Internet use
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- 1. Navigate to Main facts and figures section
- 2. Navigate toInternet use by ethnicity section
- 3. Navigate toInternet use by ethnicity and area section
- 4. Navigate toInternet use by ethnicity and age section
- 5. Navigate to Methodology section
- 6. Navigate to Data sources section
- 7. Navigate to Download the data section
1. Main facts and figures
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overall, the White group had the lowest percentage of recent internet users (88%) and the Other/Mixed/Multiple group the highest (95%)
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for the regions, countries and ethnic groups for which we have reliable findings, no important differences in internet use were found, either between regions or between ethnic groups
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among adults across all age groups between 16 and 54, there were broadly similar percentages of internet use in all ethnic groups (all were over 90%), with some differences emerging between ethnic groups for adults aged 55 and over
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internet use is related to the age profile of different ethnic groups (for example, there are more older people in the White group than in other ethnic groups, and for this reason a smaller percentage of this group are recent internet users)
Things you need to know
Results have been excluded (‘suppressed’) for ethnic groups, age groups, regions and countries for which sample sizes were too small to generate meaningful results.
For example, there were only 20 respondents aged 75 or older in the Other/Mixed/Multiple group, too small a sample to produce a reliable estimate. The results for this age group were therefore excluded.
Even where results are given, the estimates of internet use for ethnic groups by region and by age are based on smaller sample sizes than the estimates for the UK population as a whole. For this reason, they are less reliable, and should be treated with caution.
The Office for National Statistics publishes the annual ‘Internet access – households and individuals’, which provides more information than the Labour Force Survey on the range of activities carried out on the internet. However, its estimates are less reliable because they are derived from the Opinion and Lifestyle Survey, which has a much smaller size than the Labour Force Survey. For this reason, you should avoid making comparisons between the two.
What the data measures
This data measures the percentage of adults (aged 16 or older) in the UK who are recent internet users.
Respondents are categorised as ‘recent’ if they have used the internet in the last 3 months.
The data comes from the Labour Force Survey (LFS), part of which asks UK adults about their internet use.
The ethnic categories used in this data
Although more detailed data exists for internet use analysed by ethnicity, results are variable and are not broken down further by age or region. Therefore, the data is categorised into the following 4 broad groups:
- Asian
- Black/African/Caribbean/Black British
- White (including White ethnic minorities)
- Other/Mixed/Multiple
2. Internet use by ethnicity
| Ethnicity | % | No. of people (thousands) |
|---|---|---|
| All | 89 | 46,714 |
| Asian | 91 | 3,006 |
| Black | 92 | 1,394 |
| White | 88 | 40,885 |
| Other including Mixed | 95 | 1,429 |
Download table data for ‘Internet use by ethnicity’ (CSV) Source data for ‘Internet use by ethnicity’ (CSV)
Summary of Internet use Internet use by ethnicity Summary
This data shows that:
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95% of people in the Other/Mixed/Multiple ethnic group were recent internet users, the highest percentage of any ethnic group
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88% of people in the White ethnic group were recent internet users, the lowest percentage of any ethnic group
3. Internet use by ethnicity and area
| All | Asian | Black | Other including Mixed | White | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Geography | All % | All No. of people (thousands) | Asian % | Asian No. of people (thousands) | Black % | Black No. of people (thousands) | Other inc. Mixed % | Other inc. Mixed No. of people (thousands) | White % | White No. of people (thousands) |
| UK | 89 | 46,714 | 91 | 3,006 | 92 | 1,394 | 95 | 1,429 | 88 | 40,885 |
| North East | 85 | 1,817 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | 85 | 1,752 |
| North West | 88 | 5,071 | 90 | 269 | 88 | 96 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | 88 | 4,589 |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | 87 | 3,765 | 88 | 224 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | 86 | 3,395 |
| East Midlands | 88 | 3,326 | 88 | 188 | 91 | 68 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | 88 | 3,003 |
| West Midlands | 86 | 3,974 | 87 | 409 | 89 | 140 | 92 | 128 | 86 | 3,298 |
| East of England | 90 | 4,427 | 95 | 192 | 96 | 96 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | 90 | 4,037 |
| London | 93 | 6,497 | 92 | 1,186 | 93 | 744 | 94 | 598 | 93 | 3,969 |
| South East | 92 | 6,593 | 95 | 278 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | 91 | 6,056 |
| South West | 89 | 3,986 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | 70 | 29 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | 89 | 3,817 |
| Wales | 87 | 2,188 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | 87 | 2,100 |
| Scotland | 88 | 3,845 | 93 | 97 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | 87 | 3,668 |
| Northern Ireland | 84 | 1,223 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | 84 | 1,201 |
Download table data for ‘Internet use by ethnicity and area’ (CSV) Source data for ‘Internet use by ethnicity and area’ (CSV)
Summary of Internet use Internet use by ethnicity and area Summary
This data shows that:
