- Internet Day is celebrated on 23 August, commemorating the day in 1991 when the public was able to access the first website in history without restrictions.
- In 2025, there are more than 5.5 billion Internet users worldwide.
- Each Internet user spends 6 hours and 38 minutes a day online.
Every 23 August, Internet User Day is celebrated because, on that date in 1991, a milestone in the history of the Internet was reached with the first public connection to the World Wide Web.
Coincidentally, this anniversary also coincides with Hashtag Day, a day that has been celebrated since 2018 to commemorate the fact that on that day in 2007, this tag was used on Twitter for the first time.
Origin of Internet User Day
But returning to Internet User Day, it should be noted that the first website was launched a few days earlier, on 6 August, although access was limited to members of CERN, the European Organisation for Nuclear Research.
On 23 August, it was opened to people outside the organisation and anyone with an Internet connection could visit the first website in history, a digital space that is still available to visit today: https://info.cern.ch/.
Internet users in 2025
Since the birth of the Internet a few decades ago, the number of users of the network of networks has multiplied exponentially.
According to data from the Digital 2025 study, there are currently 5.56 billion users, an increase of 136 million compared to the previous year’s report, representing a 2.5% increase.
In terms of the world’s population, this represents 67.9% of the total number of inhabitants on the planet. If we break down these figures by gender, we find that there is a gap, as 65.7% of the total are women, compared to 70% of men.
Another type of digital divide is that between rural and urban areas, which is also evident in this study: while 47.4% of people living in rural areas use the Internet (2.8% more than in the last study), the percentage rises to 82.5% in cities (an increase of 3.6% in the last year).
Internet usage time per user in 2025 and devices
If we look at Internet usage time per user in 2025, we see a slight decrease of 2 minutes per day: from 2 hours and 40 minutes to 2 hours and 38 minutes.
Apart from connection time, another striking figure is the difference by type of device: 96.3% of users connect to the Internet via their smartphones, compared to 61.5% who do so from computers.
Reasons for using the Internet in 2025
When it comes to motivations for connecting to the Internet, we find a wide variety.
The first, with 62.8%, is to find information, closely followed by 60.2% who do so to stay in touch with family and friends.
Slightly below, with 55%, is the reason for keeping up to date with news and events, followed closely by 54.7% who consume audiovisual content such as videos, series or films.
Also above 50%, specifically 51.1%, is the number of people who connect to the Internet to research how to do certain things.
Below 50%, with 46.9% and 46.7% respectively, we find that Internet users connect to the Internet to find new ideas or inspiration and to listen to music.
Forty-five point two per cent of Internet users go online simply to fill their free time and browse, the same percentage as those who research brands and products.
Evolution of the number of Internet users since 1990
There has been a huge evolution to reach the current figure of 5.56 billion Internet users.
From 2.61 million users in 1990, the number rose to 39.2 million in 1995, a figure that would increase tenfold in the following five years to reach 396 million in 2000.
By 2005, the total number of Internet users had increased by two and a half times, to approximately 1 billion, a figure that would almost double in 2010 to 1.91 billion.
Although with less pronounced percentage growth given the high volume of users, the figure would reach 2.95 billion Internet users in 2015, a figure that just half a decade ago, in 2020, would reach 4.52 billion.
