Augmented reality avatar platforms combine large audiences with unusually high levels of creation and repeat interaction. The figures below report activity from Snap, Meta, WhatsApp, ZEPETO, and ARtillery across the stated periods and geographies; legacy figures are presented as source-reported rather than independently verified.
Contents
- AR avatar statistics at a glance
- Snapchat AR reach and daily usage
- Lens creation and the AR creator ecosystem
- AI Lenses and avatar-style experiences
- Meta and WhatsApp avatar scale
- ZEPETO’s user-generated avatar economy
- Broader augmented reality benchmarks
AR avatar statistics at a glance
The strongest recent figures come from Snap’s quarterly financial releases. Snap reported more than 350 million Snapchatters engaging with AR every day on average in Q4 2025, while daily AR Lens use reached 8 billion camera interactions per day in the same quarter (Snap Q4 and FY 2025 financial results).
The following comparison keeps the measurement periods separate. These are not a single continuous study, and the figures use different definitions, including monthly active users, daily active users, AR participants, and Lens plays.
| Measurement period | Reported platform measure | Source-reported figure |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 average | Snapchatters engaging with AR daily | More than 300 million |
| Q2 2025 | Snapchat global monthly active users | 932 million |
| Q3 2025 | Snapchat global daily active users | 477 million |
| Q4 2025 | Snapchatters engaging with AR daily on average | More than 350 million |
| Q1 2026 | Snapchat global monthly active users | 956 million |
| Q1 2026 | Snapchat global daily active users | 483 million |
| Q1 2026 | Snapchatters engaging with AR daily on average | More than 350 million |
Snapchat AR reach and daily usage
Snap’s reported AR audience remained above 350 million daily participants on average in both Q2 2025 and Q3 2025 (Snap Q2 2025 financial results; Snap Q3 2025 financial results). Snap reported the same “more than 350 million” level again in Q4 2025 and Q1 2026 (Snap Q4 and FY 2025 financial results; Snap Q1 2026 financial results).
Snap’s Q1 2026 release also reported that 75% of Snapchatters engaged with AR every day on average. That percentage is a platform-reported share for the quarter, not a general estimate for all augmented reality users (Snap Q1 2026 financial results).
Lens activity was measured in billions of daily camera uses. Snap reported 8 billion AR Lens uses per day in Q4 2025 and more than 9 billion per day on average in Q1 2026 (Snap Q4 and FY 2025 financial results; Snap Q1 2026 financial results). The two numbers refer to different quarters, so they should be read as period-specific reported levels rather than a calculated annual trend.
Snap also reported broad Snapchat audience measures:
- Global monthly active users reached 932 million in Q2 2025 (Snap Q2 2025 financial results).
- Global daily active users reached 477 million in Q3 2025 (Snap Q3 2025 financial results).
- Global monthly active users reached 956 million in Q1 2026 (Snap Q1 2026 financial results).
- Global daily active users reached 483 million in Q1 2026 (Snap Q1 2026 financial results).
- Global daily active users reached 414 million in Q4 2023 (Snap Q4 and FY 2023 financial results).
These audience totals provide context for avatar and Lens experiences, but they should not be substituted for AR participation. Snap reports the categories separately.
Historical Snap figures show how large the AR audience had become before the latest periods. Snap reported more than 300 million Snapchatters engaging with augmented reality every day on average in 2023, more than 250 million in Q1 2022, and more than 200 million daily active users engaging with augmented reality every day on average in 2020 (Snap Q4 and FY 2023 financial results; Snap Q1 2022 earnings release; Snap Q4 2020 earnings slides).
Snap also reported more than 180 million Snapchatters engaging with Lenses every day in 2022 (Snap Lens Fest). In a separate 2022 event statement, it reported more than 250 million daily AR participants and more than 6 billion AR Lens plays each day (Snap Lens Fest 2022). These figures use different reported measures and should not be merged.
Lens creation and the AR creator ecosystem
The supply side of AR avatar design is substantial. Snap reported that more than 450,000 developers had built more than 5 million Lenses by Q4 2025 (Snap Q4 and FY 2025 financial results). In Q1 2026, more than 400,000 Lenses were submitted, and Lens submissions increased by more than 150% year over year (Snap Q1 2026 financial results).
Earlier Snap sources reported more than 250,000 Lens Creators and upwards of 2.5 million Lenses by 2023 (Snap AWE recap). The same Snap AWE recap reported that more than 250 million people engaged with AR every day. Snap’s 2022 Lens Fest reporting also placed community Lens activity above 1 trillion views in 2022 (Snap Lens Fest).
Other Snap platform descriptions use different snapshots:
- More than 200,000 AR creators and two million Lenses were cited on Snap’s introduction to Snap AR page (Snap Intro to Snap AR).
- Snap’s AR homepage reported more than 4 million Lenses created with Lens Studio (Snap AR homepage).
- That homepage also reported more than 4.5 trillion engagements with community-created Lenses in the last year (Snap AR homepage).
