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Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced today on\u00a0his WhatsApp channel<\/a>\u00a0that WhatsApp now has 100 million monthly active users in the US as of July 25th. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n According to WhatsApp, Los Angeles, New York, Miami, and Seattle are among the fastest-growing markets in the country. However, the company says it\u2019s experienced \u201csignificant growth\u201d in Southern states as well, with more than 10 million users in Texas.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cThis is the first time data pertaining to users has been released since Meta\u2019s acquisition of the messaging app and demonstrates how the messaging platform, already the biggest messaging app in the world, has experienced tremendous growth in the U.S.,\u201d WhatsApp spokesperson Ashley O\u2019Reilly\u00a0wrote in a press release.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Since purchasing WhatsApp for $16 billion in 2014<\/a>, Meta has put a lot of effort into making the app as popular in the US<\/a> as it is internationally. One such way is by advertising WhatsApp\u2019s availability on iOS and Android, particularly how easy it is to message users across platforms. (Because iPhones don\u2019t need to switch from iMessage to SMS, messages from Androids don\u2019t show up as green bubble with lower-quality images, removed encryption, and shortened messages.) Recently, WhatsApp captured attention<\/a> when it reunited the cast of Modern Family<\/em> for an ad promoting this very feature to families. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n Yet, while WhatsApp now boasts more than 2 billion users in over 180 countries<\/a>, it\u2019s still less popular in the US than rivals like Apple\u2019s iMessage. While it might have experienced growth in the US, it\u2019s going to be even harder for WhatsApp to compete once Apple replaces Rich Communication Services (RCS) as the communication protocol between Android and iOS devices. RCS support will be coming to iOS 18<\/a> this fall, which means iPhone users won\u2019t necessarily need to switch group chats over to WhatsApp \u2014 and Meta really needs to start rethinking its marketing strategy.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n