WeChat Crosses 1.4 Billion Monthly Active Users With Expansion in Africa
WeChat Hits 1.4 Billion Users
Tencent Holdings has disclosed that WeChat's monthly active user count has surpassed 1.4 billion, up from 1.34 billion a year ago. While growth in China — where WeChat is essentially a universal utility — has plateaued, the platform is seeing notable expansion in African markets, where its integrated payment and mini-program features are attracting users beyond the Chinese diaspora.
Tencent VP Liu Chiping said WeChat's growth in Africa "follows a natural path — Chinese business communities in African cities adopted WeChat first, then local merchants and service providers discovered its commercial capabilities."
Africa Growth Story
WeChat has approximately 15 million active users in Africa, concentrated in Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa, and Tanzania. The growth is driven by Chinese merchants and construction companies operating in Africa who use WeChat Pay for transactions, combined with local entrepreneurs who have begun using WeChat mini-programs for e-commerce.
In Nairobi, Kenya, a growing number of merchants in the Eastleigh district — a major commercial hub — accept WeChat Pay alongside M-Pesa. A Nairobi-based tech consultant told Reuters that "WeChat is the most convenient way to do business with Chinese suppliers. Once you're on WeChat, you start using it for everything else too."
Mini-Program Ecosystem
WeChat's mini-program ecosystem now hosts over 5 million active programs, generating an annual transaction value exceeding 5 trillion yuan. Mini-programs are lightweight apps that run within WeChat, covering everything from food delivery to government services to retail shopping.
The platform's latest addition is an AI-powered mini-program builder that allows small businesses to create functional e-commerce programs using natural language descriptions. Tencent says over 200,000 mini-programs have been created using the tool since its launch in September.
Competitive Dynamics
WeChat faces increasing competition from ByteDance's Douyin (the Chinese version of TikTok), which has been aggressively expanding its commerce and local services features. Douyin's daily active user count in China has reached 750 million, with users spending an average of 120 minutes per day on the app — significantly more than WeChat's 85 minutes.
Analysts say the competition has pushed Tencent to invest more heavily in video content and commerce within WeChat. WeChat Video Accounts, the platform's short-video feature, has grown to 450 million daily active users and is beginning to generate meaningful advertising revenue.
