Household spending now shapes India’s creator economy more than internet

MUMBAI: The next viral creator may owe more to the family budget than the broadband signal. As internet access becomes increasingly widespread across India, a new report suggests that household spending habits not connectivity alone are emerging as the strongest indicator of where creators thrive and brands find commercial opportunities.

The analysis argues that while internet infrastructure remains essential, it has evolved into a baseline requirement rather than the defining factor for creator growth. Instead, how much households are willing to spend on telecom services and consumer products is becoming a more reliable predictor of creator formation and monetisation.

The report points to a relatively modest gap in BSNL 4G district coverage between higher- and lower-coverage states. States with stronger connectivity average 40.1 per cent district coverage, compared with 31.8 per cent in lower-coverage states—a difference of just 8.3 percentage points.

The contrast becomes clearer when comparing infrastructure with creator output. Bihar, for instance, records 30.2 per cent BSNL 4G district coverage—close to the lower-coverage average—but contributes only around 6 per cent of India’s creator base despite accounting for nearly 9 per cent of the country’s population.

Instead, the report identifies telecom spending as a more meaningful indicator. Karnataka’s rural households allocate 11 per cent of their food-equivalent expenditure to telecom services, the highest share in India and the state also leads in creator density. By comparison, rural households in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh spend only 3.3 per cent on telecom despite having access to basic connectivity.

“The relevant distinction is therefore between infrastructure availability and household willingness to invest in connectivity,” the report noted.

The findings suggest that consumer behaviour is increasingly shaping where the creator economy expands. States such as West Bengal, Bihar and Jharkhand are identified as potential growth markets, with Jharkhand standing out for its combination of full BSNL 4G district coverage, improving rural telecom adoption and a young population. However, the report cautions that infrastructure alone will not be enough, with creator skills, local content ecosystems and commercial discovery expected to determine long-term success.

The study also introduces the idea of a “brand wallet,” the median monthly household spending on cosmetics, parlour and spa services, salty snacks and restaurant meals as a measure of creator monetisation potential.

Here, the differences are pronounced. Rural households in Haryana have a median brand wallet of Rs 1,620 a month, compared with Rs 320 in Bihar, representing a five-fold gap. According to the report, such spending patterns provide a more accurate benchmark for influencer marketing than the traditional rural-versus-urban divide.

One bright spot for consumer brands is the resilience of personal care spending. The report found that households consistently allocate around 5.3 per cent of their expenditure to personal care across income groups, suggesting categories such as beauty could continue to support creator-led commerce even in lower-income markets.

Meanwhile, OTT subscriptions emerge as an indicator of audience quality rather than scale. Penetration rises from around 1.5 per cent in the lowest-income segment to 16.2 per cent among the highest-income households, making streaming subscriptions a useful proxy for affluent and highly engaged digital consumers.

As India’s connectivity gap narrows, the report argues that the creator economy’s next phase of growth will be shaped less by who can get online and more by who is willing and able to spend once they are there.