Bulgaria: Fixed telephone subscriptions

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2024, Bulgaria's fixed telephone subscriptions fell 10.9% on 2023 (from 619,365 to 551,943).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was −4.3% and a typical year strayed about 5.9% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.1 standard deviations below that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 26% in 1981 and the biggest yearly fall was 13.1% in 2018. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2015 to 2024 the straight-line trend is downward, about 121,434 a year. A straight line explains 97% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2024, Bulgaria had the 71st highest value of the 146 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Bulgaria in the 2024 ranking

• Bosnia and Herzegovina — 68th of 146: 583,045
• New Zealand — 69th of 146: 564,000
• Myanmar — 70th of 146: 558,671
• Qatar — 72nd of 146: 524,643
• Mongolia — 73rd of 146: 519,169
• Jordan — 74th of 146: 485,928

What this measures

Fixed telephone subscriptions refers to the sum of active number of analogue fixed telephone lines, voice-over-IP (VoIP) subscriptions, fixed wireless local loop (WLL) subscriptions, ISDN voice-channel equivalents and fixed public payphones.

Limitations: Operators have traditionally been the main source of telecommunications data, so information on subscriptions has been widely available for most countries. This gives a general idea of access, but a more precise measure is the penetration rate - the share of households with access to telecommunications. During the past few years more information on information and communication technology use has become available from household and business surveys. Also important are data on actual use of telecommunications services. Ideally, statistics on telecommunications (and other information and communications technologies) should be compiled for all three measures: subscriptions, access, and use.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a sum.

All 46 values

Fixed telephone subscriptions in nearby economies

• Albania — 165,380 (2024)
• Andorra — 53,215 (2024)
• Armenia — 297,328 (2024)
• Austria — 3.48 million (2024)
• Azerbaijan — 1.33 million (2024)
• Belarus — 4.14 million (2024)
• Belgium — 2.49 million (2024)
• Bosnia and Herzegovina — 583,045 (2024)
• Croatia — 1.1 million (2024)
• Cyprus — 245,464 (2024)
• Czechia — 1.16 million (2024)

More infrastructure data for Bulgaria

• Air transport, registered carrier departures worldwide — 7,027 (2023)
• Air transport, freight (million ton-km) — 0.63 (2023)
• Air transport, passengers carried — 723,825 (2023)
• Mobile cellular subscriptions — 7.98 million (2024)
• Mobile cellular subscriptions (per 100 people) — 118.07 (2024)
• Fixed telephone subscriptions (per 100 people) — 8.17 (2024)
• Patent applications, nonresidents — 7 (2024)
• Patent applications, residents — 179 (2024)
• Medium and high-tech exports (% manufactured exports) — 49.16% (2024)
• Individuals using the Internet (% of population)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
• Data analysis examples: 6 worked from one dataset — 3 min read
• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is Bulgaria's fixed telephone subscriptions?

551,943 in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1979?

It is down 31.44% from 805,000 in 1979 (0.84% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 2.89 million in 2001 and the lowest 551,943 in 2024.

How does Bulgaria rank?

71st highest of 146 economies with data for 2024.

Is the latest change in fixed telephone subscriptions unusual for Bulgaria?

In 2024, Bulgaria's fixed telephone subscriptions fell 10.9% on 2023 (from 619,365 to 551,943). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was −4.3% and a typical year strayed about 5.9% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.1 standard deviations below that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator IT.MLT.MAIN, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: World Telecommunication/ICT Indicators Database, International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

Want to ask your own questions of data like this? Try AnalyzeIt: upload a file or ask about public data in plain words, and every figure comes with its working.