Digital 2025 Report: Key Trends Shaping the Connected World

The “Digital 2025 Global Overview Report” by “Meltwater” and “We Are Social“, produced in partnership with DataReportal and collaborators like GWI, GSMA Intelligence, and Ookla, offers a comprehensive look at the evolving digital landscape. Drawing from global data on population, connectivity, and user behavior, the report reveals critical trends for marketers and digital professionals to watch. Here’s what you need to know:

The World in 2025: By the Numbers

• Global Population: 8.2 billion, with 67.9% (5.56 billion) using the internet.
• Mobile Dominance: 5.78 billion unique mobile subscribers (70.5% of the population), driving 96.3% of internet access.
• Social Media Surge: 5.24 billion social media identities (63.9% of the population), though platforms note these may include non-human accounts.
• Daily Screen Time: Users spend 6 hours 38 minutes online daily, with mobile devices accounting for 63% of web traffic.

Key Themes and Insights

Mobile Connectivity Dominance

• High Penetration: The report highlights the prevalence of cellular mobile connections, with many countries showing a penetration rate exceeding 100% of their population.
• Mobile-First Access: Mobile phones are the primary device for internet access in most countries. In many cases over 90% of internet users access via mobile. “98.4% MALAYSIA” is a prime example of this trend.
• Conversely, many countries are seeing relatively lower usage of computers to access the internet. In many cases, less than 80% of internet users access the internet by computer, compared to well over 90% for mobile.
• Varied Growth: While mobile connectivity is widespread, the rate of adoption varies considerably across nations. The report shows that while many countries are over 100%, the lower end of the data points show countries closer to 10% penetration.

E-commerce Growth and Digital Payments

• Online Purchases: Online purchases are becoming increasingly commonplace, with many countries showing high percentages of internet users making purchases online weekly. “62.5% CHINA” highlights this growth in digital markets.
• E-commerce ARPU: The Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) in consumer goods e-commerce shows considerable variation across nations. Developed economies generally demonstrate the highest ARPU, suggesting greater online spending power. For example, Austria has the highest ARPU at $2,600, compared to Poland at $1,597.

Social Media and Digital Media Consumption

• Social Media Penetration: The report details a large amount of social media usage in many countries. Some countries (e.g. Mexico, Peru, South Korea) show social media usage rates exceeding 90% of their population.
• Podcast Consumption: Daily time spent listening to podcasts also indicates a variation across countries. Saudi Arabia shows the most time per day spent on podcasts at 1 hour 12 minutes, while Japan only spends 10 minutes.
• Varied Platform Use: The report also offers specific usage information for specific social media platforms, for example Facebook and TikTok, indicating a wide array of platform usage across the world. For example, Sweden has the highest percentage of social media referrals coming from Facebook at 82.99%. However, on the other end, Japan sees only 15.3% of their social media referrals coming from Facebook, and China seeing 0.04% of their social media referrals coming from messenger.
• TV Viewing: The report shows that TV usage is still high in many countries, with India seeing the highest share of daily time spent viewing at 50.4%.

Mobile App Usage & Preferences

• Specific App Trends: The report offers information on specific apps. For example, American Samoa has a massive 510.8% year on year change for the X (formally Twitter) application.
• Data Driven Trends: The report uses data from other companies (e.g. Data.AI) to highlight how people are accessing mobile apps. For example, the report highlights that users in South Korea use Telegram only 17.2 times a month on average, compared to Indonesia, where it is used over 140 times.

Brand Engagement and Research

• Online Research: A large portion of users are using the internet to research brands online. Turkey shows the highest percentage at 63.9%.
• Brand Website Visits: Many internet users visit brand websites, indicating a shift from traditional to digital avenues for brand interaction. For example, Turkey has 60.7% of its internet users visiting a website, compared to China, where less than 30% of internet users visit a brand website each month.

Key Trends for Marketers

1. AI and Search Evolution
   While AI tools like ChatGPT grow, traditional search engines remain vital—especially among younger audiences. However, users increasingly blend search engines with social media for inspiration and brand research.
2. Social Media’s Expanding Role
   97% of connected adults visit social platforms monthly, but behaviors vary by region. TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube dominate video content, which now makes up 75% of cellular data traffic.
3. The Rise of “Low-Stakes Social”
   Audiences crave lighter, joyful content as a refuge from digital overwhelm. Brands that embrace humor and authenticity will resonate more.
4. E-Commerce Everywhere
   Online shopping isn’t just for consumer goods—travel bookings (flights, hotels) and groceries are booming. Over 60% of internet users research purchases on social platforms.
5. Podcasts Outpace Radio
   For the first time, podcasts surpass radio in popularity, offering marketers a prime channel to engage high-intent audiences.

Let the data guide you, but never lose sight of the human behind the screen.

Simon Kemp, Chief Analyst at DataReportal,

Challenges to Watch

• Social Media Management Hurdles: 53% of marketers cite limited team bandwidth as their top challenge, followed by video production gaps (46%) and fragmented regional strategies.
• Connectivity Gaps: While 94.6% of mobile connections are broadband (3G+), affordability remains a barrier in regions like Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.
• Content Saturation: Users spend 2 hours 21 minutes daily on social media, but attention is fragmented. Short-form video and interactive content win.

Regional Insights

• Fastest Internet Speeds: UAE (441 Mbps mobile), Singapore (324 Mbps fixed), and Bulgaria (172 Mbps mobile) lead.
• Unconnected Populations: India (652 million offline), Nigeria (128 million), and Ethiopia (105 million) face hurdles like affordability and literacy.
• GDP and Digital Access: Luxembourg ($151,146 GDP per capita) contrasts sharply with South Sudan ($763), highlighting disparities in digital investment.

Actionable Takeaways

• Prioritize Mobile-First: Optimize for smartphones, which drive 83.7% of mobile connections.

• Leverage Video: Invest in streaming and short-form video. Users spend 3 hours 46 minutes daily on internet video.

• Target Emerging Markets: Africa and South Asia offer growth potential but require localized strategies to address connectivity and affordability.

• Embrace AI, But Stay Human: Balance AI tools with authentic, low-pressure social content to build trust.

Final Thought

The digital world in 2025 is more connected, and complex, than ever. For marketers, success hinges on agility, data-driven creativity, and a deep understanding of regional nuances.

The “Digital 2025 Global Overview Report” provides valuable data and insights on global digital trends. The report emphasizes the dominance of mobile connectivity, significant regional variations in internet access and device usage, the widespread adoption of Android, Google’s lead in search, the growth of e-commerce, and the diverse social media and digital media consumption habits of users around the world. These insights are crucial for businesses and organizations looking to develop effective digital strategies in the coming years.

For more country-specific insights and deeper dives into streaming, gaming, and emerging tech trends, check the report embedded below. And don’t miss our special MENA region spotlight on the key trends and opportunities in the “Digital 2025 Global Overview Report”