Bharti Airtel Q1 Results: Profit Jumps 43% YoY, Revenue Rises 28%; ARPU at Rs 250, Subscriber Base Grows 6.6%

Telecom giant Bharti Airtel Limited posted an impressive 43% year-on-year (YoY) increase in consolidated net profit for the June quarter of financial year 2026 (Q1FY26), registering earnings of Rs 5,948 crore, up from Rs 4,163 crore in Q1FY25. This marks the telecom giant's fifth consecutive quarter of profit growth, underlining consistent momentum in operational efficiency and customer base expansion.

Bharti Airtel Q1 Results Announced: Net Profit Up 43%, Revenue Rises 28%

However, despite the robust year-on-year jump, on a sequential basis, Airtel's net profit saw a notable 46% decline, which may have tempered investor sentiment.

The company's revenue from operations rose 28% YoY to Rs 49,463 crore in Q1FY26, up from Rs 38,506 crore in the same quarter last year. Sequentially, revenue grew 3.3%, signaling steady business expansion across markets.

Bharti Airtel EBITDA: 67% Jump in Consolidated EBIT

On the profitability front, Bharti Airtel posted consolidated EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation) of Rs 28,167 crore, reflecting a 41.2% YoY increase. The consolidated EBITDA margin stood at 56.9%, while the India EBITDA margin was even higher at 59.5%.

The company also reported a 67% YoY jump in consolidated EBIT (Earnings Before Interest and Taxes), which reached Rs 15,621 crore. Net income before exceptional items was Rs 5,948 crore for the quarter.

Airtel Q1 Earnings: ARPU Improves

A key performance indicator for telecom operators, Average Revenue Per User (ARPU), continued its upward trajectory for Bharti Airtel, rising to Rs 250 in Q1FY26, up from Rs 211 in the same quarter last year. Airtel's total customer base expanded by 6.6% year-on-year, reaching 436 million subscribers.

At the user level, the company demonstrated strong traction. Airtel added 21.3 million smartphone data users on a yearly basis, and 3.9 million sequentially, pushing smartphone users to 77% of its total mobile customer base. The postpaid segment also saw growth, with 700,000 new users added, taking the total to 26.6 million. Additionally, average mobile data consumption per user rose 21.6% YoY, now standing at a robust 26.9 GB per month

Vice-Chairman and Managing Director Gopal Vittal said while announcing the results,"We delivered another quarter of consistent growth, with consolidated revenues at Rs 49,463 crore, growing 3.3% sequentially. Our India revenue increased by 2.3%, while Africa delivered solid performance with 6.7% constant currency growth."

Bharti Airtel's Overall Business Operation and Performances in June Quarter FY2026

To support network quality and expansion, Airtel added approximately 1,800 new towers and 7,500 mobile broadband sites in the quarter. Over the past year, the company installed about 15,400 towers and laid 43,700 km of fiber, improving coverage and service delivery.

Airtel's Homes broadband segment maintained strong momentum, with revenue up 25.7% YoY. It added a record 939,000 Wi-Fi customers during the quarter, expanding the home broadband user base to 11 million. The company also added 1.6 million home-pass fiber connections, further expanding its fixed-line network.

Commenting on the Homes business, Mr. Vittal said, "Our Homes business reported solid performance with lifetime-high quarterly net additions of 939K, resulting in sequential revenue growth of 7.6%."

On the enterprise side, however, Airtel Business revenue declined 7.7% YoY, as the company moved away from low-margin contracts to focus on high-quality revenue streams. The company stated that the underlying momentum in core connectivity and digital services remains stable.

In the Digital TV segment, revenue stood at Rs 763 crore, with a total customer base of 15.7 million. Airtel's newly launched IPTV service continued to gain traction, adding 0.65 million users in the June quarter alone.