The digital divide in the United States refers to inequalities between individuals, households, and other groups of different demographic and socioeconomic levels in access to information and communication technologies ("ICTs") and in the knowledge and skills needed to effectively use the information gained from connecting.Norris, P. 2001. Digital divide: Civic engagement, information poverty and the Internet world- wide. Cambridge, MA: Cambridge Univ. Press.Mossberger, K., C.J. Tolbert, and M. Stansbury. 2003. Virtual inequality: Beyond the digital divide. Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press.
In 1995, The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) conducted the first survey to assess Internet usage among different demographic groups (what the study deemed the "haves" and the "have-nots" of American society). After U.S. President Bill Clinton adopted the phrase "the digital divide" in his 2000 State of the Union address, researchers began to track trends in ICT access and usage across these different groups. NTIA defined the digital divide as "one of America's leading economic and civil rights issues" in their 1999 report "Falling Through the Net: Defining the Digital Divide" (1999).National Telecommunications & Information Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce. (1999). Falling through the net: Defining the digital divide. Washington, D.C. Retrieved from https://www.ntia.doc.gov/report/1999/falling-through-net-defining-digital-divide
The effort by the United States' government to close the digital divide has included private and public sector participation, and has developed policies to address information infrastructure and digital literacy that promotes a digital society in the United States.
According to Census data, 18% of households used the internet in 1997 and this usage increased to 62% in 2007 and 73% in 2015.U.S. Census Bureau. “Computer and Internet Use in the United States: 2015 American Community Survey.” U.S. Census Bureau, Sep 2017, https://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/library/publications/2017/acs/acs-37.pdf. Digital access has risen steadily over the past decade, increasing by 11 percent since 2009, though the digital divide exists between varying demographics based on region, age, race, disability, etc.
Demographic breakdown Global context: Digital divide and the Digital divide by continent, area and country.
The 2023 NTIA Internet Use Survey found that 83 percent of people age 3 and older in the United States used the internet, up from 80 percent in 2021. Twelve percent lived in households without any internet connection, down from 14 percent in 2021. Adoption remained unequal by income: 73 percent of people in households earning less than $25,000 used the internet, and 54 percent had both fixed and mobile connections, compared with 80 percent of people in households earning at least $100,000 who had both types of connection. While internet access has increased in the past couple decades, there are disparities between demographic factors such as geography (urban versus rural), gender, age, race, class, and disability.
Gender By 2001, women had surpassed men as the majority of the online United States population. When controlling for income, levels of education, and employment, it turns out that women are clearly more enthusiastic ICT users than men. Free access to a pdf of the study. The 2009 Census data suggests that potential disparities in gendered connectivity have become nearly non-existent; 73% of female citizens three years and older compared to 74% of males could access the Internet from their home.
Women in the United States are taking advantage of the freelance employment opportunities the Internet offers. For example, a report in 2018 stated that women make up the majority of online shop owners on Etsy, and the majority of hosts on Airbnb.
Although more women in the United States use the Internet than men, there still remains significant gender gaps in content creation and website development. For example, a 2013 survey found that about 27% of Wikipedia editors from the U.S. were female.Hill, Benjamin Mako; Shaw, Aaron (2013-06-26). Sánchez, Angel (ed.). "The Wikipedia Gender Gap Revisited: Characterizing Survey Response Bias with Propensity Score Estimation". PLoS ONE. 8 (6): e65782. ISSN 1932-6203. PMC 3694126. PMID 23840366. In 2009, a Wikimedia Foundation survey revealed that 6% of editors who made more than 500 edits were female, with the average male editor having twice as many edits.WP:Clubhouse? An Exploration of Wikipedia's Gender Imbalance (PDF) Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 April 2015
Age Older generations of Americans have consistently reported the lowest level of access to the Internet per age cohorts.Yi, Zhixian. 2008. "Internet Use Patterns in the United States." Chinese Librarianship: an International Electronic Journal 25. In 2019, 59% of Americans age 65 and older had access to broadband at home compared to about 80% of other age groups (77% of Americans age 18–29, 77% of Americans age 30–49, and 79% of Americans age 50–64). Although older generations still hold the lowest amount of Internet usage age-wise, the United States has seen a dramatic increase in Internet users at the age of 65 and older over time. From 2000 to 2015, the number of senior citizens connected to the Internet increased by 44%.
Device ownership has drastically increased for Americans age 65 and older over the years but still remains consistently lower than that of all American adults. Data from Pew Research Center shows that smartphone ownership increased from 11% in 2011 to 24% in 2016 (compared to the American average of 35% and 77%, respectively) and tablet ownership increased from 1% in 2010 to 32% in 2016 (compared to 3% and 51%, respectively). In terms of device usage, seniors tended to describe their smartphones as "freeing" and "connecting" and are more likely to use tablets and e-readers.
