Mukesh Ambani-led Jio had active subscriber base of 50.30 crore at the end of August compared with Sunil Bharti Mittal's 48.70 crore. Both telecom operators have increased their base over past couple of months at the expense of other two telecom players, namely BSNL and Vodafone Idea.
While Bharti Airtel's active subscriber base market share has risen to 40.3 per cent in August from 33.6 per cent a year-ago, Jio's share has fallen to 41.7 per cent from 43.2 per cent in August 2025, TRAI data compiled by ICICI Securities suggested.
Both the telecom operators are adding subscribers in 2026, with Bharti's addition staying in 8-75 lakh every month in 2026 and Jio's additions staying in 19-45 lakh.
Reliance Jio maintained robust operating metrics in terms of 5G customer addition, data usage and fixed broadband addition. The increasing contribution of 5G & Fixed broadband allows Jio to monetise its network investments beyond traditional mobile connectivity, said Centrum Broking.
"With the customer base already at 53.33 crore, even a modest increase in monthly ARPU can translate into meaningful incremental revenue and Ebitda, making pricing led monetisation a key driver of Jio’s medium term earnings growth, Centrum Broking said.
Jio Platforms financials
As far as earnings are concerned, Jio Platforms reported revenue from operations of Rs 1,46,885 crore for FY26, compared with Rs 2,10,973 crore for Bharti Airtel's consolidated business.
Jio Platforms reported Ebitda of Rs 73,382 crore for FY26, while Bharti Airtel's consolidated Ebitda stood at Rs 1,16,514 crore. Jio Platforms reported an Ebitda margin of 50 per cent against Bharti Airtel's 55.2 per cent.
In terms of profitability, Jio Platforms reported PAT of Rs 30,046 crore in FY26, compared with Rs 26,623 crore for Bharti Airtel.
In terms of average revenue per user (ARPU), Jio Platforms reported ARPU of Rs 214 per month in the March 2026 quarter, compared with Rs 257.20 for Bharti Airtel.
Jio Platforms recorded annual data traffic of 241.4 billion GB in FY26, compared with 101.3 billion GB for Airtel India's mobile business. For the year, Jio customers consumed an average of 42.3 GB per month, compared with 31.4 GB for Airtel India's mobile customers.
Jio Platforms reported return on average capital employed of 10.76 per cent in FY26, compared with 19.07 per cent for Bharti Airtel consolidated. Airtel's ROCE was 831 basis points higher.
Bharti Airtel leads mcap race
At the upper end of the Rs 1,065-1,119 price band, the Mukesh Ambani-led company has an implied market capitalisation of Rs 10,30,490.55 crore, behind Bharti Airtel at Rs 11,63,697 crore and HDFC Bank Ltd at Rs 11,18,773 crore. Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) would retain the No. 1 spot, with a market capitalisation of Rs 16,40,076 crore.
Jio IPO: Should you subscribe?
At the upper price band, the issue is valued at a post-issue FY26 P/E multiple of 34.4 times and an EV/subscriber multiple of Rs 20,117, reflecting its scale, earnings growth, technology capabilities and long-term monetisation potential, SBI Securities said.
Swastika Investmart said 'Subscribe' to the issue as Jio is core structural compounder for India’s digital economy, backed by cash generation, declining leverage, and home broadband adoption.
Analysts noted that Jio has successfully transitioned from a capital-heavy telecom rollout to a high-margin digital monetisation engine. With heavy 5G network capex largely complete, capital intensity is rapidly moderating, they said.
"At the price band, JPL is valued at 31.7-33.3 times FY26 EPS. On EV/Ebitda, it is valued at 15.0-15.6 times FY26 Ebitda against its 16.2 per cent Ebitda CAGR. Given its market leadership, pricing power, growth levers and execution record, we recommend subscribe," said Emkay Global.
Jio's earnings compounding is propelled by steady ARPU trajectory, 4G-to-5G premiumisation, expanding data throughput, and enterprise cloud/AI digital services, Religare Securities said in a note.
Key risks
Emkay Global said spectrum costs or other regulatory changes; competitive intensity affecting ARPU and churn; dependence on Reliance Group entities; concentration in passive infrastructure and equipment vendors; and leverage and foreign-exchange exposure are key risks for Jio.
:
Disclaimer: Business Today provides stock market news for informational purposes only and should not be construed as investment advice. Readers are encouraged to consult with a qualified financial advisor before making any investment decisions.