Introduction
WhatsApp is recognized as the most widely used messaging application globally, boasting over 3 billion active users each month across more than 180 nations. It serves as a vital medium for both personal and professional communication, with over 100 billion messages exchanged daily and 200 million businesses utilizing the platform. Originally launched in 2009, it was purchased by Facebook (now known as Meta) in 2014 for $19 billion, and it continues to expand in both popularity and functionality.
WhatsApp has been focusing on broadening its product offerings, exemplified by the introduction of WhatsApp Business in January 2018 and the rollout of WhatsApp Channels in September 2023. During the first half of 2024, WhatsApp Channels attracted nearly 40 million monthly active users in the European Union alone, with users in the area engaging with newsletters and content from their selected sources. Given the substantial user base on WhatsApp, the platform will be designated as a “Very Large Online Platform” and will be obligated to adhere to new requirements under the EU’s Digital Services Act.
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- WhatsApp was founded in February 2009 by Brian Acton and Jan Koum, both of whom had prior experience at Yahoo!
- Over 3.14 billion individuals utilize WhatsApp every month, establishing it as one of the most widely used mobile messaging applications globally.
- According to a report on Meta’s website, WhatsApp had connected 2 billion users globally by February 2020.
- WhatsApp is accessible in more than 180 nations and supports nearly 60 languages.
- More than 100 billion messages are transmitted via WhatsApp daily.
- As of June 2022, the WhatsApp Business application has achieved over 292 million downloads.
- Estimates suggest that WhatsApp Business generated nearly $300 million in revenue during 2021.
- A significant portion of WhatsApp Web’s social media traffic originates from YouTube, accounting for 55.54%.
- 1 in 2 WhatsApp users in the U.S. utilize the app at least once daily, while 78% of users engage with it every week.
Historical Facts
- WhatsApp was founded in February 2009 by Brian Acton and Jan Koum, both of whom had prior experience at Yahoo!
- Koum selected the name WhatsApp to echo the phrase “what’s up”.
- On February 24, 2009, Koum formally incorporated WhatsApp Inc. in California.
- The launch of WhatsApp 2.0 for iPhone in August 2009 introduced a uniquely designed messaging feature; this resulted in a rapid increase in active users, reaching 250,000.
- In 2010, Google made multiple acquisition offers for WhatsApp, all of which were declined.
- By August 2014, WhatsApp had emerged as the foremost messaging application worldwide, with over 600 million users.
- As of early January 2015, WhatsApp boasted 700 million monthly users and handled more than 30 billion messages each day.
- By September 2015, the user count had grown to 900 million, and by February 2016, it hit one billion.
- In September 2017, Brian Acton, co-founder of WhatsApp, left the company to create a non-profit organization, which was later recognized as the Signal Foundation, responsible for developing the competing app Signal.
- In January 2018, WhatsApp launched WhatsApp Business, targeting small enterprises.
- In April 2018, Jan Koum, co-founder and CEO of WhatsApp, declared his plan to exit the company.
- In March 2020, WhatsApp partnered with the World Health Organization and UNICEF to create messaging hotlines for individuals seeking information about the COVID-19 pandemic.
General WhatsApp Statistics and Facts
- Over 3.14 billion individuals utilize WhatsApp on a monthly basis, establishing it as one of the most widely used mobile messaging applications globally.
- WhatsApp ranks as the second most popular free application on the Google Play Store and is the eighth most downloaded app across the globe.
- India boasts the highest number of monthly active WhatsApp users, totalling 535.8 million.
- WhatsApp achieved the remarkable feat of processing over 1 billion messages in just one day.
- In 2021, WhatsApp experienced a significant loss of users, resulting in a 17% decline in downloads due to concerns regarding user terms and privacy issues.
- As of 2024, more than 50 million businesses around the world utilize WhatsApp for their operations.
- WhatsApp is accessible in over 180 countries and supports 60 different languages.
- 73% of WhatsApp users engage with the app on Android devices, while 22% access it via iOS.
- In 2014, Facebook acquired WhatsApp for an astounding sum of $19.6 billion.
- WhatsApp is prohibited in 6 countries: Iran, China, the United Arab Emirates, Syria, North Korea, and Cuba.
- 69% of internet users, excluding those in China, utilize WhatsApp.
- 83% of WhatsApp users check the application on a daily basis.
- WhatsApp employs only 2,500 engineers to support its vast user base.
- Following its acquisition by Facebook, WhatsApp’s user base surged from 400 million in 2014 to 1.3 billion by 2017.
WhatsApp Users Statistics
- According to a report on Meta’s website, WhatsApp had connected 2 billion users globally by February 2020.