However, older adults living in rural communities report experiencing symptoms of confusion, anxiety, or lack of support when interacting with technologies, regarding healthcare, which resulted in lower adoption rates of services including telehealth.Baker, S., Warburton, J., Hodgkin, S., & Pascal, J. (2024). Barriers and facilitators to health technology adoption by older adults in rural areas: A systematic review. BMC Public Health, 24, Article 18036. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-024-18036-5
Race and ethnicity
Generally, racial minorities have demonstrated lower levels of access and knowledge ICTs and of owning infrastructure to utilize the connection. In 2000, 50% of Whites had access to the Internet compared to 43% of Hispanics and 34% of African Americans.Lenhart, Amanda, Lee Rainie, Mary Madden, Angie Boyce, John Horrigan, Katherine Allen, and Erin O'Grady. 2003. "The Ever-Shifting Internet Population: A new look at Internet access and the digital divide." Pew Internet and American Life Project. Between 2000 and 2010, the racial population of Internet users became increasingly similar to the racial makeup of the United States population, demonstrating a closing racial divide. In 2019, 79% of Whites had access to broadband compared to 61% of Hispanics and 66% of African Americans.
English-speaking Hispanics have been the fastest rising ethnic cohort in terms of Internet usage. In 2010, 81% of English-dominant Latinos, 74% bilingual Latinos, and 47% Spanish-dominant Latinos used the Internet. Even though the rate of dominant Spanish-speaking Latinos was lower at the time, it rose significantly from 36% in 2009.Livingston, Gretchen. 2010. "Latinos and Digital Technology, 2010." Pew Hispanic Center
The racial gap for African Americans is most evident within the senior population: in 2003, 11% of African Americans age 65 and older reported using the Internet, compared to 22% of senior Whites. Also in 2003, 68% of 18- to 24-year-old African Americans and 83% of 18- to 24-year-old Whites had Internet access. A similar gap is noted in the 55- to 64-year-old range with 58% of Whites and 22% of African Americans accessing the Internet.
The digital divide can be displayed when individuals must use smartphones in the absence of access to other devices. 41% of African Americans and 47% of English-speaking Hispanics send and receive email on cell phones, as compared to 30% of Whites. Significant differences between the racial groups include sending and receiving instant messages, using social networking sites, watching videos, and posting photos or videos online.Smith, Aaron. 2010. "Mobile Access 2010." Pew Internet & American Life Project. In 2019, the ownership to smartphones by race/ethnicity was 82% of Whites, 79% of Hispanics, and 80% of African Americans.
A 2013 study found that "African Americans are more likely than other segments of the population to use the Internet to seek and apply for employment, and are more likely to consider the Internet very important to the success of their job search."
Contemporary researchers such as Anna Everett, André Brock, Safiya Umoja Noble, Lisa Nakamura, and Ruha Benjamin have studied the relationship between race and access to technology in ways that center communities of color and their strategic navigation of inaccessibility for digital autonomy and social mobility.
States and Regions Internet connectivity varies widely state by state in the U.S. both in terms of broadband coverage and Internet speed. For example, in 2019, New Jersey ranked the highest in Internet connectivity with the fastest average Internet speed (52.0 Mbit/s) and highest percentage of broadband coverage (99%), and Montana ranked the lowest with the slowest average Internet speed (20.3 Mbit/s) and lowest percentage of broadband coverage (69%).
Internet connectivity also varies by region. In 2016, U.S. Census data showed that nonmetropolitan areas in the South have the lowest percentages of households with computers or Internet connection and Metropolitan areas in the West have the highest percentages."Computer and Internet Use in the United States: 2016 " (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. Aug 2018. Retrieved Feb 28 2020. Southern states tend to have higher poverty levels that correlate with low levels of Internet connectivity. For example, in 2016, Arkansas and Mississippi reported the lowest levels of broadband use (71% of households) and both states have low median incomes compared to the rest of the country.
Overall, in 2015, over 75% of urban Americans used the internet in comparison to 67% of rural Americans. The geographic disparities intertwine with racial disparities.Reddick, Christopher G., R. Enriquez, R.J. Harris, and B Sharma. “Determinants of broadband access and affordability: An analysis of a community survey on the digital divide.” Cities, Volume 106, 2020, 102904, ISSN 0264-2751, . In those rural areas, Native Americans have a 67% broadband internet subscription rate as opposed to 82% for non-Native American individuals. Moreover, Native Americans living on Native American land had 53%.U.S. Census Bureau. “Median Household Income, Poverty Rates and Computer and Internet Use” U.S. Census Bureau, 6 Dec 2018, https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2018/2013-2017-acs-5year.html.
Income In 2016, roughly half of all households with an income less than $25,000 owned a desktop or laptop computer. Over 90% of all households with an income over $100,000 owned a desktop or laptop computer. The same relationship can be seen for households owning smartphones, tablets, and Internet/broadband subscriptions.