imessage.jpgDuring today's annual stockholders meeting, Apple CEO Tim Cook revealed (via Bloomberg) that 40 billion iMessages and 15 to 20 million FaceTime calls are made daily. That number suggests iMessage has grown exponentially over the course of the last year as usage numbers were at two billion messages per day in January of 2013.

As of mid–2013, Apple had 320 million iCloud accounts with 900 billion iMessages sent, a number that would be significantly higher today, taking into account 40 billion iMessages a day.

In comparison, popular messaging service WhatsApp, which was just purchased by Facebook, processes 50 billion messages per day. BlackBerry Messenger users on Android, iPhone, and BlackBerry phones send and receive upwards of 10 billion messages per day.

iMessage and FaceTime have become increasingly important messaging services for Apple over the course of the last year, and the company recently enhanced FaceTime with FaceTime Audio for both iOS devices and Macs, putting the video service on par with other apps like Skype.

During the meeting, Cook also announced impressive Apple TV sales numbers topping $1 billion and said the company had not lost its "innovative DNA."

Update 12:46 PM PST: According to The Wall Street Journal reporter Daisuke Wakabayashi, Apple CEO Tim Cook told shareholders that the company processes "several billion" iMessages per day, with the 40 billion number referring to notifications.

Top Rated Comments

Gudi Avatar
155 months ago
I guess it shows just how many people live inside Apple's little walled garden!
And it's such a nice garden. :)

Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
nagromme Avatar
155 months ago
FaceTime, working just like a phone call (video or just audio) with zero config needed, and ringing all my devices at once, is the greatest thing since sliced bread. And cheaper too!

I guess it shows just how many people live inside Apple's little walled garden!
It's weird how I can still call, text, Skype, WhatsApp, WeChat, Google Hangout, you-name-it to people outside the garden! They really have to work on those "walls"... :p
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
larrylaffer Avatar
155 months ago
If you consider each message to be 160 characters at 7 bits per character, that's 5.21 TB per day in each direction, not including any image, video, or FaceTime data. Wow. So bandwidth.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
brandscill Avatar
155 months ago
Thankfully it's also been much more reliable of late
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
SuperMatt Avatar
155 months ago
So, Whatsapp is an amazing company worth $19 billion. But Apple is toast and surely going to lose money, and a terrible stock to own... even though it sends as many messages per day as Whatsapp? See why it makes sense for Apple to buy back its own shares instead of acquiring a company like this? They can already do everything whatsapp does, and much more. If Wall St. ever pulls their heads out of their collective butts, we should see Apple trading at over $1000...
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BJMRamage Avatar
155 months ago
I use iMessage almost daily.
and most of the time upwards of 20-50 in a day.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iphone 17 models

No iPhone 18 Launch This Year, Reports Suggest

Thursday January 1, 2026 8:43 am PST by
Apple is not expected to release a standard iPhone 18 model this year, according to a growing number of reports that suggest the company is planning a significant change to its long-standing annual iPhone launch cycle. Despite the immense success of the iPhone 17 in 2025, the iPhone 18 is not expected to arrive until the spring of 2027, leaving the iPhone 17 in the lineup as the latest...
duolingo ad live activity

Duolingo Used iPhone's Dynamic Island to Display Ads, Violating Apple Design Guidelines

Friday January 2, 2026 1:36 pm PST by
Language learning app Duolingo has apparently been using the iPhone's Live Activity feature to display ads on the Lock Screen and the Dynamic Island, which violates Apple's design guidelines. According to multiple reports on Reddit, the Duolingo app has been displaying an ad for a "Super offer," which is Duolingo's paid subscription option. Apple's guidelines for Live Activity state that...
Low Cost A18 Pro MacBook Feature Pink

Apple's 2026 Low-Cost A18 Pro MacBook: What We Know So Far

Friday January 2, 2026 4:33 pm PST by
Apple is planning to release a low-cost MacBook in 2026, which will apparently compete with more affordable Chromebooks and Windows PCs. Apple's most affordable Mac right now is the $999 MacBook Air, and the upcoming low-cost MacBook is expected to be cheaper. Here's what we know about the low-cost MacBook so far. Size Rumors suggest the low-cost MacBook will have a display that's around 13 ...
govee floor lamp

CES 2026: Govee Announces New Matter-Connected Ceiling and Floor Lights

Sunday January 4, 2026 5:00 am PST by
Govee today introduced three new HomeKit-compatible lighting products, including the Govee Floor Lamp 3, the Govee Ceiling Light Ultra, and the Govee Sky Ceiling Light. The Govee Floor Lamp 3 is the successor to the Floor Lamp 2, and it offers Matter integration with the option to connect to HomeKit. The Floor Lamp 3 offers an upgraded LuminBlend+ lighting system that can reproduce 281...
Belkin 25W Battery magnetic

CES 2026: Belkin Announces Magnetic Ring Power Bank, Modular Dock, and More

Sunday January 4, 2026 3:02 pm PST by
Belkin today announced a range of new charging and connectivity accessories at CES 2026, expanding its portfolio of products aimed at Apple device users. UltraCharge Pro Power Bank 10K with Magnetic Ring The lineup includes new Qi2 and Qi2.2 wireless chargers, magnetic power banks, a high-capacity laptop battery, and USB-C productivity accessories, with an emphasis on higher charging...
airpods pro 3 glitter

AirPods New Year's Deals Include Up to $99 Off AirPods Max, AirPods Pro 3, and AirPods 4

Sunday January 4, 2026 8:04 am PST by
Now that the calendar has flipped over into January, steep discounts on popular Apple products have become more rare after the holidays. However, if you didn't get a new pair of AirPods recently and are looking for a model on sale, Amazon does have a few solid second-best prices this week. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a...
Low Cost MacBook Feature A18 Pro

Low-Price 12.9-Inch MacBook With A18 Pro Chip Reportedly Launching Early This Year

Friday January 2, 2026 9:08 am PST by
Apple plans to introduce a 12.9-inch MacBook in spring 2026, according to TrendForce. In a press release this week, the Taiwanese research firm said this MacBook will be aimed at the entry-level to mid-range market, with "competitive pricing." TrendForce did not share any further details about this MacBook, but the information that it shared lines up with several rumors about a more...
Clicks Communicator Feature

'Clicks Communicator' Unveiled — Will You Carry This With Your iPhone?

Friday January 2, 2026 6:35 am PST by
The company behind the BlackBerry-like Clicks Keyboard accessory for the iPhone today unveiled a new Android 16 smartphone called the Clicks Communicator. The purpose-built device is designed to be used as a second phone alongside your iPhone, with the intended focus being communication over content consumption. It runs a custom Android launcher that offers a curated selection of messaging...