About nine in 10 Nigerians who used smartphones in 2025 were on Android-powered devices, highlighting the operating system’s dominance of the country’s rapidly expanding smartphone market.
A new study by KPMG and Orange Group found that Android accounted for 88 per cent of smartphone use in Nigeria in 2025, while Apple’s iOS accounted for the remaining 12 per cent.
The findings are contained in the September 2026 report titled Nigeria Smartphone Study: A Nationwide Analysis of Smartphone Ownership and Digital Application Usage, based on responses from more than 13,000 active phone users.
The study covered 12 Nigerian cities, including Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, Ibadan and Kano.
It also found that smartphone penetration in Nigeria increased to 75 per cent in 2025, up from 64 per cent in 2023.
Over the same period, the share of Nigerians using feature phones fell from 36 per cent to 28 per cent, indicating a continued shift towards internet-enabled mobile devices.
The growing use of smartphones is also reshaping how Nigerians access digital services, including financial services, social media, messaging platforms and work-related tools.
Industry data from the Nigerian Communications Commission showed that as of July 2026, about 157 million Nigerians had access to the internet out of 195 million telecom subscribers.
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MTN Nigeria accounted for the largest number of internet users among the major operators, with about 84 million users, followed by Airtel with nearly 59 million.
Globacom had about 15.6 million internet users, while T2mobile recorded 810,010, according to the data.
The KPMG-Orange Group study also reflects the changing role of mobile phones in Nigeria, where increasing smartphone ownership is expanding access to digital applications and online services.
Android’s 88 per cent share gives it a substantial lead over Apple’s iOS, which accounted for 12 per cent of smartphone users surveyed.
The figures also come as Nigeria’s mobile ecosystem continues to shift from basic handsets towards smartphones capable of supporting digital payments, online work, streaming, e-commerce and other internet-based services.
About the Author
Cecilia Attah is a tech analyst with a degree from Benue State University. She covers tech news and startups at TechRegard with a focus on how technology is transforming Africa and shaping the global landscape.
