More and more households have laptops, smart phones and tablet computers at their disposal

Nearly all households in the Netherlands have access to the internet. Desktop computers are losing ground to mobile devices. Nearly half of Dutch households own at least one tablet computer.

Laptop more common than desktop

This year, 95 percent of households in the Netherlands have internet access at home. Laptops have superseded desktops as the preferred device to access the internet. Today, 78 percent of households own laptops and 69 percent own desktops versus 62 and 83 percent respectively half a decade ago. Seven in ten households also use smart phones to access the internet, i.e. two and a half times as many as in 2009. Currently, 45 percent of households own one or more tablet computers.

Internet equipment in households

Tablet present in nearly half of households

The tablet computer is currently in fourth place on the list of devices used by households to access the internet. Households consisting of couples with children top the list with a share of 62 percent. More than half of young couples without children have at least one tablet computer at home. The lowest share of tablet users (23 percent) is found in one-person households aged 45 years or older.

Presence of tablet computers in Dutch households, 2013

Ger Sleijpen