Here’s how much mobile data you use each month

Although plenty of us probably use our smartphones connected to the home or office Wi-Fi network, mobile data remains an essential resource. Whether you keep a few megabytes on hand for emergencies or rely on plenty more to service your data needs, you likely use mobile data at some point or another during the month.

In a recent poll, we asked our readers how much mobile data they consume per month. The results are now in, and there’s one clear winner.

How much mobile data do you use per month?

Results

Published on September 13, this poll saw more than 2,800 responses. Interestingly, two of the five options stood out to our readers, but they’re at the opposite ends of the usage spectrum.

Around a third of our readers (33%) use more than 20GB of mobile data per month, making it the choice with the largest share of the vote. A further 14.8% of respondents use between 10.1GB and 20GB of data per month. In total, 63.7% of our readers use at least 5.1GB of mobile data monthly. It’s a surprising result, too, given the ubiquity of Wi-Fi networks and the recent work-from-home trend. That said, if you do absorb content on data-heavy platforms like YouTube and Instagram, that data evaporates pretty quickly.

However, not everyone uses their mobile data for their core internet needs. The second most popular option, gaining 25.3% of the vote, is the 1GB to 5GB category. A further 11% of respondents use less than 1GB of data per month, too.

Judging by reader comments, these figures often vary from month to month with travel habits. However, some respondents rely entirely on mobile data for their internet needs. Some readers claim to push over a TB per month in some cases. Read some more anecdotes below.

Your comments

• Brett: Depends, if I’m traveling across the country by car then I’ll use a ton of data on GPS. If it’s a normal month I’ll use probably about 10GB.
• AS: I have two unlimited data sim plans, one for the house and one for my phone. I have not used wired broadband for over five years. I average 500-700GB every month but have been known to exceed 1.5TB a couple of months. I pay £30 for the first SIM, and £25 for the second, Vodafone UK. I’ve also got a watch eSIM, and there’s one in my Polestar 2 but they only use a few GB a month each. I’m surprised others don’t use as much as I do.
• mattc: It depends whether I’m traveling, the last 2 months I haven’t, but usually I use nearly my whole 50GB allowance, sometimes more when tethered with my laptop.
• roaduardo: The pandemic isn’t over and many are still sticking close to home or working from home. Like me. I use less than 1GB these days.
• Ahmed Rabeeh: My main internet source is mobile data. So, I use almost 120GB per month. Btw I am from India.
• thesecondsight: My mobile data usage has plummeted since the beginning of the pandemic last year. I’ve been working from home so most of my time is spent on Wi-Fi.
• Elven: I am using around 250+ GB of mobile data every month.

That’s it for this poll. Thanks for your votes and comments. If you have any additional comments about your mobile data usage or the poll results, be sure to drop them below.