Mobile finally overtakes desktop for web usage

Web traffic generated by mobile devices has finally overtaken desktops, according to numbers released by StatCounter.

It was an inevitability, really – traffic generated by desktop has been on a downward curve for the last seven years, with mobile moving in the opposite direction, as you can see in the accompanying graphic. From last month, mobile now accounts for 51.3% of all web usage, with desktops making up the remaining 48.7%, apparently.

That stat does seem slightly skewed, as the numbers doesn’t specify the nature of the device. Today’s connectivity is not a binary matter, it’s not a case of mobile traffic or desktop traffic, especially in this era of booming IoT connectivity. Presumably traffic being included under the “mobile” tag now include domestic products like smart TVs, boilers, IoT hubs and smart home devices.

Weirdly, the CEO of StatCounter made this an opportunity to remind everyone that Brexit happened.

“Post-Brexit, UK businesses should be aware, as they look to increase trade outside the EU, that India for example has over 75% internet usage through mobile devices,” said Aodhan Cullen.

It’s a valid point, but a pretty tangential line of discussion.

Here’s a graph that proves mobile has definitely overtaken desktop – look, it’s here in blue and orange if you didn’t believe us.