WhatsApp Statistics 2024: Users, Market Share & Revenue
Founded in 2009 by Brian Acton and Jan Koum, WhatsApp has grown into the most popular instant messaging app, with over 2.95 billion monthly active users in 2024. Facebook acquired WhatsApp for approximately $19 billion in 2014, marking one of the largest tech acquisitions ever (and one of the most successful).
Today, these 2.95 billion people exchange over 140 billion messages every day.
In this blog, we unpack the latest WhatsApp statistics and trends, giving you insights into how the app not only shapes global communication and social interaction but also serves as a key marketing tool for businesses to maintain and grow their customer base.
WhatsApp Statistics 2024 (Editor's Picks)
- WhatsApp has more than 2.95 billion monthly active users in 2024 and will cross the 3 billion user mark by the end of the year.
- There are 100 million WhatsApp users in the United States.
- Users exchange over 140 billion messages on WhatsApp daily, out of which 7 billion are voice notes.
- More than 50 million businesses across the world use WhatsApp Business.
- WhatsApp has over 5 billion all-time downloads on the Google Play Store.
- WhatsApp was downloaded 5.1 million times in the United States from the Apple App Stores in the second quarter of 2024.
Brief Overview of WhatsApp
| Launch Date | November 2009 |
| Headquarters | Menlo Park, California |
| Owner | Facebook (Meta) |
| Business Type | Subsidiary |
How many people use WhatsApp?
There are 2.95 billion monthly active WhatsApp users as of 2024, which is a 6.94% increase from the previous year. WhatsApp added 89.72 million new users in the first half of 2024 and is estimated to cross the 3 billion user mark by the end of the year.
The number of active WhatsApp users is further expected to reach 3.14 billion by 2025.
Here's a table showing WhatsApp's monthly active users over the years:
| Year | WhatsApp Users |
| 2010 | 10 million |
| 2011 | 50 million |
| 2012 | 100 million |
| 2013 | 400 million |
| 2014 | 600 million |
| 2015 | 900 million |
| 2016 | 1 billion |
| 2017 | 1.5 billion |
| 2018 | 1.68 billion |
| 2019 | 1.83 billion |
| 2020 | 2.06 billion |
| 2021 | 2.19 billion |
| 2022 | 2.66 billion |
| 2023 | 2.86 billion |
| 2024 | 2.95 billion |
Whatsapp ranks first among the most popular mobile messenger apps globally, followed by WeChat and Facebook Messenger. It is also the third most popular social network worldwide after Facebook and YouTube in terms of monthly active users.
Source: Statista.
WhatsApp User Demographics
Learning about WhatsApp's user base can help businesses and marketers plan their strategies more effectively. Here's a look at WhatsApp’s user demographics in detail:
WhatsApp Users by Age
WhatsApp is most popular among people aged 26 to 35, who make up 27% of its user base.
People over 56 years are the least likely to use WhatsApp, making up only 13% of its users.
The table below shows the distribution of WhatsApp users by age:
| Age Group | User Share |
| 15-25 | 19% |
| 26-35 | 27% |
| 36-45 | 20% |
| 46-55 | 17% |
| 56+ | 13% |
WhatsApp Users by Generation
54% of Millennials use WhatsApp, followed by Gen Z at 51%, Gen X at 48%, and Baby Boomers at 36%.
Most Americans aged 18 to 35 who own a cellphone have installed WhatsApp, according to the company’s studies. This makes it one of Meta’s fastest-growing services in its most mature market.
WhatsApp Users by Race
In the US, over half of Hispanic adults, 54%, and over half of Asian adults, 51%, use WhatsApp. In comparison, only 31% of Black adults and an even smaller percentage of White adults, 20%, use the app.
Whatsapp Users by Gender
WhatsApp's global user base consists of 47.5% females and 52.4% males.
WhatsApp Users by Country
India has the highest number of WhatsApp users, with a headcount of over 535.8 million. Other countries with significant user bases include Brazil (148 million), Indonesia (112 million) and the United States (100 million)
Americans tend to use iMessage or Facebook Messenger more than WhatsApp.
Here's a table showing the number of WhatsApp users by country:
| Country | Number of Whatsapp Users |
| India | 535.8 million |
| Brazil | 148 million |
| Indonesia | 112 million |
| United States | 100 million |
| Philippines | 88 million |
| Mexico | 77 million |
| Russia | 66.7 million |
| Turkey | 60 million |
| Egypt | 56 million |
| Pakistan | 52 million |
WhatsApp User Count in the United States
As per Meta's official report, WhatsApp has over 100 million monthly active users in the United States accounting for 29.8% of the country's population.
The instant messenger was downloaded over 5 million times in the US in the second quarter of 2024.
Number of WhatsApp Messages Sent Each Day
140 billion messages are sent on WhatsApp each day. That translates to 5833 million messages every hour, 97 million messages every minute, and 1.6 million messages every second.
WhatsApp users exchange 7 billion voice notes every day.
