WhatsApp passed 3 billion monthly active users in 2025 according to Meta, sends more than 100 billion messages a day on Meta's last official count, and is the largest messaging app in India, Brazil and Indonesia. More than 200 million businesses use WhatsApp Business products and Meta says paid business messaging crossed a $2 billion annual run rate in late 2025. This page collects the numbers that have a source and answers the questions people ask most: can WhatsApp be hacked, can it be tracked, and can calls be recorded.
WhatsApp by the numbers
| Metric | Figure | Source and date |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly active users | Over 3 billion | Meta announcement, 2025 |
| Daily active users | About 2.3 billion, roughly 83% of monthly | Third-party estimates, 2026 |
| Messages per day | Over 100 billion | Meta, October 2020, the last official figure; third-party 2026 estimates run 130 to 150 billion |
| Voice messages per day | About 7 billion | Third-party estimate, 2026 |
| Countries and languages | 180 plus, 60 plus | |
| Businesses on WhatsApp Business products | Over 200 million | Meta, 2023, reaffirmed since |
| People messaging a business daily | About 175 million | Meta, cited 2025 to 2026 |
| Business-customer conversations per day across Meta apps | Over 1 billion | Meta, June 2026 |
| Paid business messaging revenue | $2 billion annual run rate | Meta, Q4 2025 earnings |
| WhatsApp Business app monthly users | About 764 million | Statista-derived, Q4 2024 |
Two cautions. Meta has not updated the 100 billion messages figure since 2020, so every higher number you see is an estimate. And the widely quoted 98% open rate for WhatsApp marketing has no primary source; measured benchmarks from brands' own data sit lower.
How many WhatsApp users are there in India?
Meta's own stated figure is more than 500 million monthly users, and independent estimates cluster between 530 and 615 million, making India WhatsApp's largest market by a wide margin. Claims of 850 million or more are not credible against India's total internet population of roughly 900 million. India also leads WhatsApp Business adoption: a Kantar study cited by Meta in May 2026 found 91% of online adults in India chat with a business weekly, and India accounts for roughly two thirds of WhatsApp Business app downloads.
After India: Brazil at around 124 to 148 million users, Indonesia at 94 to 112 million, then Mexico, the United States and Germany, per 2026 compilations of Statista and DataReportal data.
Is WhatsApp growing or declining?
Growing slowly. From about 2 billion users in 2020 to over 3 billion in 2025 is a large gain, but the annual rate has fallen to low single digits as the app saturates its core markets. Growth now comes from business messaging and from markets such as the United States, where WhatsApp is smaller than SMS and iMessage and Meta has been advertising it directly.
How does WhatsApp make money?
Not from the consumer app, which stays free and ad-free in chats. Revenue comes from the WhatsApp Business Platform, where companies pay per conversation to message customers at scale, and from click-to-WhatsApp ads bought on Facebook and Instagram. Meta reported that paid messaging passed a $2 billion annual run rate in the fourth quarter of 2025, and Meta's "other revenue" line, which is mostly WhatsApp, was $801 million in that quarter alone.
Can WhatsApp be hacked?
Messages and calls are end-to-end encrypted by default, so the content cannot be read in transit or on Meta's servers. Accounts get taken over in other ways: someone tricks you into sharing the six-digit registration code, a SIM swap moves your number to their phone, or a linked device is added while your phone is unattended. Two-step verification (a PIN WhatsApp asks for when registering your number) blocks the first two, and the Linked devices screen shows the third.
Can WhatsApp be tracked?
The content of chats cannot be read by WhatsApp or Meta. What exists is metadata: who messaged whom, when, and from which device, which WhatsApp holds and can disclose under a valid legal request. Your last-seen, online status, profile photo and about text are visible according to your privacy settings, and a shared live location is exactly that. Nobody can see your location from a message you did not share.
Can WhatsApp calls be recorded?
Not inside WhatsApp; there is no recording feature and end-to-end encryption means WhatsApp cannot record them either. A participant can record on their own device with screen-recording or a second device, which is a legal question that depends on where both people are. WhatsApp voice and video calls are free over data on any plan.
When did WhatsApp launch?
In 2009, by Brian Acton and Jan Koum. Facebook bought it in 2014 for about $19 billion. Business features arrived in 2018 with the WhatsApp Business app, and the paid platform followed.
WhatsApp for business and data export
Groups, contacts and chat histories are where the data lives, and there is no built-in export for any of them beyond one chat at a time from the phone. The Mastros WhatsApp extension exports group members, contacts and chats to CSV, JSON or JSONL (the CSV opens in Excel and Google Sheets), and a chat's media as a ZIP, from WhatsApp Web, in your browser. For backups versus exports see WhatsApp chat backup and export, and for the tool comparison see Best WhatsApp scrapers 2026.
FAQ
How many people use WhatsApp in 2026?
Over 3 billion monthly, per Meta, with about 2.3 billion daily by third-party estimates.
Which country has the most WhatsApp users?
India, at 500 million plus by Meta's statement and up to about 615 million by independent estimates.
How many messages are sent on WhatsApp per day?
More than 100 billion on Meta's last official count, from 2020. Estimates for 2026 run higher.
Is WhatsApp free?
Yes, for people. Businesses pay per conversation on the Business Platform.
Does WhatsApp show ads?
Not in chats. Meta has introduced ads in the Updates tab in some markets; conversations stay ad-free.
Are WhatsApp calls free?
Yes, over Wi-Fi or mobile data. Your carrier's data charges apply.
Sources
Meta announcements and earnings releases (2023 to 2026, including Q4 2025 and Q1 2026); Meta Newsroom on business messaging (June 2026); Kantar study cited by Meta (May 2026); Statista and DataReportal country figures via SQ Magazine, DemandSage, Kanal and Splashify compilations (2026); Chatarmin on measured open rates (August 2026). Last verified September 8, 2026.