Network18 ranked second with 214 million unique visitors, followed by Zee Digital that finished third with 157 million. HT Media and Dailyhunt rounded out the top five, with 125 million and 124 million visitors, respectively.
Satyan Gajwani, vice chairman of Times Internet, said, “Times Internet’s continued and dominant leadership position is a result of our deep understanding of audience preferences, our portfolio of super brands and our best-in-class tech stack. We are delighted with the continued patronage of most of India’s internet population.”
The survey also provided a snapshot of India’s digital news readership – 63% of consumers were male, while 37% were female.
10.6 billion Hours Spent on News Sites
The majority, 64%, was in the age bracket of 15-34, with those aged 35 and above comprising the remainder.
The study is based on Comscore MMX, a measuring solution that offers a single, deduplicated view of audience activity across desktop and mobile platforms.
According to researchers, Indian users spent a staggering 10.6 billion hours on news websites and apps in 2024.
India also maintained its position as the world’s largest digital market, with 524 million unique visitors as of December 2024, beating the US as well as Indonesia.
The report highlighted the country’s ongoing digital supremacy throughout the year.
Despite not experiencing any major increase in the number of internet users, India continues to see a shift in how people interact with online platforms.
Mobile remained the most popular form of access, with 500.6 million unique visitors consuming content via mobile apps and 400 million via mobile web. Apps accounted for the majority of user engagement, with the average person spending 72.1 hours per month on mobile apps compared with only 4.9 hours on mobile web.
Younger audiences, notably those aged 15 to 24, demonstrated the highest levels of digital consumption on both mobile and desktop platforms. In 2024, Indian users spent a total of 452 billion hours online, with online video, social networking, and entertainment apps accounting for the majority of that activity.
One of the most significant changes in 2024 was the rapid increase in Connected TV (CTV) usage in India. According to the survey, India’s CTV audience increased by 21% to 96 million, making it one of the fastest-growing markets in this area. YouTube usage on CTV alone increased by 40%, indicating a strong preference for larger screens over mobile and laptop watching.
Social media engagement also saw unprecedented growth, with Instagram Reels emerging as the most popular content format, with a 60% increase in user interactions.
Instagram and Facebook remained the two major social networks, with 332 million and 325 million users, respectively. The time spent on Instagram stood at 10.4 hours, with Facebook commanding 6.3 hours of time spent. X came third in terms of user base and engagement, with 122 million users and 0.5 hours of time spent.
WhatsApp remained India’s most widely used messaging app, with 430 million unique visitors, while platforms such as Telegram and Reddit gained traction, registering notable audience growth. Spotify remained the audio streaming leader with a cumulative time spent of 347 million hours in December 2024 compared to 237 million hours a year earlier.
Entertainment continued to be a dominant force in India’s digital landscape, with YouTube attracting 411 million users, followed by MX Player (99 million), Spotify (91 million), and JioCinema (72 million). The release of ‘Pushpa 2’ generated 3.7 million total actions on social media, underscoring the power of digital promotions and influencer-led campaigns.