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in the UK as a whole, recent internet users made up between 88% and 95% of every ethnic group
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within London and within the West Midlands, areas for which we have reliable results for all ethnic groups, recent internet use was broadly similar for all ethnicities
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for some ethnic groups, regions and countries (particularly Northern Ireland, Wales and the North East) sample sizes are too small to draw reliable conclusions about internet use
4. Internet use by ethnicity and age
| All | Asian | Black | White | Other including Mixed | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age group | All % | All No. of people (thousands) | Asian % | Asian No. of people (thousands) | Black % | Black No. of people (thousands) | White % | White No. of people (thousands) | Other inc. Mixed % | Other inc. Mixed No. of people (thousands) |
| 16-24 | 99 | 7,033 | 99 | 604 | 99 | 291 | 99 | 5,792 | 99 | 346 |
| 25-34 | 99 | 8,809 | 99 | 799 | 97 | 275 | 99 | 7,324 | 98 | 412 |
| 35-44 | 98 | 8,110 | 97 | 762 | 98 | 312 | 99 | 6,711 | 99 | 325 |
| 45-54 | 96 | 8,800 | 93 | 490 | 97 | 315 | 96 | 7,802 | 95 | 194 |
| 55-64 | 90 | 6,882 | 73 | 229 | 88 | 150 | 91 | 6,400 | 89 | 102 |
| 65-74 | 78 | 5,028 | 62 | 95 | 56 | 28 | 78 | 4,869 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable |
| 75+ | 41 | 2,050 | 29 | 26 | 31 | 24 | 41 | 1,987 | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable | withheld because a small sample size makes it unreliable |
Download table data for ‘Internet use by ethnicity and age’ (CSV) Source data for ‘Internet use by ethnicity and age’ (CSV)
Summary of Internet use Internet use by ethnicity and age Summary
This data shows that:
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overall, and within every ethnic group, 99% of adults aged 16 to 24 years were recent internet users, and among adults across all age groups between 16 and 54, the percentage was over 90% for all ethnic groups
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although, overall, White people were less likely than other ethnic groups to have recently used the internet, this was not the case for older people: among adults aged 65 to 74, the White ethnic group had a larger proportion of internet users than the Black and Asian ethnic groups
5. Methodology
The estimates are derived from the Labour Force Survey (LFS) from the period January to March 2017, and are not seasonally adjusted.
The sample used for this data is made up of approximately 40,000 UK households and 100,000 individuals per quarter. The sampling frame used is the Postcode Address File and NHS communal accommodation.
The Labour Force Survey uses calibration weighting. Weighting is used to adjust the results of a survey to make them representative of the population and improve their accuracy.
For example, a survey which contains 25% females and 75% males will not accurately reflect the views of the general population which we know is around 50% male and 50% female.
Statisticians rebalance or ‘weight’ the survey results to more accurately represent the general population. This helps to make them more reliable.
Survey weights are usually applied to make sure the survey sample has broadly the same gender, age, ethnic and geographic make up as the general population. The weights here are formed using a population weighting procedure which involves weighting data to sub-regional population estimates and then adjusting for the estimated age and sex composition by region.
Estimation to population totals and projections are based on the Office of National Statistics 2011 Census.
Suppression rules and disclosure control
Suppression rules have been applied to ensure data quality (robust estimates and reliability of the confidence intervals). For example, data was suppressed in groups with small sample sizes, because it is not possible to produce robust estimates with small sample sizes.
The reliability formula test was also applied to check the reliability of the data and confidence intervals.
As an example, in the 75+ age group in the Other/Mixed/Multiple group, the sample size was only 20, which is too small to produce a reliable estimate. The results for this age group were therefore suppressed. Statistical disclosure control methodology is applied to the Labour Force Survey (LFS) data. This ensures that information attributable to an individual is not disclosed in any publication, and that confidentiality of respondents is protected in data sets.
As an example, the results for the 65 to74 group in the Other/Mixed/Multiple ethnic group were suppressed (it had a fairly small sample of 72). This was done to ensure that the results for the 75+ group in the Other/Mixed/Multiple ethnic group could not be worked out by deduction.
The Code of Practice for Official Statistics, and specifically Principle 5, Confidentiality, sets out the principles for protecting data from being disclosed. The Statistics and registration Service Act 2007 includes data confidentiality regulations which apply to Office of National Statistics (ONS). More information about disclosure control on data tables and data sets is available on the ONS website
Rounding
We round numbers, and for this reason some figures may not add up.
Related publications
Internet users in the UK: 2017
Quality and methodology information
Further technical information
Further quality and methodology information, user guides and example questionnaires can be accessed on the ONS website
6. Data sources
Source
Internet users in the UK: 2017
Type of data
Survey data
Type of statistic
National Statistics
Publisher
Office for National Statistics
Publication frequency
Yearly
Purpose of data source
The primary purpose of the Labour Force Survey (LFS) is to provide good quality estimates each year for various aspects of the labour market, including internet use. The LFS also allows to see how these labour market measures change over time.