Vodafone Idea Limited (VIL), the third-largest telecom operator in India, has seen its average revenue per user (ARPU) jump from Rs 180 in the previous quarter to Rs 186 in Q3 FY26. This is a decent jump but compared to a year before, it doesn't seem as good. The customer ARPU (excluding M2M connections) for Vi was Rs 186, which is by far the lowest in the Indian telecom sector when private telcos are concerned. Airtel has already crossed the Rs 250 mark and reported an ARPU of Rs 256 in Q2 FY26, and we expect it to cross Rs 260 in Q3 FY26. Jio reported its ARPU at Rs 213.7, despite having more affordable plans than Vodafone Idea in its portfolio.
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Vodafone Idea Net Loss Stays Consistent
Vodafone Idea Limited has reported a net loss of Rs 5,286 crore in Q3 FY26. In the Q2 FY26, this was a loss of Rs 5,524 crore. Compared to last year, this is narrower (the loss of Rs 6,609 crore was reported last year). The telco's losing customers, but its 4G and 5G customer base saw a slight improvement.
Vi said that its 4G/5G subscriber base stood at 128.5 million in Q3 FY26 vs 126 million in Q3 FY25. Along with this, the average data consumption per user stood at 19.2GB/day, which is unusually high. This is for 4G/5G subscribers only. The 4G coverage was expanded by 100 million more customers and now 85.5% of the country's population is covered with Vi's 4G. The 4G data capacity has also increased by 43% and speeds have increased by 22% vs March 2024.
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What was major in the quarter was the Rs 3,300 crore which were raised through NCDs (non-convertible debentures) through a subsidiary for utilising towards capex (capital expenditure). The government also gave Vi great relief in the adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues payments. This was a net positive for the telco.
