The numbers are in, the verdict is clear, and it cuts both ways: Nigeria's 50% telecom tariff adjustment of January 2025 has delivered a financial windfall for MTN and Airtel and a heavier monthly bill for every Nigerian with a SIM card.
MTN Nigeria's monthly Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) rose to $3.60 in 2025 from $2.17 in 2024, equivalent to ₦5,184.01 per subscriber per month, up from ₦3,542. This means the average MTN customer is now spending roughly ₦5,184 every month on calls, data, and digital services, a 46.4% jump in naira terms year-on-year. The company's full-year revenue reached ₦5.2 trillion, a 55.1% increase from ₦3.3 trillion in 2024.
For Airtel Nigeria, monthly ARPU climbed to $2.4 in its full financial year ended March 31, 2026, from $1.7 in 2024 or ₦3,326.40 per customer per month, up from ₦2,599.30. Despite the increase, an average Airtel subscriber still spends significantly less monthly than their MTN counterpart.
The gap between the two operators is narrowing, however. Airtel Nigeria's ARPU grew 41.18% for the financial year ended March 2026, pushing Nigeria to become Airtel Africa's second-largest market by revenue per subscriber, trailing only its Francophone Africa operations. MTN Nigeria's ARPU rose nearly 66% in 2025 to $3.60, confirming a broader industry turnaround after two years of crushing currency pressure.
The data shift is equally dramatic. Average monthly data consumption per MTN subscriber climbed to 13.1GB, while smartphone penetration on the network reached 66.1%. Airtel Nigeria customers consumed 10.7GB per month, with smartphone penetration at 54.1%.
The operators' financial recovery is indisputable, but so is the consumer cost. One year after the tariff hike, millions of Nigerian subscribers are still paying more for unreliable services. The NCC recorded over 40,000 disruptions in 2025 alone, including 19,384 fibre cuts, 3,241 cases of equipment theft, and over 19,000 denials of access to telecom sites resulting in prolonged outages, significant revenue losses, and delays in restoring services for millions of users.
The structural paradox behind the numbers is uncomfortable. Even after the 50% hike, MTN Nigeria's ARPU of $3.60 ranks 12th among all MTN markets globally. Ghana generates $5.60 ARPU, making it MTN's most profitable market by that measure and a reminder that Nigeria, despite its 220 million subscribers, remains among the least profitable per-user markets on the continent.
NCC Executive Vice Chairman Aminu Maida has put operators on notice, signalling that 2026 will be "the year of consequences" on quality of service, making plain that the regulatory patience that enabled the tariff recovery will not extend indefinitely to operators who fail to deliver visible improvement. Subscribers are paying more. They are waiting for proof that it was worth it.
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