A new survey says 474 million people worldwide are now accessing the internet from home.
Nielsen NetRatings found 15 million more households logged on last quarter.
The US has the most web users, with 186 million people or 39 per cent of its entire population online.
The Europe the Middle East and Africa have 128 million and Asia Pacific 104 million.
Nielsen NetRatings analyst Mr Richard Goosey says the survey shows the medium is becoming an accepted part of everyday life in these regions, citing a noticeable slowing in annual growth rates.
He says other regions - such as Latin America - are catching up and can expect a strong surge in internet access over the next twelve months.
The data was drawn from more than 40,000 surveys conducted between June and September.
PA