How Many People Use Skype? [Worldwide Statistics]

Skype is still used by various business around the world

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Key notes

  • Skype has been losing popularity over the past few years, but it doesn’t mean that nobody uses it.
  • Although home users might’ve left Skype, it’s still a popular choice among many business.
how many people use skype

Skype was one of the most influential messaging apps in the last decade, but many are wondering how many people use Skype today.

It’s safe to assume that the popularity of Skype has waned over the past few users, and Windows 11 replaced Skype with Microsoft Teams. However, that doesn’t mean that Skype is forgotten.

Join us while we take a closer look at Skype’s user statistics in the current year and see how well the messaging giant holds up after all these years.

Which country has the most Skype users?

  • United States – 32 million active users (12.23%)
  • India – 3.1 million active users (7.25%)
  • Russian Federation – (6.71%)
  • Brazil – 1.2 million active users (5.29%)
  • The United Kingdom – 6.7 million active users (3.84%)

This is because many companies, especially in the United States, still use Skype.

Country:Number of companies:
United States38,537
United Kingdom8,004
India3,994
Canada3,414
France2,077
Australia1,991
Brazil1936
China1445
Italy1244
Germany1223

The same goes for personal users. Many have friends and other contacts on Skype, so moving them all to a new platform isn’t easy.

The following countries have at least 1 million Skype users:

  • United States
  • United Kingdom
  • India
  • Canada
  • Australia
  • France
  • China
  • Brazil
  • Germany

How many people use Skype?

Skype numbers expected to rise

Although Skype isn’t popular as it used to be, the numbers say otherwise.

Experts estimate that the number of Skype users will rise in the future, and according to Statista, it’s estimated that in 2024, Skype will have 2.27 billion registered users.

According to data, Skype has 300 million active users every month in 2023, and every day 40 million users worldwide use it.

Monthly usersDaily users
300 million40 million

What age group uses Skype the most?

According to data from SimilarWeb, Skype has 40.53% female and 59.47% users. Regarding the age distribution, Skype is mostly used by people in the 25-34 age bracket.

Age:Percent:
18 - 2421.38
25-3433
35-4420
45-5413
55-648
65+5

Here’s a visual representation of the data:

What industries use Skype the most?

Skype is widely used in various industries, and the vast majority of users are in computer software and information technology.

Industry:Number of users in millions:
Computer Software Industry8.6
Information Technology and Services Industry6
Education Management Industry3
Hospital and Healthcare Industry3
Higher Education Industry2
Marketing and Advertising Industry2
Financial Services Industry1.67
Retail Industry1.62
NGO Management Industry1.5
Construction Industry1.3

However, Skype is used in various other industries, and you can see its stats in the graph below:

Does anyone still use Skype?

Yes, Skype is still used, mostly by business users, but personal users are moving away from the platform and are switching to alternatives.

We’ll briefly cover some of the alternatives and see how Skype compares to them:

Skype vs Teams

Probably the biggest reason why Skype is losing popularity is Microsoft Teams. It’s intended as a Skype replacement, and it shares many similarities with it. To learn more, we suggest reading our Skype vs Microsoft Teams guide.

Here’s a quick overview of the differences between the two:

Microsoft TeamsSkype
Pricing$0 to $12.50
per user/month
$0
Cheapest plan$4$0
Max number of participants1,000100
Live streamingYesNo
Meeting length24h max
60 minutes in free plan
24h
Screen sharingYesYes
Record meetingsOnly on paid planYes
Group and individual messages during callsYesYes
WhiteboardYesNo
Live meeting transcription Only on paid plansYes
Breakout roomsYesNo
Joining restrictions YesYes
Hand rasingYesYes
Emoji reactionsYesYes
Cloud storageStarting from 5GB per userStarting from 5GB per user
IntegrationsOver 700Not supported
Support24/7 support on paid plansLimited support
SecurityAdvancedStandard

As you can see, Skype is more useful for smaller teams and home users, while Teams offers more collaboration features, and it’s better for larger teams.

Skype vs Zoom

During the pandemic, Zoom emerged as a popular alternative for collaboration and video conferencing, and it took the market by storm.

If you haven’t tried this software, we have a great guide on how to download and install Zoom, so be sure to check it out.

