There has been a steady rise in internet use in recent years as internet usage at individual level rose from 44.5% in 2023 to 48.9% this year.
At the household level, however, technology access appears broader, said the recent ICT Access and Use Survey 2025-26 (1st quarter, July-September) report conducted by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS).
The survey shows that 98.9% of households have at least one mobile phone, and 72.4% now own a smartphone.
Television is available in 58.9% of households, radio use has fallen to 15.1%, and only 9.1% of homes own a computer. Electricity coverage is almost universal, reaching 98.9% of households.
There has been urban-rural divide as smart phone ownership is far higher in towns and cities, where 80.8 percent of households have at least one device, compared with 68.8% in rural areas.
The BBS survey covered around 61,632 households across the country aiming to inform national ICT policy as well as international platforms, including the International Telecommunication Union and the SDG Tracker.
According to the findings, online services increasingly shape access to education, healthcare, finance and government support.
By the end of September this year, 48.9% of people aged five and above were direct internet users.
At the household level, just over half of homes -- about 56.2% -- had at least one internet user in the July-September period, according to the report.
At the individual level, the survey found that 80.6% of people use mobile phones, while 56.5% own their own handsets.
Usage among men and women is almost equal, 80.9% for men and 78.8% for women. But, handset ownership and internet access show a gender gap.
About 63.2% of men own a mobile phone compared with 52.8% of women. Internet use follows a similar pattern, with 51.2% of men online compared with 46.3% of women.