The number of messages sent on WhatsApp has increased by 33.33% since 2020, when users exchanged around 100 billion messages daily.
As WhatsApp's user base is expected to surpass 3 billion in 2024, the number of messages sent per day is projected to exceed 157 billion.
The table below shows the number of WhatsApp messages sent daily over the years:
| Year | Number of WhatsApp Messages Exchanged Daily |
| 2011 | 1 billion |
| 2015 | 30 billion |
| 2016 | 42 billion |
| 2017 | 55 billion |
| 2018 | 65 billion |
| 2020 | 100 billion |
| 2023 | 140 billion |
| 2024* | 150 billion |
Source: HT.
WhatsApp Penetration by Country
Brazil has the highest market share of WhatsApp users, with approximately nine out of 10 messaging app users in the country. Following closely, India holds the second position with a penetration rate of 97.1%, while Italy comes in third at 97%.
The US has a lower penetration rate of 41.2% due to popular alternatives like iMessage and Facebook Messenger.
Here is a detailed breakdown in the table below:
| Country | WhatsApp Penetration Rate |
| Brazil | 98.9% |
| India | 97.1% |
| Italy | 97% |
| Argentina | 96% |
| Switzerland | 95.9% |
| Finland | 95.6% |
| Germany | 95.5% |
| Austria | 94.4% |
| Netherlands | 92.9% |
| Spain | 92.2% |
| Mexico | 87.1% |
| Indonesia | 86.4% |
| Russia | 83.7% |
| United Kingdom | 71.3% |
| France | 48% |
| Canada | 42.4% |
| United States | 41.2% |
| Sweden | 33.5% |
| Australia | 32.9% |
WhatsApp Market Share
WhatsApp has a 33% share in the global instant messaging market in 2024.
WhatsApp holds a 41.2% market share in the United States, which is quite low as compared to countries like Brazil and India, where the instant messenger has a 98% market share.
The reason for such a low market share in the United States is that the iPhone has a 57% market share in the country, and iPhone users use iMessage as their primary messenger.
Source: Statista 1, Statista 2.
Average Time Spent on WhatsApp
An average WhatsApp user spends 19.4 hours each month on the app, which translates to about 38 minutes per day.
70% of WhatsApp users check the app every day. Also, users spend over 2 billion minutes a day making voice and video calls through its platform.
WhatsApp's 'status' feature is used daily by over 500 million users worldwide.
Americans spend around 7.6 hours on WhatsApp each month. 53% of WhatsApp users in the United States use the app at least once a day.
Brazil, Indonesia, and Argentina are the top three countries in terms of the average monthly time spent on WhatsApp.
Here's a table showing the average monthly time spent on WhatsApp in different countries:
| Country | Monthly Time Spent by Users on WhatsApp |
| Brazil | 29 hours |
| Indonesia | 29 hours |
| Argentina | 28 hours |
| India | 21 hours |
| United States | 7.6 hours |
| Australia | 6 hours |
WhatsApp Revenue Statistics
WhatsApp’s annual revenue grew from $1.3 billion to $1.5 billion between 2018 and 2023. This growth is part of a broader trend, as seen in the revenue figures below.
WhatsApp contributes only a small fraction of Facebook’s total revenue. The majority of its income comes from WhatsApp for Business, where businesses are charged for usage after 1,000 conversations.
The app was founded in 2009 by Brian Acton and Jan Koum, former employees of Yahoo! Shortly after its launch, they secured $2,50,000 in seed funding.
In 2014, Facebook (now Meta) acquired WhatsApp for $19 billion. Meta's second biggest property is now WhatsApp, after Facebook and Instagram.
Here’s an estimate of WhatsApp’s annual revenue by year:
| Year | Revenue |
| 2012 | $3.82 million |
| 2013 | $10.21 million |
| 2014 | $15.29 million |
| 2016 | $200 million |
| 2018 | $1.3 billion |
| 2023 | $1.5 billion |
WhatsApp Business Statistics
More than 50 million companies across the world use WhatsApp Business, a version of the app designed specifically for business use, allowing companies to interact with their customers more effectively. This feature is a significant contributor to WhatsApp's revenue.
WhatsApp business reached over 200 million monthly active users in 2023, up from 50 million in 2020. This means the app’s user base grew four times larger in three years.
Meta launched WhatsApp Business in 2018. It was initially designed with small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in mind.
More than 40 million people view a business catalog on WhatsApp every month to discover new products and services.
Messages sent using the WhatsApp Business API are opened 98% of the time, while the average email open rate is just above 21%.
Wrapping Up
WhatsApp remains the top choice for messaging worldwide, with over 2.95 billion monthly users and 140 billion messages daily. Recent updates like multi-device support and improved privacy show their commitment to user convenience and security.
Looking forward, WhatsApp aims to integrate more with Meta platforms, innovate its tools, and expand business features to boost engagement and utility. These efforts ensure WhatsApp stays essential for personal communication and business expansion into 2024 and beyond.
