With up to 4.6 million WhatsApp users in Singapore it’s no wonder Meta is keen to use this platform as a key e-payment player in the country.

WhatsApp’s rising popularity in this region is making it the most-used social media platform among Singaporean social media users. Current stats prove this isn’t likely to change any time soon as it’s not only consumers using it for personal communication—companies choose to use this platform to stay in touch with their customers.

What are the stats for WhatsApp users in Singapore that prove how important businesses and individuals find this platform? Let’s check them out.

Key Stats

1. Stats in January 2023 showed that 5.08 million Singaporeans were using social media platforms with 4.6 million using WhatsApp as their preferred platform.
   
2. The WhatsApp platform was used by the government from March 2020 to send citizens 2 to 3 daily updates during the COVID pandemic.
   
3. Singapore has the fastest average fixed broadband internet speed in the world making it easier to use the WhatsApp platform.
   
4. WhatsApp Messenger ranks as #2 in the top 10 communication apps used in Singapore with WhatsApp Business ranking at number 5.
   
5. The largest age group in Singapore is between 20 and 64 years with 83.2% of users between 16 and 64 years using WhatsApp.
   
6. With a male population of over 3.153 million and 3.101 million females, it’s estimated that 50% of Singaporean men and 49% of women use WhatsApp.
   
7. Singapore WhatsApp users aren’t lagging behind other countries such as the US with 27% of its online users between 25 and 36 years old using this social media platform.
   
8. WhatsApp Messenger and Facebook are ranked #1 for their social media penetration rate in Singapore.
   
9. On average, Singaporeans spend 16 to 17 hours per month on WhatsApp compared to a global average of 17.3 hours per month.
   
10. In January 2022 it was reported that Singapore spends 2 to 4 hours daily on social media.
    
11. Mark Zuckerburg is relying on WhatsApp’s 2 billion worldwide users to take advantage of the in-app payment feature which is being rolled out in Singapore during 2023.
    

How Popular is Whatsapp in Singapore?

In January 2023, 5.08 million Singapore citizens were using social media platforms. A significant portion of this group – 4.6 million to be precise – use WhatsApp as their preferred messaging platform.

Stats show that WhatsApp is the country’s number two communication app, outranking other top apps’ usage. WhatsApp Business ranked as number 5 on the same list.

This table gives a quick overview of the top 10 communication apps used by Singapore citizens.

Ranking	Communication App	Publisher
1	Telegram	Telegram FZ – LLC
2	WhatsApp Messenger	WhatsApp LLC
3	My M1+ : For Bespoke Plans	M1 Limited
4	My SIMBA	SIMBA Telecom Pte Ltd
5	WhatsApp Business	WhatsApp LLC
6	Messenger	Meta Platforms, Inc.
7	ScamShield	Open Government Products
8	Snapchat	Snap Inc
9	WeChat	WeChat International Pte. Ltd.
10	Messenger Viber: Chats & Calls	Viber Media S.à r.l.

Based on the popularity of WhatsApp Messenger, the Singaporean government chose to use this social media platform to send daily coronavirus updates to its citizens in March 2020 and in the months that followed.

In a population of 5.637 million Singaporeans in 2022, of which over 4.6 million are WhatsApp users, let’s take a look at the different age groups in the country.

Age Group	Population (2022)
< 20 years	788.6
20 – 64 years	2,606.5
>65 years	678.1

How many WhatsApp users in Singapore fall into which age group? For starters, a staggering 83.2% of the population, aged between 16 and 64 years, use the WhatsApp platform! This leaves 16.8% of the population 65 years and older using WhatsApp or another social media app for messaging or business purposes.

An estimated 31.1% of Singapore’s Internet users in the 16 to 64 age group prefer to use WhatsApp as their social media network. Therefore, compared to other countries, such as the US which has 27% of its online users between the age of 25 and 36 years using Whatsapp, Singapore isn’t lagging behind!

The current male population in Singapore stands at 3,153,694 or 50.4% of the total residents living in the country. The female population comes in at 49.6% with the current tally standing at 3,101,411.

It’s estimated that 50% of men use WhatsApp while 49% of women use the same platform in Singapore. This tallies closely with the gender distribution of social network advertising audience using Meta’s Facebook platform which comes second after WhatsApp which is the largest social network in the country.

As mentioned, Singaporean WhatsApp users between the ages of 16 and 64 years use the platform for approximately 17 hours per month. The latest stats worldwide for WhatsApp users spending time online is on average 17.3 hours per month. Therefore, Singaporeans’ trends align with that of the rest of the world.

In January 2022, a survey indicated that Singaporeans spent between two and four hours daily on social media with 89% of them using mobile phones to access the platforms. Part of the reason for WhatsApp being the top communication app in Singapore could be because it’s so user-friendly on mobile.

Conclusion

Stats prove, over and over again, that WhatsApp continues to be Singapore’s most favorite communication app. Based on these figures, it makes sense that WhatsApp is being rolled out in the country as a digital payment platform. There’s sure to be a huge following of this functionality.

Singapore residents can therefore start using WhatsApp and its in-app payment feature to pay local businesses. While still in its infant stages, making it easier to pay for local products and services surely gives WhatsApp users in Singapore another good reason to stick with this platform.

Does this mean that WhatsApp will continue to outrank other popular social media platforms in the near future? Only time will tell but for now, the stats show a consistent uptick in WhatsApp users in Singapore.