After WhatsApp was launched in 2010, it quickly reached 200 million active users. Outside of Blackberry’s BBM, WhatsApp became a unique free platform to offer users quick messaging services.
Soon after, WhatsApp included multimedia messaging so users could express themselves much better. It made the platform more popular. In just 3 years, WhatsApp had more than 200 million active users.
As of 2023, this platform is known to have 2.24 billion people, making it one of the most popular messaging apps.
With WhatsApp becoming popular among people, brands took the opportunity to market and sell their products through it. WhatsApp has made it possible for businesses to contact several customers.
Keep reading the post to learn interesting statistics and facts about WhatsApp.
WhatsApp Key Statistics
While there are other messaging platforms, WhatsApp remains the leader in this sector. Why? Because it regularly adds interesting features like video calling, voice calling, group chats, and more.
Additionally, WhatsApp has added payment features in two of its biggest markets, i.e., India and Brazil. Globally, the platform offers its services in 100 countries.
Here’s a brief of WhatsApp Key Statistics:
- Worldwide, WhatsApp is known to have over 2 billion active users, with India at the top.
- WhatsApp has 5 billion downloads on iOS and Android.
- As of the year 2022, WhatsApp has generated an estimated $906 million from the WhatsApp for Business app.
- More than half of WhatsApp users use the platform through Android, while iOS users are only 22%.
- In 2014, WhatsApp was purchased by Facebook for $19.6 billion. It was the largest tech acquisition.
- While WhatsApp has a global presence, it is banned in 6 countries, including China, Syria, Iran, UAE, North Korea, and Cuba.
WhatsApp Overview
- Launch Date: 24 February 2009
- Headquarters: Menlo Park, California
- People: Jan Koum, Will Cathcart, and Brian Acton
- Business Type: Subsidiary
- Owner: Facebook
WhatsApp Revenue
WhatsApp constitutes a very small part of Facebook’s overall revenue.
Almost all the revenue comes from WhatsApp for Business, as the app charges brands after 1,000 conversations.
WhatsApp Annual Revenue ($mm)
| Date | Revenue ($mm) |
| 2018 | 443 |
| 2019 | 507 |
| 2020 | 632 |
| 2021 | 790 |
| 2022 | 906 |
WhatsApp Users
Over the years, WhatsApp has become a widely used app for messaging. But how many people use it? As per the latest report revealed by Facebook, this messaging app has over 2.24 billion users.
After WhatsApp’s release, the number of its active users has increased. In fact, the app saw a 200x growth in just a decade.
The below table shows the number of WhatsApp’s annual users since 2012:
WhatsApp Annual Users (mm)
| Year | Users (mm) |
| 2012 | 103 |
| 2013 | 213 |
| 2014 | 409 |
| 2015 | 719 |
| 2016 | 1076 |
| 2017 | 1323 |
| 2018 | 1560 |
| 2019 | 1813 |
| 2020 | 2102 |
| 2021 | 2289 |
| 2022 | 2413 |
In terms of monthly active users, WhatsApp is ahead of Facebook and WeChat. During the pandemic, the platform saw a massive spike of 40% in users.
Each year, the number of WhatsApp’s active users has increased, making it a popular way to communicate worldwide.
WhatsApp Users by Country
WhatsApp has established itself as a trusted app, but which country uses it the most?
According to a report, India has the most monthly active users, followed by Brazil and the USA.
WhatsApp Users By Country 2022 (mm)
| Country | Number of Users (mm) |
| India | 390 |
| Brazil | 148 |
| Indonesia | 112 |
| USA | 98 |
| Philippines | 88 |
| Mexico | 56 |
| Turkey | 55 |
| Egypt | 44 |
| Germany | 40 |
| Italy | 35 |
WhatsApp Cumulative Downloads
The WhatsApp download is another proof of the app’s popularity. As of August 2022, the app is known to have 11 million downloads and 3 million downloads for the WhatsApp Business app.
Throughout the world, WhatsApp has become the 4th most non-game app. It has more downloads than Telegram and Facebook Messenger.
WhatsApp Cumulative Downloads (bn)
| Year | Downloads (bn) |
| 2013 | 0.5 |
| 2014 | 0.8 |
| 2015 | 1.2 |
| 2016 | 2 |
| 2017 | 2.9 |
| 2018 | 3.4 |
| 2019 | 4.3 |
| 2020 | 4.9 |
| 2021 | 5.3 |
| 2022 | 13 |
Number of WhatsApp Messages Sent Per Day
As millions of people use WhatsApp every day, it’s not a secret that the app sends a large number of messages per day.
Roughly 100 billion messages are exchanged each day through WhatsApp.
WhatsApp Daily Messages Sent (bn)
| Year | Number of Messages Sent (bn) |
| 2011 | 1 |
| 2015 | 30 |
| 2016 | 42 |
| 2017 | 55 |
| 2018 | 65 |
| 2020 | 100 |
| 2022 | 100+ |
With the increase in the number of WhatsApp’s active users, the number of messages exchanged through the platform has also increased.
It clearly shows that WhatsApp has globally become a go-to messaging app.
WhatsApp Business Statistics
After WhatsApp Business was released in 2018, smaller businesses started using it to connect with their customers. At present, most brands use this messaging app to attract more customers.
Here are interesting WhatsApp Statistics and Facts:
- Globally, WhatsApp Business is used by more than 50 billion companies.
- As of 2022, WhatsApp Business was downloaded 500 million times.
- WhatsApp Business helps brands to increase their sales by 127% and conversation rate by 120%.
- Businesses using this app are likely to increase their customer service by 225%.
- Daily 175 million people use WhatsApp Business to connect.
- The highest number of WhatsApp Business is generated from the Asia-Pacific region, with 779 million businesses and customers interacting through this platform.
WhatsApp FAQ
Ques 1: In which year WhatsApp saw the most downloads?
Ans: WhatsApp was downloaded the most in 2017 and 2019, with 924 and 850 downloads, respectively.
Ques 2: How many internet users use WhatsApp?
Ans: Roughly 69% of internet users use WhatsApp, excluding China.
Ques 3: How much activity does WhatsApp receive each day?
Ans: WhatsApp is estimated to witness 100 billion activities, with 2 billion minutes spent on WhatsApp voice and video calls.
Ques 4: In how many countries WhatsApp offers its services?
Ans: WhatsApp is popularly used in 60 countries. It includes 60 languages.
Ques 5: What is WhatsApp valuation in 2023?
Ans: According to some reports, a WhatsApp user is worth $44. With a current base of 2.24 billion users, WhatsApp is estimated to have a 98.56 billion valuation in 2023.
