By Peace Timi
In Nigeria today, staying online is no longer something you do casually. It now requires planning, restraint and sometimes a small pep talk. Buying data has become one of those decisions you don’t rush into. You pause, you calculate and you ask yourself if you truly need the internet at that moment.
Data subscriptions have quietly become more expensive but what makes the situation more frustrating is how quickly data disappears. You subscribe with confidence, convinced it will last the week, only to get an alert a few days later telling you that 80 percent is already gone. At that point, you start replaying your online activities in your head, wondering what exactly finished it. One video call, a few social media scrolls and some background app refreshes suddenly feel like too much.
The challenge is that being online is no longer optional. Work emails, virtual meetings, job applications, online learning, business promotion and even basic communication all depend on data. Logging off does not feel like rest, it feels like falling behind. For many Nigerians, data is now as essential as transport fare or electricity.
Social media has also changed the game, platforms are built to consume more data than ever before. Videos autoplay, images load in high quality and timelines refresh endlessly. Even when you tell yourself you are only checking something quickly, your data is already being drained. Staying connected now comes with a constant awareness of how much data you have left.
This has however created a new kind of stress as people consciously avoid opening videos, reduce streaming quality, delay replies and even think twice before joining online meetings. Every click feels like a decision. When data finishes unexpectedly, it disrupts plans, delays work and sometimes costs opportunities.
Still, Nigerians adapt, auto-download is turned off without hesitation, midnight plans are treated like secret hacks, people switch between networks depending on which one feels “stronger” that day and when all else fails, the universal question is asked: who has hotspot?
Beyond the humour, data subscription wahala highlights a bigger issue. As the world becomes more digital, the cost of staying online determines access to information, education and economic opportunities. When connectivity becomes expensive, it quietly widens the gap between those who can stay connected and those who cannot.
Data is no longer a luxury, it is a necessity. Yet the way it is priced makes staying online feel like a constant struggle. In Nigeria today, the internet is essential but affording consistent access to it remains a daily challenge.
And that is the real cost of staying online.
