Digital 2023: China
This page contains all the latest data, insights, and trends you need to help you understand how people in China use digital devices and services in 2023.
If you want to check whether this is our most up-to-date report on China, or if you’re looking for data on digital trends and behaviours in China for previous years, you can find our full collection of reports on China by clicking here.
You’ll also find the complete Digital 2023 report on China in the “full report” section below, but let’s start by taking a look at the key numbers for China this year.
The state of digital in China in 2023
Here are the essential headlines for digital adoption and use in China in early 2023:
There were 1.05 billion internet users in China at the start of 2023, when internet penetration stood at 73.7 percent.
China was home to 1.03 billion social media users in January 2023, equating to 72.0 percent of the total population.
A total of 1.69 billion cellular mobile connections were active in China in early 2023, with this figure equivalent to 118.6 percent of the total population.
These headline stats offer a great overview of the “state of digital” in China, but in order to make sense of how digital trends and behaviours are evolving, we need to dig deeper into the data.
Let’s take a closer look at what the latest numbers tell us, starting with some valuable context relating to China’s population.
China’s population in 2023
China’s total population was 1.43 billion in January 2023.
Data shows that China’s population decreased by 76 thousand (-0.005 percent) between 2022 and 2023.
49.0 percent of China’s population is female, while 51.0 percent of the population is male.
At the start of 2023, 63.9 percent of China’s population lived in urban centres, while 36.1 percent lived in rural areas.
Note: gender data are currently only available for “female” and “male”.
China’s population by age
The median age of China’s population is 38.8.
Here’s how China’s total population breaks down by age group:
4.5 percent is between the ages of 0 and 4.
10.1 percent is between the ages of 5 and 12.
5.9 percent is between the ages of 13 and 17.
7.8 percent is between the ages of 18 and 24.
14.2 percent is between the ages of 25 and 34.
14.7 percent is between the ages of 35 and 44.
15.7 percent is between the ages of 45 and 54.
13.0 percent is between the ages of 55 and 64.
14.0 percent is aged 65 and above.
Note: percentages may not sum to 100 percent due to rounding.
Internet use in China in 2023
There were 1.05 billion internet users in China in January 2023.
China’s internet penetration rate stood at 73.7 percent of the total population at the start of 2023.
Kepios analysis indicates that internet users in China increased by 19 million (+1.9 percent) between 2022 and 2023.
For perspective, these user figures reveal that 374.7 million people in China did not use the internet at the start of 2023, suggesting that 26.3 percent of the population remained offline at the beginning of the year.
However, complexities associated with the collection and analysis of internet user data mean that it can often take several months before research is ready for publication. As a result, the latest published figures for internet use invariably under-represent reality, and actual adoption and growth may be higher than the figures shown here suggest. Please see our comprehensive notes on data for further details.
Dig deeper: for the latest insights into internet adoption and use around the world, follow our regular Global Statshot reports.
Internet connection speeds in China in 2023
Data published by Ookla indicate that internet users in China could have expected the following internet connection speeds at the start of 2023:
Median mobile internet connection speed via cellular networks: 109.40 Mbps.
Median fixed internet connection speed: 214.58 Mbps.
Ookla’s data reveals that the median mobile internet connection speed in China increased by 12.31 Mbps (+12.7 percent) in the twelve months to the start of 2023.
Meanwhile, Ookla’s data shows that fixed internet connection speeds in China increased by 67.96 Mbps (+46.4 percent) during the same period.
Social media statistics for China in 2023
There were 1.03 billion social media users in China in January 2023.
This figure might seem quite different to the values that we published in previous years, but please note that the sources we use to inform and calculate our social media user numbers have made important and wide-ranging revisions to their data over recent months.
These adjustments to source data mean that our latest numbers are not comparable with equivalent figures that we published in previous years, and readers should not regard any differences in these numbers as an actual change in social media use.
Indeed, our analysis of various data points from trusted third parties such as GWI and data.ai shows that there has been no discernible drop in overall social media use, and in almost all countries, social media use continues to increase.
As a result, readers should view any such differences as “corrections” in the data, and not as an indication that social media adoption has declined.
The number of social media users in China at the start of 2023 was equivalent to 72.0 percent of the total population, but it’s also important to note that social media users may not represent unique individuals (see our detailed notes on data to learn why).
Meanwhile, data indicates that there were 875.1 million users aged 18 and above using social media in China at the start of 2023, which was equivalent to 77.2 percent of the total population aged 18 and above at that time.
More broadly, 97.7 percent of China’s total internet user base (regardless of age) used at least one social media platform in January 2023.
At that time, 48.8 percent of China’s social media users were female, while 51.2 percent were male.
Note: due to significant revisions in source data, we regret that we’re currently unable to provide reliable figures for the year-on-year change in social media users in China. We recommend that readers do not compare our latest figures for social media use with figures published in our previous reports, because such comparisons will deliver inaccurate results.
Mobile connections in China in 2023
Data from GSMA Intelligence shows that there were 1.69 billion cellular mobile connections in China at the start of 2023.
However, note that many people around the world make use of more than one mobile connection – for example, they might have one connection for personal use, and another one for work – so it’s not unusual for mobile connection figures to significantly exceed figures for total population.
GSMA Intelligence’s numbers indicate that mobile connections in China were equivalent to 118.6 percent of the total population in January 2023.
The number of mobile connections in China increased by 50 million (+3.0 percent) between 2022 and 2023.
Additional resources
Just before we get to the full report, here are some suggestions for further reading, which will provide additional context for our full set of Digital 2023 numbers for China:
Read our complete Digital 2023 Global Overview Report to get a comprehensive overview of the “state of digital” around the world in 2023.
Click here to see all of the Global Digital Reports we’ve published on China over the past decade.
Explore all of our reports on countries in Eastern Asia by clicking here.
Visit our complete online reports library to find all of the (free!) reports in the Global Digital Reports series.
If you’d like to receive updates when we publish new reports, click here to sign up for our newsletter.
Full report
You’ll find our complete Digital 2023: China report in the embed below (click here if you can’t see that, or if you can’t change the slides).