In March 2016, there were almost 3.3 billion people worldwide who had access to the Internet at home (i., Internet users).

In March 2016, there were almost 3.3 billion people worldwide who had access to the Internet at home (i.e., Internet users). Since its inception, the number of users has seen tremendous growth, from only around 14 million users in 1993 to 1 billion users in 2005, 2 billion users in 2010, and 3 billion users in 2014. Having grown exponentially in the early years, the growth in user numbers has slowed to less than 10 percent per year, as worldwide Internet penetration has surpassed 35 percent. In 2016, almost 10 percent of the world's Internet users were located in the United States, with an Internet penetration of 84 percent. However, other countries are catching up. In 2013, China, with an Internet penetration of 46 percent (and much room to grow), accounted for over 23 percent of worldwide Internet users; similarly, only 16 percent of India's population had access to the Internet, accounting for 7 percent of worldwide Internet users.