Jio Crushes Competition: Adds 10x More Mobile Users Than Airtel in September
Reliance Jio dominates India's telecom sector in September, adding nearly 10 times more mobile users than Airtel, according to brokerage reports.
Reliance Jio has further cemented its dominance in the Indian telecom landscape, recording a massive surge in Jio mobile subscriber additions during September. According to recent research reports from IIFL Capital and DAM Capital, Jio added nearly ten times as many mobile subscribers as its closest rival, Bharti Airtel, during the month.
The Battle for Mobile Dominance
The data, derived from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) September 2026 subscription figures, reveals a stark contrast between the industry leaders. Excluding machine-to-machine (M2M) connections—which refer to automated device connections rather than human-operated smartphones—Jio added approximately 19 lakh mobile subscribers.
In comparison, Bharti Airtel's growth appeared sluggish, with only about 2 lakh additions. IIFL Capital pointed out that Airtel's net adds were the lowest seen in recent months, signaling a noticeable slowdown for the operator.
While Jio and Airtel grew, Vodafone Idea continued to struggle, losing around 3 lakh subscribers during the same period. Meanwhile, BSNL and other smaller operators combined for an addition of roughly 5 lakh subscribers.
Core Active User Growth
The gap between the players is even more pronounced when looking at the core active mobile subscriber base. DAM Capital's calculations on Visitor Location Register (VLR) subscribers (excluding M2M) show that Jio added 13 lakh active users. Conversely, both Airtel and Vodafone Idea saw declines in their active bases, dropping by approximately 2 lakh and 3 lakh subscribers, respectively.
However, IIFL Capital cautioned that because reported VLR figures often include M2M connections, determining the exact number of underlying active human subscribers can be challenging.
Broadband War: Jio Leads the Home Front
Jio's winning streak isn't limited to mobile phones; the company is also dominating the home broadband sector. In September, Jio added roughly 4.2 lakh fixed broadband connections, dwarfing Airtel's 1.6 lakh additions.
The breakdown of Jio's broadband growth includes:
- UBR FWA: 0.22 million
- FTTH: 0.11 million
- 5G FWA: 0.09 million
This aggressive expansion has pushed Jio's total home broadband subscriber base to approximately 3 crore, nearly double that of Airtel, which stands at 1.56 crore. Jio's grip on the Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) market is particularly strong, controlling about 79 per cent of the segment with 1.51 crore connections.
Industry Trends: A Slight Cooling Off
Despite Jio's lead, the overall pace of broadband adoption saw a slight dip across the industry compared to August. Jio's monthly additions fell from 5 lakh in August to 4.2 lakh in September, while Airtel's dropped from 2.6 lakh to 1.6 lakh.
Overall, India's total wireless subscriber base (excluding M2M) grew by 22 lakh month-on-month, reaching a staggering 115.5 crore in September, with Reliance Jio capturing the lion's share of this growth.