Communication during pandemic

During the pandemic, video messaging clients meet the users’ needs and make it possible to work remotely and attend classes, or even meet friends without leaving home. Since the coronavirus restrictions were introduced in many European countries, the interest in messaging clients has increased as much as seven times.

Picodi.com analysis team decided to find out which tools and applications which enable video chatting gained the biggest popularity in recent times.

Let’s talk

We analysed the average number of online search queries for some of the most popular messaging clients. We checked both niche and major operators, such as Google, Microsoft, Facebook, Rakuten, or Line Corporation.

The undisputed leader in Europe is WhatsApp, which was the most frequently searched messaging app in 22 countries. WhatsApp took the lead across the continent, from Portugal and Spain, through Switzerland and Italy, to Germany and the Czech Republic. The explosion of interest in this green-coloured app was also noted in Russia, Turkey, or Romania.

In 14 countries — including the United Kingdom — the most popular messaging client was Zoom. The interest in this app skyrocketed mostly in the northern European countries (Norway), in some Baltic countries (Lithuania, Estonia), as well as in Ukraine and Moldavia.

Skype gained popularity in Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, and Greece. Similar to Skype, Viber and Microsoft Teams ruled only in four countries. The popularity of both messaging clients increased in the Balkans. Microsoft Teams won in Liechtenstein and Viber ranked first in Belarus. Denmark was the only country where Google Meet took first place among other messaging clients.

Methodology and Data Source

The research was based on a comparison of search queries of 19 messaging clients which enable video chatting. Historical data was obtained through Google Keyword Planner.

Public Use

Feel free to use all the data and infographics presented in this report for both commercial and non-commercial purposes as long as you indicate the author of the research (Picodi.com) with a link to this subpage. If you have any questions, please contact us: research@picodi.com.

About Picodi

Picodi is an international e-commerce platform which provides discount coupons for online stores. Founded in 2010 in Kraków, it currently operates in 44 countries and is listed in FT1000 ranking of Europe’s fastest-growing companies. In the United Kingdom since 2012.

Picodi Analysis Department

The unit was established in 2017, and it analyses the market, consumer activities, prices of products and services, as well as wages.

• Head of Department: Nikolay Kashcheev
• Researchers: Katarzyna Kobyłka, Paweł Stolarczyk, Irina Egurtsova
• Graphic Design: Daria Ponomareva