- However, a report from Statista indicates that WhatsApp is projected to have reached 3 billion unique active users by June 2024, reflecting a 7% increase from June 2023.
- As of 2024, it stands as the largest communication platform for smartphone users worldwide. This growth is unsurprising, given the expansion of its user base since April 2013, when it recorded approximately 200 million monthly active users.
- Moreover, between June and August 2024, WhatsApp was ranked 4th among all mobile applications based on total monthly active users, trailing behind YouTube, Chrome Browser, and Google, which occupy the top three positions.
WhatsApp Usage by Country Statistics
- WhatsApp is accessible in more than 180 nations and supports nearly 60 languages.
- India, Brazil, and the United States rank as the top three countries with the largest WhatsApp user base.
- With 390.1 million users, India holds the record for the most WhatsApp users worldwide.
- Following India are Brazil and the United States, with 108.4 million and 75.1 million users, respectively.
- Russia has experienced the most significant growth, with a 17% increase in monthly active WhatsApp users.
- Conversely, Austria has recorded the least growth at 7.3% in its WhatsApp monthly active users.
- Countries such as Syria, China, North Korea, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, and Cuba have imposed restrictions or outright bans on WhatsApp.
- Kenya boasts the highest user penetration rate at 97%, whereas India has the lowest at 64%.
Statistics of WhatsApp Chat
- More than 100 billion messages are transmitted via WhatsApp daily.
- This equates to approximately 41.7 million messages every hour, 694,444 messages each minute, and 11,574 messages every second.
- Nearly 2 billion minutes are utilized daily for WhatsApp calls.
- The platform’s voice and video calling feature can support up to 8 participants.
- The volume of messages sent through WhatsApp has risen by 53.8% since 2018.
- Almost 6.9 billion images are exchanged in WhatsApp chats every day.
- WhatsApp only consumes kilobytes of data when a message is sent through the platform.
- Sending video files requires more than 1 MB of data.
WhatsApp Business Statistics Statistics
- As of June 2022, the WhatsApp Business application has achieved over 292 million downloads.
- Globally, more than 5 million businesses are making use of WhatsApp Business.
- On average, users dedicate 9.3 hours each month to the WhatsApp Business application.
- Every day, 175 million users engage with WhatsApp Business accounts.
- The WhatsApp Business application boasts the highest conversion rate, ranging from 45-60%, in contrast to merely 2-5% for emails and SMS.
- The WhatsApp Business API is capable of sending broadcasts to as many as 100,000 users.
- The engagement rate for 1 million confirmed WhatsApp Business accounts stands at 1.72%, whereas non-verified accounts exhibit a rate of 1.39%.
- Projections indicate that the WhatsApp Chatbot will save 2.5 billion business hours in 2023.
- The search volume for WhatsApp Business has experienced a year-over-year increase of 24.2%.
- WhatsApp Business has significantly enhanced customer service speed by an impressive 225%.
- Companies have reported a 27% rise in sales through WhatsApp.
- There has been a 20% growth in conversions via the WhatsApp Business application.
WhatsApp Revenue Statistics
- In October 2009, Koum and his colleagues, who were employed at Yahoo, contributed $250,000 as initial funding for WhatsApp.
- In 2014, Facebook acquired WhatsApp for $19.6 billion, which was equivalent to shares of Facebook valued at $21.8 billion.
- At the time of the acquisition, WhatsApp’s ownership stake represented 10% of Facebook’s overall market value.
- For WhatsApp businesses, the average revenue per user was projected to be $0.24 in 2021.
- Globally, Europe recorded the highest annual revenue per user (ARPU) for WhatsApp business, generating an estimated $1.21 per user utilizing the service.
- Estimates suggest that WhatsApp Business generated nearly $300 million in revenue during 2021.
- The estimated revenue from the Asia-Pacific region for WhatsApp was the highest, with over $113.5 million spent on the premium version of the popular instant messaging platform.
- Customers in Latin America were estimated to have spent $89.4 million on WhatsApp business, placing them in second place.
Statistics of WhatsApp Web
- WhatsApp Web enables users to utilize WhatsApp directly through their web browsers without the necessity of downloading the application, thereby facilitating the use of WhatsApp on a personal computer.
- WhatsApp Web attracts approximately 2.5 billion unique visits each month.
- Between April and June 2023, WhatsApp Web experienced a total of 8.79 billion visits.
- On average, users dedicate around 21 minutes and 56 seconds to each session on WhatsApp Web.
- A remarkable 95% of messages transmitted via WhatsApp Web are read within a 24-hour timeframe.
