Gaming Statistics

Although the first thing that might come to your mind when you think of video games is some nerdy-looking teenagers, that’s hardly the case anymore. Today, video games are everywhere and people from different backgrounds enjoy them. Gamers are no longer a select minority, but rather a strong driver of economic growth. In fact, many people ‘work’ as full-time gamers, earning money from tournaments, podcasts, and/or social media. These gaming statistics paint the perfect picture of the status the gaming community holds today and the state of the industry. Get ready to see your perception of video games forever changed. Let’s start.

Gaming Statistics (Editor’s Choice)

• About 48% of all gaming occurs on PCs.
• Mobile games make up approximately 70% of video gaming revenues.
• Over 350 million people play instant games on Facebook every month.
• YouTube is home to over 40 million active gaming channels.
• China is the world’s largest gaming market, with revenue amounting to $40.85 billion.
• In the US, 38% of all video gamers belong to the 18-34 age group.
• Time spent on video games during the pandemic rose by double digits everywhere.

Gaming Industry Statistics

With so many physical events being canceled during the pandemic, the gaming industry blossomed. It was already registering solid growth, but the situation with lockdowns only gave it a nudge in the right direction.

1. In 2020, video gaming was estimated to be a $159.3 billion industry. (WePC)

2. The gaming market is projected to reach $268 billion by 2025. (WePC)

3. Users of AR and VR games are estimated to reach 216 million by 2025. (Mordor Intelligence)

4. By the end of 2021, there will be 98 million monthly desktop/laptop gamers in the US. (Insider Intelligence)

5. The mobile gaming market generated over $77 billion in income in 2020, mobile video gaming industry statistics show. (Statista)

6. Latin America and APAC saw the highest gaming revenue growth in 2020 — 10.3% and 9.9%, respectively. (WePC)

7. Forecasts show that by the end of 2020, APAC gaming revenue was estimated to reach $78 billion. (WePC)

8. China and the US are the biggest contributors to consumer gaming spending with $40.9 billion and $36.9 billion, respectively. (WePC)

9. By the end of 2021, more than half of the US population will consider themselves digital gamers, with 177.7 million monthly gamers. (Insider Intelligence)

10. Free-to-play games drive 85% of the total industry revenue. (WePC)

PC Gaming vs Console Gaming Statistics

With so many options today, it’s hard to choose sometimes. Some of the popular ways to enjoy playing video games include PC and consoles. Which is better depends on your preferences and gaming budget.

11. A recent report shows that 48% of all gaming occurs on PCs. (Extreme Tech)

12. Gaming hardware sales were up 24% in 2020 YoY, amounting to $1.3 billion. (Extreme Tech)

13. The PC hardware industry is on a course to hit $70 billion by 2023. (WePC)

14. Steam is the platform most PC gamers choose, with $4.3 billion in revenues in 2017 alone. (WePC)

15. The PC gaming market is estimated to grow with a CAGR of 3.5% and reach $39.5 billion by 2022. (Newzoo)

16. PC games account for 24% of the market, as opposed to 25% for consoles, PC vs console gaming statistics suggest. (WePC)

17. The shipments of PC and all-in-one VR headsets are forecast to reach 62 million units by 2025. (WePC)

18. There are many VR development companies, and 27% of game developers stated that they are making games for the Oculus Quest VR. (Statista)

19. Roughly 66% of game developers are working on games for PC. (Statista)

20. Three out of four Americans play video games on different consoles. (Finances Online)

21. The best-selling console globally is PlayStation 2 with 157.68 million units sold. (WePC)

22. The best-selling console game is Wii Sports, selling 82.65 million units, video gaming statistics show. (WePC)

23. Consoles generated $92.2 billion globally in 2020. (Statista)

24. PlayStation 4 is the current-gen leader in the console market with a 46.7% share. (WePC)

25. LGBTQ+ households are 25% more likely to have console games compared to the rest of the US population. (WePC)

26. A60% of console gamers in the US are between 20 and 39 years old. (Statista)

Mobile Gaming Statistics

Surely you played Snake on your old Nokia once upon a time? Well if you haven’t, you must have at least been around for Candy Crush. Both of them are mobile games, and mobile gaming has evolved much past the likes of Tetris and Snake to a vast ecosystem of games that could be played on smartphones, tablets, even smartwatches. With new technologies like augmented reality, mobile games are evolving by the day.

