Signal Statistics: Usage, Revenue, & Key Facts (2024)

by Khushi Agrawal

The Signal app has attracted some major buzz recently.

When WhatsApp’s updated privacy policy called for its users to accept that it would share user data with its parent company – Facebook, millions of users shifted to Signal in the quest for a secure messaging platform.

What is Signal?

Signal is an easy-to-use and secure messaging application that provides encrypted communications. It allows a user-friendly experience with group chats, video, image, gifs, audio, and video calling, all with end-to-end encryption. Even the app developers themselves can’t decrypt a message sent between 2 users.

  • Website: Signal.org
  • Developer: Signal Technology Foundation
  • Launch Year: 2014
  • Founders: Moxie Marlinspike and Stuart Anderson
  • Key Managerial Personnel: Moxie Marlinspike (CEO), Aruna Harder (COO), Brian Acton (executive chairman of Signal Foundation), Meredith Whittaker (BOD – Signal Foundation)
  • Headquarters: Mountain View, California

Signal was a result of a merger of RedPhone and TextSecure programs by Open Whispers in 2014.

Brian Acton, WhatsApp co-founder, injected $50 billion through the Signal Technology Foundation for app development.

Signal Statistics

Here are some key Signal statistics focusing on the company’s usage, revenue, funding, etc.

Download and Usage

  • Signal downloads: 992,000 in January 2020 to 50.6 million in January 2021
  • Signal weekly download rate: 50,000 weekly downloads till January 5th, 2021, to 7.7 million new downloads between January 6 and 11.
  • Total downloads: more than 105 million downloads as of May, 2021
  • Installs on devices: More than 50 million Android devices.
  • Signal monthly active users: 20 million monthly active users by the end of 2020 and 40 million in 2021
  • Signal monthly website visits: 2,993,058 as of July 2021
  • Signal topping charts: Apple’s App Store in 40 countries and Google’s Play store charts in 18 countries as the number one free app.

The top countries are:

  1. USA
  2. UK
  3. Germany
  4. Lebanon
  5. France

Signal finds its spot among the top three IM apps in countries like India, Singapore, and Brazil.

The app was downloaded 1.3 million times on January 11th, the highest recorded in a day, and the global installs showed a massive 5001% increase over the year and a 4200% increase in weekly downloads.

Signal’s download rates managed to expand 3.3 million times, beating WhatsApp at 1.7 million, Facebook 2.1 at million, and Instagram at 2.3 million downloads.

Signal, still not a leader?

Even though Signal saw a massive influx in the number of users because of its encrypted messaging policy, its moment was short-lived.

  • Decline in Signal downloads: 86% decline during February 2021 – 7 million and around 40% over the next few months – 2.8 million.
  • Monthly website visits dropped: -11.35%

In an attempt to find a replacement for WhatsApp, millions of users also shifted to Telegram – another instant messaging app. Like Signal, it showed a massive increase of 282.5% in the downloads from just 16.6 million in January 2020 to 63.5 million in January 2021.

Although Signal is the winner when it comes to security issues, Telegram has more to offer in terms of features. Users find all the popular features in the Telegram interface which makes them biased towards it.

From another point of view, infiltrating a massive army of 2.5 billion active WhatsApp users worldwide won’t come easy.

Signal Revenue

Signal app is developed by the Signal Technology Foundation, a non-profit entity that mainly relies on donations and charity.

  • Largest donation: $50 million (now $105 million) zero interest loan by Brian Acton in 2018.
  • Users who donate: Less than 1% of the Signal Messenger users donate to the Signal Technology Foundation.
  • Revenues of Signal Foundation: $19.4 million as of FY2019 – a 3085.1% increase than FY2018 ($609,385)
  • Grants and donations: $18 million
  • Investment Income: $1 million
  • Net Sales: $650k
  • Miscellaneous Income: $171k
  • Expenses: $13.5 million for FY 2019 – 162.9% spike
  • Assets: $77.2 million for FY2019 – the downfall of 23.2%
  • Liabilities: $38.3 million for FY 2019- 63.5% decrease

The Signal app provides an ad-free platform and is not dependent on the application for any source of revenue. The donation made by Brian Acton caused a major stir in the app development process.