- The majority of users engage with WhatsApp Web during the hours of 7 PM to 9 PM.
- A significant portion of WhatsApp Web’s social media traffic originates from YouTube, accounting for 55.54%.
- WhatsApp Web is specifically tailored for desktop or laptop browsers and is compatible with widely used browsers such as Google Chrome, Firefox, Microsoft Edge, Opera, and Safari. It is not compatible with mobile browsers.
WhatsApp Chatbot Statistics
- Chatbots, including those on WhatsApp, are projected to save both consumers and businesses more than 2.5 billion hours in customer service by the year 2023.
- 4 billion individuals utilize messaging applications and express a willingness to engage with chatbots.
- Since 2019, chatbots have experienced a 92% increase in usage, establishing them as the communication channel for brands with the most significant growth.
- 54% of consumers prefer to use WhatsApp Business and similar communication platforms for customer service and support inquiries. Additionally, 42% of these consumers utilize WhatsApp Business for questions prior to making a purchase.
- 65% of shoppers are inclined to make purchases from businesses that offer messaging capabilities.
- 55% of companies that implement chatbots report generating a higher volume of quality leads.
WhatsApp U.S. Statistics
- In 2019, there were 98 million mobile phone users in the United States who accessed WhatsApp.
- 1 in 2 WhatsApp users in the U.S. utilize the app at least once daily, while 78% of users engage with it on a weekly basis.
- Users of WhatsApp in the United States dedicate less than 7.6 hours each month to the application.
- The age group with the largest number of WhatsApp users in the United States is between 26 and 35 years.
Number of WhatsApp Downloads Statistics
- In 2013, the total number of WhatsApp downloads reached 500 million, a number that has increased to over 1 billion by January 2025.
- WhatsApp Messenger has surpassed 5 billion downloads on the Google Play Store, securing the #2 position among the leading free applications available.
- Moreover, WhatsApp Business has garnered over 500 million downloads from Android users through the Google Play Store.
- The average rating for WhatsApp Messenger on the Google Play Store is 4.2 out of 5.0, derived from 204 million reviews.
- On the iOS App Store, WhatsApp Messenger maintains a rating of 4.7 out of 5.0, supported by 119.4K ratings.
WhatsApp Fun Facts
- WhatsApp was established in 2009 by Brian Acton and Jan Koum.
- In October 2009, Brian Acton obtained $250,000 in initial funding for WhatsApp.
- They attracted $8 million in venture capital funding, and by February 2013, WhatsApp had expanded to over 200 million users.
- In 2014, Facebook acquired WhatsApp for 19 billion dollars.
- Over 55 million video calls are conducted daily on WhatsApp.
- The Status feature of WhatsApp, which is akin to Instagram Stories, is utilized by more than 500 million users each day.
- The name WhatsApp is a play on the phrase ‘What’s up’ in English, which translates to ‘What is happening?’
Recent Developments
- WhatsApp introduced a refreshed interface in 2025, changing the layout for easier navigation. The app now features tabs for Chats, Updates, Communities, and Calls closer to the thumb for quick access. This update also included new iconography, colors, and spacing improvements, aligning WhatsApp’s visuals with Meta’s broader design system.
- 78% of US consumers used WhatsApp on a weekly basis in the third quarter of 2024, and in 2025, WhatsApp processed billions of messages daily, with estimates suggesting hundreds of billions exchanged each month across its user base.
- Among major countries, WhatsApp’s audience skews youngest in the 26-35 age group, not only in the US but globally. Russia had over 66 mn WhatsApp users in 2024, although regulatory tensions threaten future service continuity.
WhatsApp Future Predictions
- WhatsApp’s Business Platform adoption is increasing, expected to reach 400 million users by 2026, with enterprise integrations expected to grow at 25% annually as more companies automate customer engagement.
- Analysis expects WhatsApp’s in-app payment transactions to exceed $20 billion annually by 2027, driven by e-commerce integrations and global availability.
- WhatsApp supports in-chat purchases and payments expansion to more regions by late 2025, offering one-click checkouts and smart order tracking.
Conclusion
WhatsApp is the most widely utilized messaging application globally, boasting over 3 billion active users each month. This popularity is fueled by its extensive international presence, particularly in nations such as India, and a substantial share of internet users. It has evolved into an essential resource for personal and professional communication, characterized by a significant daily exchange of messages and calls. Furthermore, businesses are progressively adopting it for customer service, marketing, and support purposes. Its position as a fundamental communication tool is reinforced by features such as WhatsApp Business and Channels, which facilitate direct engagement with customers and the distribution of content.
