For teachers. This answer key isn't linked from the students' page or worksheet; keep this link to yourself or share it with colleagues. Its numbers are the charts' current data, so they match what students see today.

Students' assignment Worksheet

Answer key · for teachers

Charts to read and discuss

Figures as of November 14, 2026, from each chart's current data.

Chart 1 of 1 · World

How fast has the world come online?

The chart's answer: 73.6% of the world's people used the internet in 2025, up from 15.6% in 2005, the first year the World Bank gives a world figure. It counts people who used the internet at least once in the previous three months. The world figures are estimates by the International Telecommunication Union.

Key numbers (People using the internet, % of world population)

Questions

  1. About what share of the world was online in the first year on the chart, and in the latest year?

    • Newest: 73.6% in 2025
    • First on the chart: 15.6% in 2005

  2. Did the share grow faster in some years than others? What could have sped it up?

    • 2005 to 2025: up 58 percentage points
    • Biggest rise from one point to the next: 6.2 percentage points, 2019 to 2020

  3. Using the internet once in three months counts here. What does this number leave out about how people get online?

    Open question: answers will vary. Look for answers that use the chart's numbers and source.

Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators: Individuals using the Internet (% of population) (CC BY 4.0 (credit the World Bank)) · Data as of Dec 31, 2025 · chart.ly/charts/world-internet-use

More free charts and assignments at chart.ly/teachers