When it comes to instant messaging apps, there is no other app that can come close to WhatsApp, as it is being used by over 2.5 Billion users worldwide. The reason for its popularity is pretty straightforward. It is easy to use, and it is pretty safe and secure.
You can use this app for completely free, and that’s why a lot of people wonder how does WhatsApp make money without being paid?
I’ll clear your doubts with this post if you have the same question. Let’s jump right into it.
How Does WhatsApp Make Money?
WhatsApp makes money by providing services like WhatsApp Business API and payment fees when users transfer money via WhatsApp Pay which was recently launched. These are the two major sources of income for WhatsApp as of now but in the coming days, we may see a few changes.
Let me talk about these two things in a detailed way to help you understand them slightly better.
1. Understanding WhatsApp Bussiness API?
WhatsApp Business API is a way to get in touch with your customers on WhatsApp with advanced features like automated replies and interactive messages by paying a small fee.
Business owners can have a free chat with the customers for the first 24 hours; after that, they’ll have to pay per message they send. The fee may vary depending on the country you are in and where you want to send the message.
Like a normal WhatsApp user, business owners can connect with anyone worldwide without having to carry their mobile to send the replies, as they can set automated replies as per their requirements.
Don’t get confused between a WhatsApp Business and WhatsApp Business API because they are different. WhatsApp Business is completely free to use, but it is suitable only for small businesses. In contrast, WhatsApp Business API is paid, and it comes with many advanced features as I have mentioned above.
WhatsApp Business API is one of the two major sources of income for WhatsApp, launched in late 2018. Since then, they are improving this technology to meet the requirements of both business owners and customers (users).
2. Payment Fees:
After seeing the huge success of Google Pay, WhatsApp has entered the race in the instant payment apps. Users now want to pay without carrying cash or credit cards, and If you are someone like that, you will love WhatsApp Pay.
If a user transfers a specific amount, let’s say $100 in any offline store, the user won’t be charged anything extra however, the business owner will have to pay a fee of 3.99%, and in this case, $3.99 will be deducted from that $100 payment.
Currently, WhatsApp is only available in a limited number of countries, and the biggest market for WhatsApp Pay is, India, where more than 100 million users are allowed to use this payment system. Apart from India, WhatsApp is available in Brazil too. This is how WhatsApp is currently making money right now.
Many ask If WhatsApp is profitable, and the answer is pretty simple. WhatsApp has very little profitability compared to Facebook as it doesn’t serve ads to its users. Still, things are changing slowly with WhatsApp Business API and WhatsApp Pay, and it may become even more profile in the coming days than it is now.
Initial Revenue Method Of WhatsApp:
Before Meta (Previously Facebook) acquired WhatsApp, users had to pay a yearly fee of $1 to use their messaging app. The original owner of the app wanted the users to pay this yearly fee to use the product (app) without any ads.
After Meta acquired it, they got rid of this yearly charge of $1 and made the app free forever, and that’s why even today, users don’t have to pay even a penny to access this app. Till now, there are no ads on WhatsApp despite making it free for everyone, and hopefully, it’ll be just like this in the future too.
Does WhatsApp Make Money From Data?
There is no specific answer available to this question. Many people wonder If WhatsApp makes money from selling data to third parties for advertisements, but there is no evidence of that.
Unlike Facebook, whose primary source of income is via advertisements, and the advertisements can only be created If you share the users’ data with advertisers, that’s not the case with WhatsApp.
There are no ads, and apart from a few rumors, there is no solid evidence stating that WhatsApp shares its users’ data to earn some money.
How Much Does WhatsApp Earn Per Day?
The annual income of WhatsApp is around $700 million, and If we split the amount and calculate the average earnings per day, the number would come to $1.9 million.
You have the number now if you wonder how much WhatsApp makes daily. The numbers are just estimates, and the exact number only be known to the company’s members.
Frequently Asked Questions:
As of 2023, WhatsApp is valued at nearly $100 Billion because of its massive user base of over 2.5 Billion. WhatsApp is the third most used app in the world after Facebook and Instagram, and with a large set of users, WhatsApp has a huge valuation of around $100 Billion.
Yes, Mark Zuckerberg owns WhatsApp after acquiring the messaging app from Brian Acton in 2014. Mark Zuckerberg isn’t only the owner of WhatsApp; he also owns Facebook and Instagram, which billions of users use daily.
WhatsApp is being used most by India, with over 450 million users. The main reason behind that is, India is the second most populated country with over 1.4 billion people. After India, WhatsApp is used mostly by Brazil, with over 100 million users.
No, there is no monthly or yearly fee to use WhatsApp.
Conclusion:
After acquiring WhatsApp, Mark Zuckerberg didn’t want to annoy their users with an annual fee of $1, and he made it free forever, and that’s why a lot of people wonder how WhatsApp make money despite being free. I hope you may have got the answer with this quick post.
If you have any other questions related to WhatsApp, do let me know in the comments, and I’ll get back to you very soon. Thanks.
Since 2014 I have been writing about tech and helping others to fix tech issues related to Android, Windows, iOS, Chromebook, and more.
I love to help others to fix any technical issues they might be facing.
