quarter. The operator recorded AGR of ₹33,226 crore, up 9.69% year-on-year.
The Bharti group followed with ₹29,803 crore, representing annual growth of 10.19%. Vodafone Idea recorded ₹8,448 crore, up 8.27%, while state-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) reported ₹2,117 crore, an increase of 2.80%.
The operator figures illustrate the scale of India’s three largest private telecom businesses and the continuing presence of the state-owned operator. They also show that growth rates differed: Bharti’s reported AGR growth exceeded Jio’s, while Jio continued to report the largest absolute revenue figure.
Operator-wise AGR comparison
| Operator or group | AGR in Q1 FY27 | Year-on-year growth | Reported share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reliance Jio | ₹33,226 crore | 9.69% | 44.62% |
| Bharti group | ₹29,803 crore | 10.19% | 40.03% |
| Vodafone Idea | ₹8,448 crore | 8.27% | 11.35% |
| BSNL | ₹2,117 crore | 2.80% | 2.84% |
Source: The Economic Times’ report of TRAI data. The reported operator shares refer to the relevant access-services revenue segment, not each company’s share of the entire ₹88,796 crore sector-wide AGR figure.
Jio’s reported share of 44.62% places it ahead of the Bharti group in the relevant revenue segment. Bharti, however, recorded faster year-on-year growth in the quarter. This difference illustrates why market leadership and revenue growth rates should be considered separately.
A company can retain the largest revenue base while another operator grows more quickly over a particular period. Whether faster growth translates into stronger profitability depends on factors such as subscriber mix, pricing, network costs, capital expenditure and operating efficiency.
Why Is Reliance Jio’s Performance Important?
Jio has played a major role in expanding affordable mobile data access in India. Its network scale and competitive pricing helped accelerate the shift from traditional voice services towards data-intensive mobile usage.
The company’s revenue performance is important to the wider industry because Jio is one of the largest participants in India’s mobile market. Changes in its pricing, subscriber base and service mix can influence the competitive strategies of other operators.
The June-quarter AGR figure shows that Jio continued to expand its regulatory revenue base. Its 9.69% year-on-year growth was strong, although slightly below Bharti group’s reported 10.19% increase.
For investors, AGR is only one part of the assessment. Other indicators include average revenue per user (ARPU), subscriber additions, customer churn, postpaid customer growth, network spending, debt and profitability. These measures help explain whether higher revenue is being supported by stronger monetisation, an expanding customer base or changes in the mix of services.
Jio’s forthcoming public-market listing has also brought greater attention to the company’s financial performance and valuation. However, the quarterly AGR figures alone do not determine an appropriate valuation. Investors must also examine earnings, cash flows, capital expenditure requirements and future growth prospects.
Bharti Group Records Faster AGR Growth
The Bharti group reported AGR of ₹29,803 crore in the June quarter, up 10.19% year-on-year. Its growth rate was higher than Jio’s reported 9.69%, although its absolute AGR remained lower.
Bharti Airtel has increasingly focused on improving the value of its customer base, including attracting and retaining higher-spending customers. Telecom operators can improve revenue through several channels: raising tariffs, encouraging customers to upgrade plans, expanding postpaid subscriptions, selling enterprise connectivity and offering additional digital services.
The latest AGR numbers do not reveal how much of Bharti’s growth came from each factor. A more detailed assessment would require operator-level disclosures on ARPU, subscriber numbers, customer mix and segment performance.
The distinction is important because higher revenue can have different implications for margins. Growth supported by better pricing or a shift towards premium plans may have different cost implications from growth driven primarily by adding new subscribers or increasing network usage.
Bharti’s faster AGR growth in the June quarter is therefore a useful data point, but it should not be interpreted as a definitive measure of long-term competitiveness or profitability.
Vodafone Idea and BSNL Also Report Revenue Growth
Vodafone Idea reported AGR of ₹8,448 crore, up 8.27% year-on-year. Its growth rate was below those of Jio and the Bharti group, but it remained positive.
Vodafone Idea operates in a capital-intensive industry where network investment and customer retention are important to its long-term position. The company’s performance needs to be considered alongside its financial obligations, funding requirements, network quality and ability to compete on service coverage and pricing.
AGR growth alone does not establish whether Vodafone Idea’s financial challenges have been resolved. Revenue trends must be assessed alongside cash generation, liabilities, capital expenditure and the company’s ability to fund network upgrades.
BSNL recorded AGR of ₹2,117 crore, up 2.80% year-on-year. Although its reported growth rate was lower than those of the private operators, the state-owned company remains part of India’s national telecom infrastructure.
Its future performance will depend on service quality, network modernisation, customer retention and the effectiveness of its expansion plans. The latest revenue figures provide a snapshot of the quarter rather than a complete measure of the progress of its operational transformation.
Internet Subscriptions and Data Consumption Continue to Rise
India’s telecom revenue growth is closely connected to the expansion of internet access. TRAI’s reported data showed that internet subscriptions reached 1.11 billion at the end of June 2026.
