Older Adults Technology Services (OATS) from AARP released new research this week, finding that 19 million older adults (32 percent) have no wireline high-speed home service. Rural seniors are less connected than their counterparts in metro or suburban areas. Older seniors—those aged 75 and above—are less likely to have broadband service than people between the ages of 65 and 74.

The State of Aging Connected in 2025

OATS retained Benton Senior Fellow John B. Horrigan, Ph.D., to analyze American Community Survey (ACS) data for trends. His findings revealed substantial gaps in access to digital tools when comparing older adults (i.e., those aged 65 or older) to other age groups. Topline findings include:

• The number of older adults who lack wireline broadband access at home has fallen from 22 million in 2018 (42 percent) to 19 million (32 percent) in 2023. The gap is closing, but it has not closed.
• Older adults have seen modest increases in ownership of large-screen computers (desktops and laptops), from 70 percent in 2018 to 73 percent in 2023, with a slightly larger increase from 60 percent to 67 percent for those over age 75.
• Some states have done better work than others in reducing age-based disparity of wireline access, controlling for other factors. Generally speaking, low-income older adults in southern states have the lowest wireline and cellular data adoption rates and constitute the population at greatest risk of being disconnected from vital digital services.
• Cellular connectivity, including high-speed 5G services, increased by 17 percent among older adults between 2018 and 2023, providing coverage to 7 million additional older adults.
• Some states that are lagging in wireline broadband access show some of the highest rates of cellular data plan enrollment by seniors, reflecting efforts to close the connectivity gap by whatever means are readily available.
• Policies enacted since 2021, including the American Rescue Plan Act (March 2021) and the Infrastructure Investment and Job Act (November 2021) targeted funds to increasing connectivity nationwide, but inconsistent implementation has yielded patchwork results.

The research also revealed additional insights.

Geography matters: the rural/urban divide

Seventy-nine percent of people in metro areas (calculated based on population, not land area) subscribe to broadband wireline service at home compared with 67 percent for those in non-metro areas. In metro areas, 88 percent of all adults have a cellular data plan compared with 80 percent in rural areas. There are many possible explanations for this, including the lack of infrastructure in less-densely populated areas, the lack of competition among carriers leading to higher prices, the vulnerability of more isolated communities to disruptions and service outages, and the relative availability and increasing quality of cellular or satellite service areas where broadband services are unavailable or prohibitively expensive.

The connectivity age gap disappears at higher income levels, whereas it is acute in the lowest quintile.

Though the data show that seniors earning $100,000 or more per year have broadband wireless service at rates comparable to younger cohorts at the same income levels, only 48 percent of the lowest income older adults (aged 65+ with annual household incomes below $25,000) have wireline broadband, and 58 percent have cellular data plans, the largest deviation from national averages. Being low-income exacerbates the connectivity gap across every other category measured in the survey, indicating that affordability is a crucial determinant.

Americans over 75 are less connected than those 65-74.

Only 61 percent of adults age 75 or older have wired broadband connections. Seventy-three percent of those aged 65 and over have a desktop or laptop, whereas 67 percent of those aged 75 and older have such devices. Note that in some states, the sample sizes for adults 75 and older are not large enough to draw meaningful inferences. In such cases, the age-combined results of all adults over 65 were used.

Less-educated older adults lag in connectivity.

Fifty-three percent of older adults with less than a high school education have wireline broadband at home, compared to the overall rate of 68 percent. Sixty-five percent of less-educated older adults have cellular data plans.

Other demographic factors also play a role.

Among those 65 and older, 59 percent of Blacks and 64 percent of Hispanics have wireline subscriptions at home, compared with 69 percent of whites. Some 78 percent of Hispanics have cellular data plans, compared with 77 percent for whites and 72 percent for Blacks. Being a veteran does not lead to any meaningful departure from levels of connectivity experienced by non-veteran seniors in comparable geographic, income, education, race or age categories.