Other Key Signal Facts

  • The endorsem*nts by Elon Musk and Edward Snowden played a major role in the sudden surge of downloads of the Signal Messenger App.
  • Signal servers could not handle the spike in the newly registered users, which caused them to crash on January 15th, allowing limited access to users.
  • Signal is the only private messenger app that doesn’t collect or share any user data with its developers.
  • Signal is popularly used by journalists to hide sources and was increasingly used for communication by the Black Lives Matter protests organisers.

Go On, Tell Us What You Think!

Did we miss something? Come on! Tell us what you think about our article on Signal Statistics in the comments section.

Signal Statistics: Usage, Revenue, & Key Facts (1)

A startup enthusiast, optimist and full time learner. With keen interest in finance and management, Khushi believes communication to be the key to every management. Always ready to explore more and walking that extra mile in putting efforts.

Signal Statistics: Usage, Revenue, & Key Facts (2024)

FAQs

Signal Statistics: Usage, Revenue, & Key Facts? ›

Signal makes money by receiving donations from wealthy investors and donors. The company runs a nonprofit model. Therefore, it doesn't run the company to make a profit, choosing to reinvest these donations in its product and brand development.

How does Signal generate revenue? ›

Signal makes money by receiving donations from wealthy investors and donors. The company runs a nonprofit model. Therefore, it doesn't run the company to make a profit, choosing to reinvest these donations in its product and brand development.

What is the annual revenue of Signal? ›

On the strength of its 28% average annual growth, Signal operating revenues reached $165 million in 2021. The reason for this industry-leading growth is clear: Signal offers affordable and customized security solutions for property, personnel and other assets requiring protection.

What is the Signal app used for? ›

Signal is an encrypted messaging service for instant messaging, voice, and video calls. The instant messaging function includes sending text, voice notes, images, videos, and other files. Communication may be one-to-one between users, or for group messaging.

How much data does Signal use? ›

Signal uses a very high amount of celluar data. I observed 500MB in 8 days despite light usage. Obvious things like sending photos or long video chats are not happening. This celluar data seems to be consumed in the background and continues to grow even when the app is not opened for day.

What is the revenue model of Signal? ›

The Signal Business Model relies heavily on donations from the general public and crowdsourcing. A non-profit headquartered in San Francisco, California, Signal was launched on July 29, 2014, by Moxie Marlinspike and former co-founder of WhatsApp, Brian Acton.

What country owns Signal? ›

The Signal Technology Foundation, commonly known as the Signal Foundation, is an American non-profit organization founded in 2018 by Moxie Marlinspike and Brian Acton.

Which country uses Signal most? ›

Signal.org Website Traffic by The Top Countries Are:
  • Germany: 19.899%
  • United States: 17.35%
  • Ukraine: 5.63%
  • Canada: 4.98%
  • France: 3.94%
May 22, 2023

Is Signal owned by Google? ›

Signal is a private and secure messaging app owned by the Signal Foundation.

How many users use Signal? ›

Among the biggest beneficiaries has been Signal, the encrypted messaging app whose development is funded by a nonprofit organization. Last month, according to one research firm, the six-year-old app had about 20 million users worldwide.

What are the disadvantages of Signal app? ›

2.) Signal
ProsCons
Fully open source.Not widely used or known.
Extremely familiar, intuitive interface.Requires your phone number for contact discovery.
Allows audio chat, with verification.Anyone intent on tracking your internet use can see you're using Signal. However, they won't be able to read your messages.
3 more rows
Oct 30, 2018

Does the military use Signal app? ›

Troops use Signal for deployment planning and rapid reaction call outs, but it is also against DOD regulations. The use of the encrypted messaging app Signal is ubiquitous within the Department of Defense.

