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A free scan shows the junk files, broken settings and background clutter dragging Windows down - then fixes them in one click.Free scan · Windows 10 & 11For FY2025–26, Reliance reported ₹149,965 crore in revenue from operations and ₹76,560 crore in EBITDA for its Digital Services business; Vodafone Idea (Vi) reported ₹44,873 crore in revenue and ₹19,003 crore in EBITDA for the company. Those figures do not make a like-for-like three-way ranking: the reporting scopes differ, and matching Airtel telecom-segment figures are not included here. For customers, no company-wide scale figure or financial result can tell you which network will work best at your home, workplace or regular routes. Local reception and current plan terms matter more.
How do Jio, Airtel and Vi compare financially?
The available FY2025–26 figures show the reported scale of two businesses, not a harmonised comparison of all three operators. Reliance’s figure is for its Digital Services business; Vi’s is company-level. Airtel’s official results index lists FY2025–26 material, but a matching telecom-segment figure is not available here. Treat the table as a partial snapshot, not a financial league table.
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| Operator and reporting entity | FY2025–26 revenue | FY2025–26 EBITDA | Reported margin | What the figure represents |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jio — Reliance Digital Services business | ₹149,965 crore | ₹76,560 crore | 51.1% of revenue from operations | Reliance Industries’ FY2025–26 Digital Services business overview; not a matched standalone Jio-versus-Airtel-versus-Vi comparison. |
| Vi — Vodafone Idea Limited | ₹44,873 crore | ₹19,003 crore | Not stated here | Vi’s FY2025–26 company-level results. |
| Airtel — matching telecom-segment figure | Not stated here | Not stated here | Not stated here | Airtel’s official results index lists FY2025–26 reporting documents, but a matching figure is not available for this comparison. |
Revenue measures reported income; EBITDA is earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation. Neither alone describes cash available after interest, capital spending, spectrum obligations, taxes or debt repayments. The figures above also cover different reporting entities, so comparing their absolute values or deriving a winner from them would overstate what they establish. They do not provide a common debt or liquidity comparison.
What do the customer and usage figures show?
Reliance and Vi report substantial but differently defined indicators. They can help describe scale and activity; they are not a direct measure of service quality at a particular address.
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| Measure | Jio / Reliance-reported figure | Vi-reported figure | Reading it carefully |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total customers or subscribers | More than 524 million Jio customers at March 2026. | 192.8 million subscribers at Q4 FY2025–26. | Company-reported figures with different labels; do not assume definitions are identical. Airtel’s matching figure is not stated here. |
| 4G/5G base | More than 268 million 5G users at March 2026; 77 million 5G net additions during FY2025–26. | 128.9 million 4G/5G subscribers at Q4 FY2025–26. | These are not the same category: Jio’s figure is for 5G users, while Vi’s combines 4G and 5G subscribers. |
| Usage | 42.3 GB monthly per-capita data use and 988 monthly voice minutes in the quarter ending March 2026. | Not stated here. | Reliance-reported monthly per-capita averages for that quarter; they do not predict an individual customer’s usage. |
| ARPU | Not stated here. | ₹174 blended ARPU in Q4 FY2025–26. | Vi’s blended average revenue per user for the reported quarter; a common-period, harmonised three-operator set is not available here. |
| Fixed broadband | More than 27 million fixed-broadband connections at March 2026. | Not stated here. | Reliance-reported connections; this is a separate consideration from mobile coverage. |
Subscriber totals require a definition and date. A government announcement summarising TRAI’s October–December 2025 report said Airtel began including M2M cellular subscriptions in its wireless mobile subscriber base from December 2025. Raw operator totals can therefore differ because of reporting methodology as well as customer activity. Vi’s 192.8 million total subscribers should also not be confused with its 128.9 million 4G/5G subscribers.
Which network has better coverage where you live?
There is no reliable all-India winner for an individual customer in the figures above. Vi reported 86.3% 4G population coverage at FY2025–26 end and said coverage and usage grew during the year even as its total subscriber base declined. Population coverage indicates how much of a population is covered under the operator’s measure; it does not guarantee a usable signal inside a particular building, on a commute or in a congested area.
Rank #2
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- Compact for travelling
Check the places you actually use your phone
- Prioritise your home, workplace, commute and regular travel routes over a national headline or a single coverage percentage.
- Check each operator’s current coverage information for the relevant technology, then treat it as an initial guide rather than an indoor-signal promise.
- If practical, test a SIM or eSIM on the phone you intend to use. Check calls, data and reliability at the times and locations that matter to you; a short test cannot guarantee future performance.
- Ask people who use the same operator nearby about indoor reception and congestion, while remembering that their phone, plan and usage may differ from yours.
Account for handset compatibility and network conditions
A phone must support the relevant network bands and technology for the service you want to use. Even with a compatible device, buildings, terrain, network load and the location of sites can affect reception and data performance. A strong result outdoors does not prove the same service will be available in a basement, office or crowded venue.
Which operator offers the best value for your data use?
No current tariff comparison is established here, so a price or plan winner would be guesswork. Before choosing, compare the plans actually available to you on each operator’s official channel and check the full terms rather than relying on a headline price.
- Total cost: compare the amount paid over the period you expect to use the plan, not only a per-day figure or introductory offer.
- Validity and data: check validity, included data, any daily limits, and what happens when the allowance is used.
- Speed conditions: read fair-use, post-allowance speed and other service conditions.
- Calling and travel: confirm voice benefits, roaming terms and any destinations or uses excluded.
- Bundled services: count a bundle only if you will use it and understand its renewal and eligibility conditions.
- Postpaid or family needs: compare the total bill, included lines, limits and terms for every user rather than judging a plan by one line’s advertised allowance.
For light use, a lower total cost may matter most; for a data-heavy household, reliable service and the plan’s usable allowance may be worth more than the lowest sticker price. Those are decision priorities, not claims that a particular operator currently has the cheapest or most suitable plan.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How should you use the financial and service evidence together?
Financial scale and customer experience answer different questions. Reliance’s reported Digital Services figures show substantial scale and strong FY2025–26 EBITDA profitability for that business. Vi’s company-level results show lower absolute revenue than Reliance Digital Services and a smaller reported subscriber base, alongside reported network expansion. Because Airtel’s matching financial values and harmonised three-way operating measures are absent, the available evidence cannot support a complete financial ranking.
Rank #4
For a personal choice, first eliminate operators that do not provide dependable service in your key locations. Then compare current plan terms against your typical data, calling, travel and household needs. If fixed broadband is also important, assess that separately from mobile service: Reliance reported more than 27 million fixed-broadband connections, but that national total says nothing by itself about availability at your address.
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