27. Mobile games make up approximately 70% of video gaming revenues. (WEF)

28. The mobile gaming market is on track to exceed $100 billion by 2023. (Statista)

29. The number of mobile gamers jumped by 46% at the beginning of 2020. (Influencer Marketing Hub)

30. Users spent 4.2 hours on average playing mobile games each day in 2020. (Udonis)

31. In 2020, gaming apps accounted for 66% of the App Store revenues. (Statista)

32. Roughly 83% of Google Play’s revenues in 2020 originated from mobile games. (Udonis)

33. Consumers spent about $19 billion on mobile games in Q2 2020 alone, according to mobile gaming stats. (App Annie)

34. Games comprise 25% of all iOS downloads and 21% for Android. (Business of Apps)

35. Games make up 25% of AR app downloads on iOS. (Newzoo)

36. The number of advertisers in mobile games grew by 7.8% in 2020. (Influencer Marketing Hub)

37. Consumer spending on mobile AR games amounted to $1.3 billion in 2020. (Finances Online)

38. Around 74 cents of every dollar spent on Android go to games. (TechCrunch)

39. In line with mobile gaming industry statistics, 95% of game spending on Android goes to in-app purchases. (TechCrunch)

40. Pokemon Go, with a staggering 1 billion downloads was a breakthrough in AR-based gaming. (Game Designing)

41. Thanks to mobile devices there are already 2.69 billion gamers worldwide. (Venture Beat)

42. Over half of mobile gamers are older than 34 years. (Win)

43. 70% of women gamers play mobile games, as opposed to 66% of men. (MMA)

44. In the US, users typically have eight games installed on one device. (TechCrunch)

45. Globally, users play two to five games per month. (TechCrunch)

Facebook Gaming Stats

Facebook might be more familiar to you as a social network for staying in touch with your friends, but for gamers, it’s becoming this powerful live-streaming platform through Facebook Gaming. Brands meanwhile could use it as a channel to target gamers through appropriate marketing strategies.

46. Over 800 million people play instant games on Facebook every month. (Facebook)

47. More than 90 million are active in Facebook gaming groups. (Facebook)

48. Facebook Gaming hit 1.18 billion hours of content streaming in Q2 2021 (up from 1.06 billion in Q1). (Statista)

49. On 22nd May 2021, 38 million viewers watched content on Facebook Gaming, statistics show, reaching a peak. (Stream Charts)

50. Facebook Gaming has the biggest growth margin for 2018-2019, translated into a 210% increase in hours watched. (Influencer Marketing Hub)

51. 93% of console buyers in Brazil use Facebook for gaming-related activities. (Facebook)

52. Facebook’s free-to-play market was estimated to hit $13.2 billion in North America by the end of 2020. (Influencer Marketing Hub)

53. The total number of streamers on Facebook Gaming was 413,181 as of October 2021. (Stream Charts)

YouTube Gaming Stats

In general terms, 2020 was a good year for YouTube. But one segment stood out in particular — gaming. As one of the fundamental pillars of online entertainment, it comes as no surprise that users spent so many hours watching game-related content. Check out these stats to find out more.

54. In Q2 2021, YouTube Gaming had about 599,000 concurrent viewers on average. (Statista)

55. About 73% of YouTube gamers like to watch others play games on this platform. (Think with Google)

56. 56% of YouTube gamers connect with their gaming community on YouTube. (Think with Google)

57. In 2020, people watched over 100 billion hours of gaming on the platform, YouTube gaming statistics suggest. (Hootsuite)

58. Out of these 100 billion hours, 10 billion were YouTube Gaming live streams. (The Verge)

59. YouTube is home to over 40 million active gaming channels. (Hootsuite)

60. Two out of five YouTube channels with the most subscribers offer gaming content. (Think with Google)

61. Over 80,000 gaming channels on this platform have at least 100,000 subscribers. (Hootsuite)

62. About 48% of YouTube gamers said they spend more time watching gaming content on the platform, rather than playing. (Think with Google)

63. With 200 billion views, Minecraft is the most viewed game on YouTube. (The Verge)

64. Roblox and Garena Free Fire are second and third on the list of the most-watched games on YouTube with 75 and 72 billion views respectively. (The Verge)

65. 74% of YouTube gamers watch content on YouTube to improve their playing. (Think with Google)

Tabletop Gaming Statistics

It’s not just online gaming that keeps growing. The global market for board games is also seeing some action. And nowadays they include so much more than the classic chess, Scrabble, and Monopoly —between Pandemic, Cards Against Humanity, Catan, Azul, and Exploding Kittens, to name a few —there’s something for everyone and the numbers prove it.

