Bharti Airtel expects its average revenue per user (ARPU) to cross Rs 300 as it encourages more prepaid subscribers to move to postpaid plans. Managing Director and CEO Shashwat Sharma says the company wants postpaid users to account for around 20% of its customer base over the long term, compared with approximately 8% currently. The strategy combines customer upgrades, family plans and differentiated services rather than relying only on higher tariffs.
Airtel Expects ARPU to Cross Rs 300
Sharma shared the outlook in an interview with The Economic Times published on October 9, 2026. He said the Rs 300 ARPU milestone was within reach and that Airtel could eventually move considerably beyond that level. The company reported an ARPU of Rs 264, putting its stated expectation above its current level rather than describing a result it has already achieved.
ARPU measures the average revenue generated per user over a reporting period, usually a month in the Indian telecom industry. It helps operators assess how effectively they are monetising their subscriber base through mobile services, data consumption, plan upgrades and other offerings.
For Airtel, crossing Rs 300 would mean increasing the average revenue it earns from each customer. That can happen through a combination of higher-value plans, more data consumption and customers choosing additional services. It does not necessarily mean every Airtel subscriber will face a price increase of the same amount.
Postpaid Customers Are Central to Airtel’s Strategy
Airtel had around 30 million postpaid subscribers as of June 30, 2026, accounting for approximately 8% of its customer base, according to the report. It added nearly 1.05 million postpaid users during the quarter, its highest quarterly addition at the time. The company is aiming to increase postpaid penetration to around 20% over the long term, although it has not announced a fixed deadline for reaching that target.
Postpaid plans can provide operators with more predictable monthly billing and opportunities to sell bundled benefits. Airtel is promoting features such as Fast Lane, family connections, data allowances, entertainment benefits and international roaming to persuade customers to upgrade from prepaid services.
Family plans are particularly relevant because one account can cover multiple household connections. When customers add family members to a shared plan, the total monthly bill can rise while the bundled offer may be more convenient than maintaining separate individual connections. Airtel is seeking to use these benefits to make postpaid more attractive to customers who currently recharge with prepaid vouchers.
Why Airtel Wants More Customers to Upgrade
The opportunity is significant because Airtel has a much larger prepaid base than its postpaid base. The Economic Times report put its prepaid subscriber count at approximately 346.5 million, leaving a substantial pool of existing customers who could potentially move to higher-value plans. However, not every prepaid user is a suitable postpaid prospect, particularly where affordability, irregular income or the need for spending control makes prepaid more practical.
The company’s challenge is therefore to demonstrate enough additional value to justify the change. Customers may consider postpaid if they want multiple connections under one bill, larger data allowances, international roaming benefits or other bundled services. Others may prefer prepaid because it allows them to control spending and avoid a recurring bill.
Airtel’s approach also reflects a broader shift towards customer segmentation. Instead of offering only basic connectivity at different price points, operators are trying to build packages for customers with different usage patterns and willingness to pay. The outcome will depend on whether customers see a meaningful difference in service and convenience.
Does the Rs 300 Target Mean Another Tariff Hike?
Not by itself. Sharma’s comments are about Airtel’s revenue strategy and customer mix, and they should not be interpreted as an announcement of another prepaid tariff increase.
The company has recently increased its postpaid rentals by Rs 50 while adding one free international roaming trip per SIM each year, with specified data, calling and messaging allowances. That change is separate from the long-term ARPU expectation. Sharma has also argued that telecom pricing should better reflect differences in consumption, with customers using more expensive services and larger volumes of data paying accordingly.
This points to two possible drivers of future ARPU growth: customers moving to higher-value plans and changes in the industry’s pricing structure. Neither guarantees a particular timetable for reaching Rs 300, and Airtel has not said that a further across-the-board prepaid hike is required to meet the target.
For customers, the practical implication is to compare the full value of a plan rather than looking only at its monthly price. A postpaid plan may be worthwhile for a family or a high-data user who benefits from its included services, but a prepaid plan can remain more economical for someone who needs only basic connectivity.
What Airtel’s Target Means for the Telecom Market
Airtel’s target highlights how operators are seeking to grow revenue from their existing customer bases as well as through subscriber additions. Increasing postpaid penetration could help the company raise average revenue, particularly if customers move to plans with higher data allowances or bundled services.
However, the 20% postpaid goal is a long-term ambition, not a forecast that one in five Airtel customers will switch immediately. Reaching it will require sustained upgrades and convincing customers that the additional benefits justify recurring payments.
For now, the Rs 300 ARPU milestone remains an expectation expressed by Airtel’s chief executive. Whether the company reaches it will depend on postpaid adoption, customer spending, data consumption, pricing decisions and the value users see in its bundled services.
