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Andrew Bonwick
Vice President of Product Development at Relm Insurance
Madhav Sheth
CEO of Ai+ Smartphone
Stephen Rose
CEO Render Networks
India’s telecom sector has witnessed a striking shift. For the first time in recent quarters, prepaid subscribers have overtaken postpaid users in terms of average revenue per user (ARPU), according to the latest Performance Indicators Report released by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) for April June 2025.
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Prepaid ARPU reached Rs 187 in the June quarter, surpassing postpaid ARPU of Rs 182.72. The development is significant in a country where prepaid accounts for more than 90 per cent of total mobile connections. At the same time, wireless data consumption in India hit a new milestone, with the average user consuming 24.01 GB of data per month, underscoring India’s status as the world’s largest data market.
Prepaid’s Rise Over Postpaid
For decades, postpaid customers were seen as the premium segment, offering operators steady revenue and relatively low churn. In contrast, prepaid subscribers were considered cost-sensitive, often relying on small recharges. That perception is now changing.
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Over the past two years, telecom operators have revamped their prepaid offerings. Long-validity plans, bundled content through OTT tie-ups, and attractive data packs have encouraged prepaid customers to spend more per recharge. As digital services from payments to streaming become mainstream, prepaid users are demonstrating a willingness to pay for value-added connectivity.