Is Signal really private? ›

Signal is designed to never collect or store any sensitive information. Signal messages and calls cannot be accessed by us or other third parties because they are always end-to-end encrypted, private, and secure.

Why use Signal instead of texting? ›

Signal, the secure messaging app, makes it easy to chat without sacrificing security. Signal gives you encrypted messages, as well as voice and video calls. It relies on data, so it's a great option for free calls and texts over Wi-Fi.

Can police see messages on Signal? ›

A recently discovered FBI training document shows that US law enforcement can gain limited access to the content of encrypted messages from secure messaging services like iMessage, Line, and WhatsApp, but not to messages sent via Signal, Telegram, Threema, Viber, WeChat, or Wickr.

Do people still use Signal? ›

Even with this influx, Signal is still quite a niche messaging platform, with much less usage than its end-to-end competitor, Telegram. It those few weeks, Signal did shoot past it in global downloads on both stores, however that has subsided in late 2021 and it is at normal levels of downloads in 2022.

What are the 3 main types of revenue models? ›

Common revenue models include subscription, licensing and markup. The revenue model helps businesses determine their revenue generation strategies such as: which revenue source to prioritize, understanding target customers, and how to price their products.

What are the four basic components of the revenue model? ›

There are four key components in establishing a successful sales and revenue strategy: strategy, structure, people, and process.

Is Elon Musk owner of Signal? ›

Musk's Twitter endorsem*nt also incidentally led shares in the biotechnology company Signal Advance to soar, despite the fact that it is completely unrelated to Signal, which is not a publicly traded company.

Where is Signal banned? ›

Since April 2021, OONI data analysis suggests that access to the Signal Private Messenger app has been blocked in (at least) 4 countries: Iran, China, Cuba, and Uzbekistan.

Can China use Signal? ›

Encrypted messaging app Signal appears to have been blocked in mainland China, the latest foreign social media service to cease working in a country where the government tightly controls the flow of information.

Why is Signal so popular? ›

Signal is a communication app that supports messaging, voice and video calls, and more. It's fully cross-platform, free, open-source, and features end-to-end encryption. This makes it a popular choice for users looking for enhanced privacy and security.

Has China blocked Signal? ›

As with other online services such as Facebook, Google and Twitter which have been blocked for years in China, Signal users can circumvent the country's Great Firewall by using a VPN.

How does Signal messaging app make money? ›

Signal makes money via donations. As a non-profit organization, it relies on these donations to continue offering its service. Launched in 2014, Signal has grown to become one of the world's most-used messaging apps. Over 40 million people now use the messenger.

Does Signal sell my data? ›

Signal does not sell, rent or monetize your personal data or content in any way – ever. Please read our Privacy Policy to understand how we safeguard the information you provide when using our Services.

Is Signal an American app? ›

Who created the app? Signal is a messaging app, available for iPhone, iPad, Android, Windows, Mac and Linux. The app is developed by the Signal Foundation and Signal Messenger LLC and it is a non-profit company. The app was created by Moxie Marlinspike, American cryptographer and currently CEO of Signal Messenger.

Why is Signal better than WhatsApp? ›

Verdict. Overall, if security and privacy are your biggest concern, Signal is by far the more secure service. While both services do use end-to-end encryption, Signal takes extra steps to ensure that the metadata information of its users is kept private and does not go out of its way to collect extra data on its users.

Is Signal more secure than Facebook? ›

Considered one of the most secure messaging apps on the market, Signal protects your communications with end-to-end call and text encryption. Its encryption protocol is so secure that other leading apps like WhatsApp and Facebook messenger use it too.

Is it worth using Signal? ›

Signal is a secure, free, and open source messaging application that uses end-to-end encryption to securely send and receive all kinds of communications with other Signal users. Using the Internet for all encrypted communication, Signal comes highly recommended by some of the top privacy and security advocates.

