India’s digital-only audience has surged to 313 million users, growing 30% from its baseline of 20% in 2024.
It now accounts for 26% of the country’s 15+ population, according to the Kantar Media Compass Report, Q3 2025. The report, a quarterly estimator built on a rolling sample of 87,000 consumers, provides reach and frequency metrics, cross-media interactions, and category-linked behaviours to help brands make media decisions.
Kantar said that 75% of digital-only users reside in rural India, indicating how digital is rapidly bridging the reach gap in historically media dark geographies and cohorts of the country.
It also noted that while linear TV viewership has seen a marginal dip from 705 million in Q1 2025 to 689 million in Q3 2025, the number of viewers who are watching content on both linear TV and connected TV (CTV) has surged to 116 million in Q3 2025 – a growth of 17% over Q1'2025. Interestingly, 49% of the incremental CTV viewers came from rural India.
“The sharp rise of digital-only audiences, now 313 million Indians signals a decisive shift in how content is being consumed across the country. With strong growth coming from rural and younger segments, brands must rethink how they build reach and relevance,” said Puneet Avasthi, director, specialist businesses, Kantar South Asia.
It is essential for brands to build flexible plans that seamlessly balance linear and digital investments in line with campaign objectives and target audiences.
Another interesting insight was the shift at the top of the purchase funnel. According to Kantar’s findings, 43% of Indians browse online shopping platforms for discovery, research, and deal-hunting. Thus, retail media networks are increasingly shaping preferences at the top of the purchase funnel.
It is now important for brands to treat retail platforms as vital upper-funnel environments for storytelling and influence. Strong retail media strategies and always-on, optimised content can shape consumer choices and capture demand much earlier in the journey.