- Snap’s SPS Camera Platform announcement reported community Lenses viewed more than 5 trillion times by 2023 (Snap SPS Camera Platform announcement).
Because these records come from different pages and periods, the totals are best used as labeled snapshots. They demonstrate the scale of the creator ecosystem without establishing one harmonized count.
AI Lenses and avatar-style experiences
AI-powered Lens activity is another major part of Snap’s reported AR usage. Snap said more than 700 million users engaged with Gen AI Lenses over 17 billion times in Q4 2025 (Snap Q4 and FY 2025 financial results). That statement combines a user count with an engagement count for the quarter.
Snap also reported that its Imagine Lens had been engaged with nearly 2 billion times since its launch in September 2025 (Snap Q4 and FY 2025 financial results). The measurement is cumulative from launch, so it is not directly comparable with a single-quarter total.
In Q2 2025, Snap said three AI Lenses—the 90’s School Photos AI Lens, Different Eras AI Lens, and Cartoon World AI Lens—were collectively viewed more than 1 billion times (Snap Q2 2025 financial results). In Q3 2025, Snap said its AI Face Swap Lens was viewed more than 1 billion times (Snap Q3 2025 financial results).
Snap’s earlier activity measures also show strong interaction around themed AR. Valentine’s Day Lenses were engaged with more than 9 billion times in Q1 2022 (Snap Q1 2022 earnings release). Snap reported more than 5 billion Snaps created every day on average in 2021 (Snap AR tools and camera experiences release), while its Q1 2021 transcript reported that daily engagement with AR Lenses grew more than 40% and minutes per day grew more than 70% (Snap Q1 2021 transcript).
Meta and WhatsApp avatar scale
Meta reported that more than 1 billion Meta Avatars had been created across its technologies in April 2023 (Meta Avatars new body shapes, hair and clothing). The same announcement separately described the milestone as one billion avatars created across Meta’s technologies, so these two statements represent one reported milestone rather than two different billion-avatar totals.
Meta’s April 2023 avatar customization update included seven Puma outfits for Meta Avatar customization (Meta Avatars new body shapes, hair and clothing). WhatsApp said its avatars could be created from billions of combinations of hairstyles, facial features, and outfits, and that it launched 36 custom avatar stickers (WhatsApp avatars announcement).
Meta’s platform distribution also extended beyond one app. A 2022 update said avatars were available across Facebook, Messenger, Instagram, and in VR (Meta Avatars update). Meta reported that avatar updates reached people in the United States, Canada, and Mexico first (Meta 3D avatars update).
The available Meta and WhatsApp figures emphasize creation options, distribution, and expressive formats rather than a single recurring active-user measure. Meta also said animated avatar stickers could be shared in Instagram Stories, Facebook Stories, Reels, Facebook comments, and one-to-one message threads on Messenger and Instagram (Meta avatar calls). Its update said social stickers could include the user and one friend in one-to-one message threads, and that real-time calls using Meta Avatar were available in the July 2023 update (Meta avatar calls).
ZEPETO’s user-generated avatar economy
ZEPETO’s reported figures focus on avatar-world participation and user-generated content. ZEPETO said it had 300 million users on ZEPETO Studio and 2.3 million Studio creators (ZEPETO Studio). It also reported 68 million total Studio item sales (ZEPETO Studio).
A ZEPETO partnership page reported that users bought 123 million items per month and created more than 161 million user-generated contents per month (ZEPETO partnership). These are monthly activity figures from that page, while the 68 million item-sales figure is a total reported by ZEPETO Studio; they should not be combined into a single sales rate.
ZEPETO World was described as a place where 300 million users experience diverse adventures (ZEPETO World). Since ZEPETO reports both Studio and World figures at 300 million, the labels matter: the available facts do not establish whether the audiences are identical, overlapping, or measured at different times.
Together, the ZEPETO figures connect avatar design with a creator marketplace. The reported 2.3 million Studio creators sit alongside millions of monthly item purchases and user-generated creations, showing how customization can function as both a social feature and a production activity.
Broader augmented reality benchmarks
ARtillery reported that 32% of consumers had used mobile augmented reality (AR Usage and Consumer Attitudes Wave VI). That percentage is a consumer-use benchmark and is not limited to avatars or social platforms.
ARtillery also cited 836 million global AR users in the prior year and projected 1.7 billion global AR users by 2026 (Snap Lens Fest 2022 ARtillery talk). The 836 million figure is a historical user count as described by the source, while 1.7 billion is explicitly a projection. The projection should therefore be treated as a forecast, not an observed 2026 result.
For avatar designers, the practical distinction is important: Snapchat’s reported AR participation, Meta’s avatar-creation milestone, ZEPETO’s creator totals, and ARtillery’s broader market estimates measure different parts of the ecosystem. Keeping the source, geography, period, and definition attached to each number prevents platform engagement, avatar creation, Lens plays, and forecast market size from being presented as interchangeable statistics.