Want to get down to the nitty-gritty of one of the most popular apps in the world? Then you’ve come to the right place. The WhatsApp statistics and facts below will provide you with the most relevant and up-to-date data found on the internet.
We will talk about the popularity of WhatsApp, its relevance, and a little bit about the company that runs it. Whether you’re looking for information on its market shares, business model, or simply some fun facts, you can find it all here.
Top 10 WhatsApp Stats and Facts:
- WhatsApp used to make money through a subscription model.
- WhatsApp has over 2 billion active users.
- Egypt has the fastest-growing WhatsApp community, with a growth rate of 162.5% in 2020.
- WhatsApp is more popular than Facebook Messenger — by almost 65%.
- Facebook might have bought WhatsApp in order to access personal information and user-behavior data.
- WhatsApp refused to share encryption keys with government agencies.
- WhatsApp is safe for sexting, as WhatsApp statistics and data show.
- Facebook bought WhatsApp in 2014 for $19 billion.
- WhatsApp is the main and most popular messaging app in all but 25 countries across the globe.
- WhatsApp is used in over 180 countries.
General WhatsApp Info
1. WhatsApp refused to share encryption keys with government agencies.
(Investopedia)
These encryption keys were supposed to be used by governments to fight terrorism. Counter-terrorism agencies determined that many terrorist organizations used WhatsApp to communicate. WhatsApp (i.e. Facebook) refused to share this data.
This may have impacted WhatsApp business statistics and user trust positively, as it showed how far the company would be ready to go just to keep its user information (or at least its decryption models) secret.
2. Jan Koum, the co-founder of WhatsApp, is currently worth $10.1 billion.
(Forbes)
While he sold the company in 2014, he still remained the CEO until 2018. Before founding WhatsApp, he worked for Yahoo for almost nine years.
3. WhatsApp has over 2 billion active users.
(MessengerPeople)
The number of WhatsApp users is staggering. With two billion people in 180+ countries, it has a larger user base than Facebook Messenger, Chinese WeChat, QQ, Instagram, and TikTok.
4. WhatsApp passed the daily 100 billion messages mark on the 31st of December, 2019.
(Financial Express)
WhatsApp is hitting their strides. In 2019, Zuckerberg announced that they finally crossed the 100-billion-messages mark on New Year’s Eve. Now, 100 billion messages a day is almost the norm.
5. WhatsApp is the main and most popular messaging app in all but 25 countries across the globe.
(Bizible Marketing)
The WhatsApp market share is so significant that it’s easier to list the countries in which it is not the messaging app market leader. Moreover, if we take it a step further, only ten countries have market-leading messaging apps that aren’t owned by Facebook.
6. Australia uses WhatsApp as a pandemic info channel.
(Australian Government Department of Health)
In Australia, WhatsApp is not only used for chatting and keeping in touch with friends and family. The government’s department of health uses this app to keep people informed about the pandemic.
WhatsApp Company Data
7. WhatsApp used to make money through a subscription model.
(Investopedia)
At first, WhatsApp revenue was primarily generated through a subscription model, meaning that you paid $1 per year to use the app. However, even this modest price tended to vary. In some countries, all you needed was a one-time $1 payment. In other places, the first year was free, and all subsequent years had to be paid for.
At its peak, this model brought around $700 million per year to the company. In 2016, this model was abandoned, and the app became completely free.
8. Facebook bought WhatsApp in 2014 for $19 billion.
(US Securities and Exchange)
While there is no specific data on the current WhatsApp company value, it means a great deal that six years ago, Facebook shelled out almost $20 billion for the app. While some were not certain how smart of a move that was then, by now, the app’s base has quadrupled, surpassing Facebook Messenger easily.
9. WhatsApp doesn’t have ads, and is aiming at a very specific business model.
(Investopedia)
Unlike most messaging apps, WhatsApp doesn’t have ads. Rather, the WhatsApp revenue model is being developed in a specific way. The company’s goal is to have people communicate with businesses (airplanes, banks…), and then have said companies foot the bill.
10. WhatsApp’s sale could have made every one of its employees a millionaire multiple times over.
(The Conversation)
The most important part of WhatsApp company history came about in 2014, when the company was sold to Facebook for $19 billion. At the time, the company had 55 employees. Essentially, if every employee received an equal share of that money, they would all be multimillionaires, valued at $350 million each.