66. The US comprises the largest share of the board games market with revenues of $3 billion in 2020. (Cision PR Newswire)

67. By 2023, the tabletop games market is projected to reach $12 billion. (Statista)

68. Due to lockdowns and school closure, educational board games grew in popularity, with online sales rising by 18% worldwide. (Cision PR Newswire)

69. The board games revenues are set to grow at a CAGR of 13% between 2021 and 2026, gaming statistics indicate. (ReportLinker)

70. Tabletop games supposedly raised over $236 million in 2020 on Kickstarter, registering a 33% increase YoY. (Dicebreaker)

71. Frosthaven broke the record as the most funded board game on Kickstarter, with 83,000 sponsors and $13 million in funds raised. (Dicebreaker)

72. Roughly 57% of people surveyed own between one and 25 board games, and 22% own 26-50. (PrintNinja)

73. Only 10.9% of respondents to the survey had over 100 board games. (PrintNinja)

74. The US accounts for one-third of the Games and Puzzles market. (Dicebreaker)

75. 22% of people surveyed spent over $1,000 on board games in one year. (PrintNinja)

Gaming Statistics Worldwide

China and the US are the world’s biggest gaming markets. These two have been clashing for the number one spot in the last couple of years, with China outperforming the US in 2020.

76. China has the largest gaming market in the world, with revenue in this segment amounting to $40.85 billion. (Statista)

77. The US video gaming market ranked as no 2 globally with $36.92 in 2020. (Statista)

78. There are over 720 million gamers in China, with 110 million under the age of 18. (Fortune)

79. Gaming statistics for the UK show two-thirds of adults played games on different devices in 2020. (Ofcom)

80. Nearly 92% of young people 16-24 years old confirmed they played games in 2020. (Ofcom)

81. There are roughly 175 million digital gamers in the US. (Statista)

82. In 2020, approximately 65% of American adults played video games on at least one platform. (Statista)

83. In the US, games are forecasted to generate $42.5 billion in revenues by the end of 2021. (WEF)

84. Gaming statistics for India show that the nation’s gaming market is set to generate $8.6 billion by the end of 2021. (WEF)

85. Users in India downloaded 2.9 billion mobile games between July and September 2020. (Financial Express)

86. The number of gamers in India grew from 250 million at the end of 2018 to almost 400 million by mid-2020. (Financial Express)

87. Just under 70% of Australians play interactive games, gaming statistics for Australia show. (Parliament of Australia)

88. Out of people playing games Down Under, 78% are 18 years old and over. (Parliament of Australia)

89. Only 7% of Australians over 65 years old are playing video games. (Parliament of Australia)

90. Japan’s gaming market comprises over 70 million players. (WePC)

91. Roughly 50% of Japanese Internet users utilize smartphones to play games. (DMFA)

Gaming Statistics by Gender

While gaming was considered largely a male domain, with girls rarely seen battling ogres in WoW or earning money in tournaments, this is no longer true. Recent years have seen a rise in female gamers around the world who become top players on a professional level, developing solid careers in gaming.

92. About 45% of gamers in the US are female. (Statista)

93. Women gamers spend $359 per year on average for game accessories and downloaded content vs. $335 for men. (Venture Beat)

94. Around 48.8% of women in a survey identified as committed gamers, as opposed to 49.1% of men. (AdColony)

95. Gaming statistics by country show that across five European markets (the UK, Germany, France, Italy, and Spain), over 56 million women play video games, comprising 47% of all gamers in these countries. (ISFE)

96. 77% of gamer moms in the US play video games daily. (Activision Blizzard)

97. The majority of women play single-player games (86%), however, 36% and 34% of female gamers play Call of Duty and Fortnight respectively. (The Drum)

98. Women comprise 29% of esports fans, playing 15 hours per week on average. (The Drum)

Gaming Statistics by Age

Despite the widespread idea of gamers being younger people, the age limit for this activity is continuously expanding. With more people playing, using different devices (PCs, mobiles, consoles) it’s only normal that the age limit changes. Still, the majority still belong to Generation Alpha, Z, and Millennials.