Broadband subscriptions increased 2.03% from March to 1.09 billion in June. These figures point to the continued importance of internet services in households, businesses and everyday digital activity.
Average monthly mobile data usage rose 6.32% to 28.39 GB per data subscriber. Total mobile data traffic increased 8.30% during the quarter, indicating that overall consumption grew even as operators faced pressure on revenue earned per unit of data.
The increase in usage is supported by a wide range of activities, including video streaming, social media, online education, digital payments, gaming, cloud services and business communications. The expansion of 4G and 5G networks has also made data services central to the telecom industry’s commercial model.
For operators, higher usage can increase demand for network capacity and require additional spending on radio equipment, fibre, backhaul and other infrastructure. The business opportunity depends on whether revenue growth is sufficient to cover those costs and provide an acceptable return on investment.
Revenue per Gigabyte Falls Despite Higher Usage
One of the most notable details in the June-quarter data is the decline in average revenue earned per gigabyte. The reported figure fell 5.07% to ₹7.13.
This suggests that data traffic grew faster than the revenue generated from that traffic. It does not necessarily mean that total operator revenue declined: sector AGR and gross revenue both increased during the quarter.
The difference highlights the challenge of monetising data consumption. Telecom operators increasingly offer large data allowances and bundled services, meaning customers can consume more data without paying proportionately more for each additional gigabyte.
For consumers, this trend can be beneficial because it allows more internet use without a corresponding increase in spending per unit of data. For operators, however, it places greater emphasis on subscriber growth, pricing discipline, premium services and operational efficiency.
Operators may attempt to improve monetisation by offering higher-value plans, expanding postpaid services, bundling digital subscriptions and developing enterprise products. They can also invest in network efficiency to manage the cost of carrying growing volumes of traffic.
The decline in revenue per gigabyte is therefore an important metric to track alongside AGR. Revenue growth indicates the expansion of the sector’s overall business, while revenue per unit of data helps show how effectively operators monetise usage.
Average Revenue per User Reaches ₹187.12
The average monthly revenue per wireless user reached ₹187.12 in the June quarter, up 1.19% sequentially and 3.11% year-on-year.
ARPU is a widely used telecom metric because it provides an indication of the average revenue generated per wireless subscriber. Operators and investors monitor it to understand the effects of tariff changes, customer upgrades and shifts in the subscriber mix.
An increase in ARPU can support revenue growth even when subscriber additions are modest. Conversely, subscriber growth may not produce proportionate revenue gains if new customers spend less than the existing base or if operators offer discounts to attract them.
The latest increase was relatively modest compared with the growth in data consumption. That difference reinforces the importance of distinguishing between how much customers use telecom services and how much revenue operators earn from each customer.
Average monthly voice usage declined 2.65% to 933 minutes per subscriber. The shift is consistent with a market in which internet-based communication and data-intensive applications play an increasingly prominent role, although the reported figures alone do not establish that one factor caused the decline in voice usage.
What the AGR Growth Means for India’s Telecom Industry
The June-quarter figures show an industry that continues to expand its revenue base while managing the costs and competitive pressures associated with rising data consumption.
For Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel, the scale of revenue creates opportunities to spread network investment across a large customer base. Their ability to convert revenue growth into cash flow and returns will depend on pricing, subscriber quality, capital expenditure and operating costs.
For Vodafone Idea, sustained revenue growth would need to be accompanied by progress on funding, network investment and financial sustainability. For BSNL, service improvements and network modernisation remain important to its ability to compete.
The sector’s wider outlook will also depend on tariff changes, the adoption of 5G, fixed broadband expansion, enterprise connectivity and the development of new digital services. These opportunities may support revenue over time, but they also require investment and effective execution.
The Bigger Picture
India’s telecom industry reported solid revenue growth in the April–June 2026 quarter, with AGR rising 9.19% to ₹88,796 crore. Reliance Jio remained the largest contributor in the relevant access-services segment, while the Bharti group recorded a faster year-on-year growth rate. Rising internet subscriptions and mobile data consumption continue to support demand, confirming the importance of connectivity to India’s digital economy.
The figures also reveal a key commercial tension: data usage is increasing faster than revenue earned per gigabyte, and ARPU growth remains modest. Operators must therefore balance affordable services with the need to fund network upgrades and earn sustainable returns. The next phase of sector growth will depend not only on adding subscribers and carrying more data, but also on improving monetisation, managing costs and developing higher-value services.
Looking Ahead
Investors and industry participants will monitor subsequent TRAI reports for changes in AGR, ARPU, data consumption and operator market shares. Tariff adjustments, the expansion of 5G and broadband services, and the performance of enterprise connectivity businesses could influence future revenue trends. Company disclosures will be needed to determine whether higher industry revenue translates into stronger margins and cash flow for individual operators.
For now, the June-quarter data show that India’s telecom revenue base continues to expand, with Jio and the Bharti group accounting for the largest portions of the reported access-services segment. Vodafone Idea and BSNL also recorded year-on-year growth, though at different rates. The sector’s long-term performance will depend on how effectively operators convert demand for connectivity into sustainable financial returns while maintaining service quality and investing in network capacity.
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