WhatsApp Demographics
11. Egypt has the fastest-growing WhatsApp community, with a growth rate of 162.5% in 2020.
(Statista)
WhatsApp statistics in 2020 show continual growth for this app. The number one spot is taken by Egypt, which had a 162.5% increase in downloads in the third quarter of 2020 (compared to the second quarter).
India is in second place with an increase of 157.3%, Kenya with 149.9% in third place, Portugal with 129.9% in fourth, and Brazil with 129% in fifth place.
The most likely reason for this staggering increase is the coronavirus pandemic. Due to the pandemic, most people are staying home and trying to keep in touch with their friends, maintaining a long-distance relationship, or just communicating with their families.
12. WhatsApp is more popular than Facebook Messenger — by almost 65%.
(Statista)
On a global level, WhatsApp stats show just how dominating this app really is. As of October 2020, WhatsApp has had around 2 billion global users. In comparison, Facebook Messenger, which came in second place, had 1.3 billion monthly active users.
Facebook Messenger is followed by WeChat (1.2 billion), a Chinese messaging app. QQ is number four with 648, and Snapchat is in fifth place, with 433 million monthly active users.
13. Messaging app growth is exponential.
(Investopedia)
WhatsApp stats show that the app gains almost one million users per day. One of the key factors that lead to its growth is that messaging apps spread exponentially. A member of a social group downloads it, promotes the use of the app, his or her friends and family download it, and so on.
14. Facebook might have bought WhatsApp in order to access personal information and user-behavior data.
(Investopedia)
According to WhatsApp statistics, around 65 billion messages go through WhatsApp every day. This, along with location data and contact lists, means that Facebook (which bought WhatsApp in 2014) has access to a lot of information.
Mark Zuckerberg promised that this info will not be used maliciously, and that it won’t be utilized for consumer targeting. Knowing Facebook’s history, this claim is dubious at best.
15. WhatsApp is safe for sexting, as WhatsApp statistics and data show.
(Insider)
Sexting is everywhere. In fact, 52.3% of adults have sexted relatively recently. Statistics and data have shown that it is one of the most trusted encrypted messaging apps. According to experts, WhatsApp messages cannot be decrypted by any third party.
Experts noted that the drawback of having pictures be automatically saved on a smartphone device can be turned off at any time.
16. In the US, WhatsApp is primarily used by people aged 26-35.
(Statista)
According to WhatsApp facts and demographic statistics, 27% of the app’s US user base is aged 26 to 35. Then, 19% of its US users are between 15 and 25 years old. Around 20% are older than 36 and younger than 45, 17% are between the ages of 46 and 55. Finally, 13% of WhatsApp’s US user base is older than 56.
17. In January of 2020, WhatsApp dropped support for Windows Phone operating systems.
(Money Control)
Many WhatsApp users in 2020 got a nasty surprise. The company dropped support for any phone running Windows OS. Furthermore, v 2.3.3. Androids and iOS 9 or older stopped being able to run WhatsApp in February of 2020.
So, millions of users running Android and iOS devices were notified that they won’t be able to run WhatsApp on their phones.
18. WhatsApp is used in over 180 countries.
(WhatsApp)
There are (roughly) 195 countries in the entire world. This means that WhatsApp can be found in 92.3% of the entire world.
FAQ
Which country has the most WhatsApp users?
India has, by far, the largest number of users. At 340 million users, it has almost three times the users of Brazil, the runner up. Brazil is at 99 million, and the United States has 68.1 million. Fourth place belongs to Indonesia, with 59.9 million, then comes Mexico, with 57.2 million, and Russia, with 54.1 million users.
(Statista)
How many users are on WhatsApp daily?
The number of daily active WhatsApp users has been rising over the years. In the first quarter of 2017, there have been around 175 million active daily users. By the first quarter of 2019, this number has risen up to 500 million.
(Statista)
Conclusion
Our article has a little bit of everything. Whether it’s pure data on revenue and profits, or some fun facts, we got it all. Hopefully, this post gave you a solid overview of the app.
Since 2009, WhatsApp has achieved amazing results. With roughly two billion users across the globe, available in more than 180 countries, it’s one of the most popular apps ever. Our WhatsApp statistics can certainly attest to its success.