Here’s a quick comparison between Skype and Zoom:

ZoomSkype
Price$0-19.99 monthly/per licenceFree
Maximum participantsUp to 1,000Up to 100
Max call durationUp to 30h, 40-minute limit on meetings with free planUp to 24h
OS compatibilityMac OS, Windows, iOS, Android, LinuxWindows, Linux, Android, iOS, Mac OS, Xbox, Amazon Alexa devices
Video qualityUp to 1080pUp to 1080p
Recording meetingsYesYes
Screen sharingYesYes
Document sharingYesYes
In-meeting chatsYesYes
Join meetings via phone or videoYesYes
Background blurYesYes
Background changeYesYes
Breakout sessionYesNo
WhiteboardYesNo
Meeting transcriptsOnly on Business and Enterprise plansNo
Audience pollingOn paid plansNo
Streaming on social mediaOn paid plansNo
Customer supportVaries by planOnline help
Account required to attend meetingsNoNo

Zoom offers better functionality, and in our opinion, it’s a better choice if you’re planning to hold large meetings, so it’s perfect for larger companies.

Skype vs Discord

Discord is a popular messaging app, but how does it compare to Skype? It’s not easy to compare the two since they have different purposes besides instant messaging.

To learn more, we strongly suggest reading out Skype vs Discord guide for in-depth information.

Here’s a quick overview of the two services:

DiscordSkype
Premium$4.99/monthNo
Audio quality64 kbps100 kbps
Max participants25100
Ability to call phone numbersNoYes
Screen sharingYesYes
Audio recordingNoYes
Video recordingNoYes
Max size for file sharingUp to 8MB for free users, up to 50MB for Nitro users300MB
Ability to connect other servicesFacebook, Skype, Twitter, Steam, and moreFacebook, Docs, Excel, Powerpoint
Requires accountYesNo
Live captions NoYes

As previously mentioned, these two services are quite different, and Discord is designed to create a community and share content, while Skype is made primarily for video calls and instant messaging.

In that regard, Skype is a better option since it’s free, it offers recording features, better sound quality, and support for more participants.

However, if you want to organize and chat with fellow gamers, Discord is no doubt a better option.

Skype vs WhatsApp

When comparing Skype to WhatsApp, it’s important to mention that WhatsApp is primarily a messaging app for your phone, so it will lack many features that Skype has.

Of course, you can get WhatsApp for Windows 11, but it offers the same features as the web app.

Let’s quickly compare the two:

WhatsAppSkype
Number of users1.5+ billion since 20171.33+ million users since 2017
Requires a phone numberYesNo
Uses contacts from the phone's contact listYesNo
Audio qualityDecentRefined HD quality
Call recordingNoYes
Maximum participants in a call4100
End-to-end encryptionEnabled by defaultNot enabled by default
Cloud storage syncNoYes
CostFreeFree

Both services are similar, but if you want to collaborate with others, then Skype might be a better option.

On the other hand, if you just want to chat with friends, WhatsApp is one of the most popular instant messaging apps, which makes it a better choice.

Skype vs Google Meet

Another great Skype alternative is Google Meet. In case you’re not familiar with it, we have a great guide on how to use Google Meet on Windows 11, so be sure to check it out.

Google MeetSkype
Requires an accountYesNo
Maximum meeting length1h for Free users, up to 24h with Workspace account24h
Maximum number of participantsUp to 100 on Free plan, up to 500 on Business Plan100
Third-party integrationsYesYes
Ability to call dial-in numbersYesYes
Available on all major platformsYesYes, including Xbox
Synchronization with calendarYesNo
Screen sharingYesYes
Meeting recordingOnly on Enterprise planYes
YouTube broadcastingOnly in Enterprise or Education planNo

Google Meet offers simplicity and ease of use, and it’s a great option for free users, as long as you don’t mind the 1h meeting length for free users.

On the other hand, with a built-in recording feature, Skype is a better choice for some businesses.

Skype vs Slack

Slack is one of the most popular collaboration platforms in the world. To learn more about it, we have a great Slack vs Skype guide that you should check out if you want to learn more.

Here’s a quick comparison:

SlackSkype
PricingFree with 3 different premium plansFree
Max participants in a call2 for free, 50 for paid100
SearchAdvanced filtered searchBasic text search
File sharingFree: 90 days of message history, Premium plans start at 10GB per memberStarting from 5GB per user
Screen sharingYesYes
Record meetingsNoYes
TranscriptionsNoYes
Channels and threadsYesNo
IntegrationsOver 2,400 integrationsVery limited
SupportStandardLimited

Slack is a superior platform for collaboration since it supports threads and channels, but if you’re looking for large video conferencing with screen recording, Skype is a far better option for free users especially because of the international calls.

Skype’s popularity is slowly fading when it comes to home users, but the service is still incredibly popular with many businesses, especially in the United States.

However, we expect this to change in the upcoming years slowly. If you’re not a fan of Skype, then you might want to try some of these Skype alternatives.

Are you still using Skype? Let us know in the comment section below.

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