WhatsApp is one of the most popular messaging apps in the world, with over 2 billion active users as of 2022. With so many users constantly sending messages, photos, videos and more, WhatsApp requires a massive backend infrastructure to handle all of that data.
How Many Users Does WhatsApp Have?
As mentioned, WhatsApp has over 2 billion monthly active users worldwide as of 2022. It is by far the most popular messaging app globally, with India being its biggest market with over 400 million users alone. Other top countries for WhatsApp include Brazil, Indonesia, Mexico and Russia.
WhatsApp started in 2009 and was acquired by Facebook in 2014. Since then, its user base has exploded as smartphones became more prevalent globally. It has steadily risen to over 2 billion active users in just a decade.
How Many Messages Are Sent Via WhatsApp Daily?
With over 2 billion active users, there is an immense volume of messages sent via WhatsApp every single day. According to WhatsApp, here are some stats on daily usage:
- Over 100 billion messages are sent daily
- Over 55 billion messages are sent every day in India alone
- There are over 42 billion WhatsApp video and voice calls made per day
- On New Year’s Eve 2020, a record 1.4 billion WhatsApp voice and video calls were made
Considering the average WhatsApp message is estimated to be around 200-300 bytes with media attachments, the amount of data being transferred daily via WhatsApp is massive.
How Much Storage Does WhatsApp Require?
To handle billions of messages, media files and more sent each day, WhatsApp requires a huge amount of storage capacity across its servers worldwide. Here are some estimates on WhatsApp’s storage needs:
- WhatsApp likely stores user messages for 30 days after they are sent, requiring significant storage.
- Media files like photos and videos take up large amounts of storage space.
- WhatsAppVoice messages also require storage capacity.
- User profile data, contact lists and group data takes up storage.
- Billions of private and group chats are stored across WhatsApp’s servers.
Experts estimate that in 2020, WhatsApp was utilizing around 600-700 petabytes of storage across its servers for all user data. For reference, 1 petabyte can store around 500 billion pages of standard text.
WhatsApp’s Server Infrastructure
To provide reliable service to over 2 billion users globally, WhatsApp has built extensive server infrastructure consisting of:
- Hundreds of thousands of physical servers located in server farms across the world.
- Multiple load balancers to distribute message traffic across data centers.
- Billions spent annually on servers and infrastructure.
- High bandwidth fiber optic connections between data centers.
- Caching servers to improve speed and reduce server load.
- Third-party cloud hosting services like AWS and Google Cloud.
WhatsApp operates over 20 data centers around the world to provide low-latency connections to users globally. Major locations include California, Singapore, Netherlands, Virginia and Texas.
Key Aspects of WhatsApp’s Infrastructure
Here are some key aspects of how WhatsApp has built out their backend infrastructure:
- Erlang virtual machines – WhatsApp uses Erlang OTP platform to power most backend functions. It provides high concurrency, availability and fault tolerance.
- FreeBSD OS – The Erlang VMs run on FreeBSD, an open source Unix OS known for efficiency and reliability.
- Custom load balancers – WhatsApp built their own load balancers to evenly distribute message traffic across thousands of application servers.
- Servers across the world – WhatsApp points of presence are located globally to provide low-latency for all users.
- Multiple copies of user data – User data including messages are replicated across multiple data centers to prevent data loss.
How WhatsApp Scales Infrastructure
To scale up their backend as usage has grown, WhatsApp has utilized some key strategies:
- Adding more physical servers and expanding data centers as needed.
- Migrating certain functions to managed cloud platforms like AWS and Google Cloud.
- Load testing infrastructure to find and eliminate bottlenecks.
- Implementing content delivery networks to cache media files closer to users.
- Optimizing and refining server software code to utilize hardware efficiently.
- Building redundancy across systems to maintain uptime during spikes in traffic.
Major WhatsApp Infrastructure Milestones
Here are some key milestones that demonstrate how WhatsApp has massively scaled up its infrastructure over the years:
- In 2012, WhatsApp was handling 10 billion daily messages on just 50 engineers and a handful of servers.
- In 2014 after being acquired by Facebook, WhatsApp expanded to hundreds of engineers and new data centers.
- By 2015 WhatsApp was handling 30 billion daily messages.
- In 2016 WhatsApp expanded to over 1 million servers to reach 1 billion users.
- By 2020 WhatsApp was on track to handle 100 billion daily messages across its infrastructure.
WhatsApp went from just a few overloaded servers in its early days to now operating one of the largest real-time messaging backends on the planet – capable of handling over 100 billion daily messages across over 2 billion users.
How Does WhatsApp’s Infrastructure Compare?
WhatsApp operates one of the largest messaging infrastructures ever built. Here is how it compares to some other major platforms:
| Platform | Daily Messages | Storage Needs |
|---|---|---|
| 100+ billion | 600-700 PB | |
| Facebook Messenger | 60+ billion | 500+ PB |
| 45+ billion | 300+ PB | |
| Telegram | 2+ billion | 50+ PB |
As you can see, WhatsApp far exceeds other messaging apps in daily message volume and storage requirements. Only Facebook’s own Messenger comes close in terms of infrastructure size.
How Much Does WhatsApp’s Infrastructure Cost?
Operating an infrastructure the size of WhatsApp’s comes with massive costs. Here are some estimates on what WhatsApp has to spend on its backend:
- Likely over $1 billion per year on data centers, servers, network gear and physical infrastructure.
- Hundreds of millions on cloud services from AWS, Google Cloud and others.
- High costs for leasing data center spaces in prime locations globally.
- Hundreds of millions on R&D, software optimization and scaling infrastructure as usage grows.
- Tens of millions on IT staff, engineers, developers and support teams.
In total, experts estimate WhatsApp spends at least $3-5 billion per year on infrastructure, maintenance and growth of its messaging backend.
Thankfully, revenues from WhatsApp business messaging tools and optional in-app purchases help offset these high infrastructure expenses for the app.
Future Infrastructure Plans
WhatsApp shows no signs of slowing down its infrastructure growth. Here are some of their future plans:
- Expanding data centers closer to emerging market users.
- Migration of more services to public cloud providers.
- Scaling to support over 2.5 billion users in coming years.
- Localized infrastructure for WhatsApp payment services.
- Optimization using AI to predict infrastructure needs.
- Infrastructure to support new features like WhatsApp Cloud API.
WhatsApp will need to continue expanding its backend infrastructure to support new features and its growing user base, especially in crucial emerging markets like India, Brazil and Indonesia.
Conclusion
WhatsApp operates an enormously complex and large infrastructure to provide reliable messaging services to over 2 billion users globally. Their backend includes hundreds of thousands of servers, over 20 data centers, and an estimated 600-700 petabytes of user data storage.
To build out this infrastructure, WhatsApp spends billions of dollars annually on data centers, servers, cloud services, IT teams and continuous improvement of their systems. As WhatsApp grows, so too will its messaging infrastructure as it solidifies its position as the top global messaging application.