Aging Connected 2025

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.