Mobile internet traffic almost doubled in the last eight years, and today, more than 60% of all website traffic comes from people using mobile devices. But, as the global mobile data coverage gap continues to narrow, the price gap remains wide.
According to data presented by Casinos En Ligne, Israel and Italy have the cheapest mobile internet in the world, while Japan, the United States, and Switzerland are among the most expensive countries globally.
US Mobile Data Cost 46x Higher than in Italy, Japan is 9x more Expensive than China
Many of the cheapest countries have excellent mobile and fixed broadband infrastructure, which allows providers to offer large amounts of data at reasonable prices. In some countries, economic outlooks also dictate the price, which has to remain low so people can afford it.
According to data from the UK-based price comparison website cable.co.uk, which analyzed almost 5,300 mobile data plans across 233 countries, Israel has by far the cheapest mobile internet, with one gigabyte of data costing an average of $0.04 in 2022.
Italy placed second in the global ranking, with a low cost of $0.12 per 1GB. India, France, China, and Spain follow, with $0.17, $0.23, $0.41, and $0.60, respectively. Although six times more expensive than Italy and almost 20 times more than Israel, the United Kingdom ranked somewhere in the middle of this chart with a cost of $0.79 per 1GB.
On the other hand, Japan, the United States, and Switzerland have some of the costliest plans among developed countries. For instance, 1GB of mobile data in the US costs an average of $5.62, which is seven times more than in the United Kingdom, 13 times more than in China, and 46 times more expensive than the average cost in Italy.
The price difference in Switzerland is even worse, with the average cost of mobile data being 61 times larger than in Italy and nine times the UK average cost.
Japanese mobile data plans are also much more expensive than in other countries. Last year, 1GB of mobile data in the country cost an average of $3.85, nine times the price the Chinese paid and 16 times the average cost in France.
North America the Most Expensive Region, with a 60% Higher Cost than Global Average
Regionally, North America is the most expensive overall, with an average cost of $4.98 per GB, way above the global average of $3.12. Statistics show Canada is the most expensive country in the region, with a cost of $5.94, followed by the United States.
The average cost of mobile internet in Western Europe was far below these figures. Last year, Europeans paid an average of $2.72 per 1G of mobile data, or 45% less than in North America and 12% less than the global average.
That is still way more expensive than the price seen in Asia, which had an average cost of only $1.47 in 2022.
