Internet use in Turkey has reached record levels, with nearly nine out of 10 people now online and WhatsApp the most popular application, local media reported on Wednesday, citing the results of a survey released by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) on Wednesday.
The figures from the “Survey on Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Usage in Households and by Individuals, 2025,” show that 90.9 percent of people aged 16 to 74 are using the internet in 2025, up from 88.8 percent last year. The rate was slightly higher among men, at 93.6 percent, compared to 88.2 percent among women.
The survey did not include children between the ages of 5 and 15.
When it comes to communication, people mostly use WhatsApp to stay in touch. Some 88.6 percent of people said they use the messaging app, making it by far the most popular platform, followed by YouTube at 72.9 percent and Instagram at 68.1 percent. Men were more active users across all three services, while women trailed slightly behind.
The study also reveals how digital life has become central to citizens’ daily routines. Three out of four people said they have used e-government portals and apps in the past year, with young adults leading the way. While more than 92 percent of those aged 25 to 34 logged in to access personal data, make appointments or gather information, less than one-third of people over 65 used the services.
Online shopping has also expanded, according to TurkStat. More than half of respondents to the survey, 55.7 percent, reported ordering goods or services over the internet, up from 51.7 percent in 2024. Men were slightly more likely than women to shop online, while four in 10 people made purchases in just the first three months of 2025. Yet the boom is not without problems: Over two in 10 users complained of issues such as slow deliveries (12.7 percent) or damaged products (11.8 percent).
The survey also pointed to other trends. Online learning is on the rise, with 17.7 percent of people taking part in digital education or training programs, while 15.6 percent reported using an electronic ID to access services.
This rise in digital connectivity comes amid growing restrictions on online freedoms in Turkey. The ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) has faced mounting criticism in recent years for its crackdown on press freedom and increased censorship of online platforms, especially those critical of the government. The government has long framed online censorship as part of its broader counterterrorism and public order agenda.
However, critics argue that the vague definitions used under laws such as Turkey’s Law No. 5651, which allows the blocking of online content that allegedly threatens national security or public order, give authorities broad powers to censor dissent and restrict freedom of expression.
In recent months court orders have led to the blocking of hundreds of opposition-affiliated accounts, including those of exiled journalists and independent news outlets, and even the official account of jailed İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s main political rival.
International press freedom groups and watchdogs such as the Freedom of Expression Association (İFÖD) and EngelliWeb have documented a sharp rise in government takedown orders, especially since the arrest of İmamoğlu in March.
Many of these opposition-linked accounts were not only blocked in Turkey but also experienced a significant drop in global engagement due to platform-level downgrading of visibility, according to affected users and digital rights advocates. The government does not disclose the specific criteria used to determine which accounts are labeled criminal or which content is deemed disinformation. Turkish courts rarely reverse blocking decisions, and appeals can take months or years to resolve.
Meanwhile, platforms that refuse to comply with Turkish orders face throttling or advertising bans under recent amendments to media and digital laws. The trend of platform compliance has accelerated since Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter, now X, which has repeatedly withheld the accounts of journalists in exile and opposition media at the request of Turkish courts.
Turkey’s increasing use of digital censorship has been cited by press freedom monitors as a key factor in the country’s low ranking in global media freedom indices. The deterioration of internet freedoms in Turkey was also documented in a 2024 report published by the US-based Freedom House, which showed Turkey ranking the lowest-scoring country in Europe for online freedoms and again ranking among the “not free” countries concerning online freedoms, with a score of 31 in a 100-point index.
Turkey also dropped to 159th out of 180 countries in the 2025 World Press Freedom Index, published by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) in May. The report cites ongoing censorship, politically motivated arrests and state control over media as key factors in the country’s continued decline in press freedom.