99. In the US, 38% of all video gamers belong to the 18-34 age group. (Statista)

100. Only 7% of gamers in the US are older than 65 years. (Statista)

101. About 79% of active mobile game players belong to Gen Z and Gen Alpha. (Finances Online)

102. Similarly, 77% of active console players are Gen Alpha and Gen Z. (Finances Online)

103. Roughly 56% of Millennials in the US are active PC players, gaming statistics show. (Finances Online)

104. In 2018, Americans aged 15-19 spent 49 minutes on gaming during an average weekday, as well as 90 minutes on holidays and weekends. (Statista)

105. In Germany, the UK, Spain, Italy, and France 79% of those aged 11-14 play video games. (ISFE)

106. The average age of American gamers today is between 35 and 44 years old. (Venture Beat)

107. Those between 26 and 35 years old spend the most time playing games a week — 7.5 hours. (Finances Online)

108. 48% of gamers aged 26-35 play at work every month. (Limelight Networks)

Gaming Statistics During Covid

The pandemic has changed our lives in many aspects and made a significant impact on the gaming market. Naturally, people took to gaming during the lockdown as a form of escape from reality and a way to pass the time.

109. 82% of consumers worldwide played video games/watched game content during the pandemic. (Nielsen)

110. Digital gaming spending on in-game purchases and paid downloads grew by 12% and 21%, respectively, in 2020. (Statista)

111. Asia-Pacific registered a 42% growth in terms of time spent on video games during the pandemic. (Statista)

112. The rise of gamers who claimed they play more video games due to the pandemic was the highest in the US (46%). (Nielsen)

113. In 2020, the number of video gaming content viewers increased to over 1.2 billion, statistics on video gaming show. (Majority)

114. In 2020, Twitch was the biggest video gaming content streaming platform with 140 million monthly active users. (Backlinko)

115. In 2020, over 13 million people joined Twitch for the first time. (Twitch Advertising)

116. Twitch saw a record when the platform registered one trillion minutes of content streams in 2020. (Screen Rant)

117. Fighting games registered the highest growth during the pandemic, as of June 2020, with a 30% increase. (Statista)

118. Multiple Online Battle Arena and Battle Royale registered a growth of 26% and 24% as of June 2020. (Statista)

119. Nintendo’s Animal Crossing: New Horizons game sold in 13.4 million pieces in the first six weeks since its launch in March 2020. (Statista)

120. Playing esports games became more popular than watching them with 83% vs. 29%. (Nielsen)

Other Statistics on Gaming & Games Addiction

121. Online gaming has privacy risks, and 61% of Americans already feel they need more protection, such as using VPNs for gaming. (Pew Research Center)

122. The US gaming industry has 2,457 software development companies that support 220,000 jobs directly or indirectly. (Venture Beat)

123. Roughly 26% of gamers use PayPal as the payment method for in-game purchases. (Finances Online)

124. Gaming addiction statistics show that 0.3-1% of the population in the US, Canada, Germany, and the UK fit the gaming addiction criteria. (Healthy Gamer)

125. 10% of children in Singapore are addicted to gaming and the Internet. (Healthy Gamer)

126. Roughly 9% of elementary and secondary school students could fall into the category of pathological gamers, who use it as a coping strategy, research suggests. (The Recovery Village)

127. Among youth between 8 and 18 years old, 8.5% suffer from gaming disorder, children and teenage gaming addiction statistics indicate. (Game Quitters)

Final Words

The gaming industry seems to be alive and well, getting a further boost by the COVID-19 pandemic. Many game developing companies and marketing experts will exploit the opportunities opening up with the rise of the gaming market. Gaming statistics meanwhile suggest that the biggest impact on gaming will come from the rise of new technologies like VR, AR, and AI. All in all, the future seems pretty exciting for gamers.