The Urgency to Close the Divide

While significant progress extending high-speed connectivity to older Americans has been made, the data from the most recent American Community Survey show there is still a lot of work to be done to ensure that every older adult has affordable access to the benefits of digital technology. Some of the factors driving the urgency are:

• The digital age gap of 19 million is still too big. Yes, there has been progress, but there is still an unacceptably large number of Americans over 65 who do not have wireline broadband at home, leading to tangible negative impacts on their lives and communities. America can and should do better for its most vulnerable citizens.
  • Lagging adoption by lower income, older, and disabled seniors suggests more investment is needed to serve those populations specifically.
• Demographics are shifting. By 2030, the entire 78 million Baby Boom (b.19461965) generation will be 65 and older, with most retired. They will form the largest cohort of older adults ever seen in America, forming a center of political and social gravity with high expectations on public, private, and NGO institutions to meet their needs.
  •  Improvements in connectivity for older seniors may reflect demographic changes: Tomorrow’s seniors have a different relationship and greater familiarity with digital technology in their lives than previous generations. That picture will continue to evolve as we move toward 2030 and beyond.
• High-speed connectivity is essential for modern life. The experience of the pandemic demonstrated how online connectivity is critical for the continuity of community and society across all ages, but particularly for vulnerable groups like older adults.
• Access to services depends on good connections. Efficiency and budget cuts are driving older individuals online for vital government services such as Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. Connectivity must be considered part of the social safety net.
• Healthcare innovations require digital connections. Evolving technologies for aging in place require high-speed connectivity, including smart-home solutions that provide independence for older adults and connected medical devices, which often need wireline broadband services.
• Connectivity helps mental health. The high-quality communal experiences afforded by high-speed connectivity can satisfy our human need for community and connection, particularly for older adults who may face issues of isolation.
• Traditional solutions may not be available. The apparent shift in government policies away from subsidies and material support indicates new approaches to public, private and cross-sector partnership may be necessary.

Recommendations

Based on the research, OATS offers a number of recommendations for advocates, partners and policymakers. 

Advocates for Older Adults

• Remind cost-conscious policymakers of the link between connectivity and efficiency. Investing in expanding access can help realize cost savings in service delivery.
• Use the data in this report and elsewhere to demonstrate that subsidies are important and have been effective. Reversing course now risks the progress that has already been made.
• Remember that local action can be effective, especially in states where we can pinpoint the unique problems at the junction between age, geography, income, and race. Document and disseminate examples of where local action is making a difference.
• Encourage wide adoption of best practices from states making progress in closing the gaps. Create or support forums for sharing approaches and results.
• Conduct further research and furnish data-driven cost-benefit analyses to policymakers and stakeholders to validate additional investments.

Technology Partners and Service Providers

• Highlight the value of broadband for older adults in public messaging and advertising, focusing on benefits such as increased independence, connectedness and access to essential services. Current messaging that focuses only on scenarios benefiting families (connect lots of devices!), working professionals or niche markets like gamers can send the message that these services are not valuable for older users.
• Continue wireless innovation/investments that benefit older adults: 5G modems that offer stable, always-on connections, better and more even coverage, increased compatibility with medical devices, home security solutions and aging-in-place solutions.
• Provide simpler, lower-cost offerings that provide clear value for money for older adults, especially people with fewer economic resources.

Policymakers

• In the absence of sustained federal commitments, build institutional relationships between public and private organizations, device makers, carriers and other stakeholders to build solutions that encourage fitness, social connection and other benefits that improve the lives of older Americans, especially in the most vulnerable areas.
• Promote digital literacy, community and confidence for older adults across all groups, focusing resources specifically on the least-served segments (low income, lower educational attainment, rural). 

For more, see Aging Connected 2025 Findings, Insights and Implications

The Benton Institute for Broadband & Society is a non-profit organization dedicated to ensuring that all people in the U.S. have access to competitive, High-Performance Broadband regardless of where they live or who they are. We believe communication policy - rooted in the values of access, equity, and diversity - has the power to deliver new opportunities and strengthen communities.

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