Facebook Messenger Has 1.3 Billion Monthly Users

September 18, 2017

This just in: even as your mom and grandma learn to use Facebook, tons of people around the world still use aspects of the platform every day to communicate with one another.

Back in 2014, Facebook made users rip off a band-aid and download a separate app to send messages to their friends—and it looks like we’ve all gotten over it, as the social media giant told Yahoo Finance that 1.3 billion people use Facebook Messenger every month. Back in April, it was reported 1.2 billion people used it, representing a huge jump of 100 million people over five months.

Facebook also stated that over 400 million people call or video chat through Messenger every month as well. Just in case you wanted to know, users send over 25,000 GIFS a minute through the app.

For the first time, Facebook shared details on how Messenger Day is being used, which is a feature very similar to Snapchat and Facebook-owned Instagram Stories features. Up to 70 million people post photos and videos each day on Messenger Day, according to Facebook’s head of research David Marcus. For comparison, it was reported in June that over 250 million people use Instagram Stories daily.

In a chat with Yahoo Finance, Marcus stated that the way to increase usage of Messenger is by making sure every kind of company has a profile and interacts with customers through the platform.

“Of the roughly 70 million businesses currently on Facebook, over 20 million of those respond to customers via Messenger,” reads the piece.

Many businesses have begun to use chatbots to respond to customers. These bots can help people order something, provide basic information or check the status of an order, among other uses. As chat bots become more and more popular, Messenger will likely see an uptick from users who want to interact with companies and ask basic questions.

Facebook Messenger has grown from 40 employees to over 500 in the last three years, seeing updates roll out at least once a week now. There are loads of features built into the app now, from Spotify recommendations to the ability to transfer money.

As for now, the road to the next billion users will come directly from wide-spread adoption of chatbots and virtual assistants. As more people grow accustomed to interacting with AI and more companies bring on chatbots, text-based chat platforms like Messenger will only grow in scope and size.