Why is Signal free? ›

Signal is free to use and there are no ads, no affiliate marketers, and no tracking in Signal. As Signal is an independent nonprofit, development is supported by grants and donations from people like you. You are welcome to contribute or donate and we appreciate your support.

Can people see your phone number on Signal? ›

Signal does not send your phone number to anyone unless you send them a message or make a call to them. Other members of your group chats may see your profile and phone number. The Signal service does not have any knowledge of your contacts.

Can Signal be used without a phone number? ›

Its battle-tested encryption protocol is licensed for use by the likes of Facebook in WhatsApp, and it has been adopted by the XMPP Standards Foundation for use as the basis of OMEMO Multi-End Message and Object Encryption. In short, Signal is great, except for the fact that you need a phone number to use it.

What Signal app does FBI use? ›

ANOM, a secure-messaging app built by the FBI and other law-enforcement agencies, launched in October 2019 and solidified its following after authorities took down another rival service. Popularity spread by word of mouth.

Can the feds see Signal app? ›

Messages are encrypted end to end, FBI cannot access them. Signal does not store messages or user data outside of registration date and date of last use. Signal features screen lock and pin to make accessing messages, even with access to device, slightly more difficult to prevent snooping.

Is Signal app used for affairs? ›

Many people who cheat on their partners use secret messaging apps, like Signal, which allow them to chat with others discreetly. Depending on the cheating your partner is engaging in, whether sexual, emotional, or otherwise, there are different apps they might use to cheat or hide their behavior.

Where does Signal store messages? ›

Signal messages, pictures, files, and other contents are stored locally on your device. These contents are readable by the open source Signal clients. Because everything in Signal is end-to-end encrypted, the Signal service does not have access to any of this data.

Can someone see me online on Signal? ›

Online and last seen: WhatsApp shows the online and last seen status of live or active users on the platform. However, Signal does not show online status or last seen, and also gives users the option to disable typing indicators. There is no way you can do that on WhatsApp.

Can anyone hack Signal app? ›

Signal uses end-to-end encryption to protect all messages, calls, and shared media. This means that only the sender and intended recipient can access the content of the communication, and even the Signal server can't read it.

Can you text people with Signal who don't have Signal? ›

In order to use Signal, the person that you are contacting must have Signal installed. If you try to send a message to someone using Signal and they do not have the Signal app installed, it will attempt to send a standard, non-encrypted text message.

Can you screenshot Signal messages? ›

Signal aims at securing messages during transit, and they rightfully recognize that you should not attempt to stop someone from taking a screenshot of a message if they want.

Does Signal really delete messages? ›

To delete messages for everyone:

Open the chat. Hover to the inside of the message bubble for a message you have sent within the past 3 hours. Select Delete for everyone. Choose Delete to confirm.

Can forensics recover Signal messages? ›

The answer is yes—by using special tools, they can find data that hasn't been overwritten yet. However, by using encryption methods, you can ensure your data is kept private, even after deletion.

Do Signal messages show on phone bill? ›

No, although you talked on your phone, it was not technically a voice “call” - you used the Messenger app to transmit and receive packetized sounds. It will not show up as a boice call. So if you get a phone bill where you get details of data usage, you will see some quantity of data used at the time you made the call.

Is Signal safer than Telegram? ›

Signal offers absolute privacy, while for Telegram, this is more limited. Telegram privacy is less rigorous as their servers hold copies of all unencrypted messages and a copy of the address book of every user. Telegram also collect details of IP address, recipients and the time stamp for each message.

Does Signal sell your data? ›

You agree to receive text messages and phone calls (from us or our third-party providers) with verification codes to register for our Services. Privacy of user data. Signal does not sell, rent or monetize your personal data or content in any way – ever.

How do networks generate most of their income? ›

Advertising. Advertising is the primary way TV networks make money.

How do Internet service providers make money? ›

The main method through which such businesses generate revenues is by advertisem*nts. One of the most popular ways Internet companies earn an income is by advertisem*nt sales without charging consumers for access to data online.

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