How Many Websites Are There In The World in 2024? Key Stats!

The internet is vast, there presently doesn’t appear to be a limit on how many sites can be created. 

That means, no matter how many websites there are today, there can be more tomorrow.

It’s good news for everyone wanting to create their own site and share their knowledge of building a business.

However, everyone should be asking how many websites are there in the world?

Perhaps more importantly, you should be looking at how many websites are in your industry.

It will give you an idea regarding how much competition you’re facing. 

Of course, the original intent of the internet was to allow communication between people and the sharing of knowledge.

Specifically, it was intended to help scientists share discoveries and move science forward faster. 

The internet originally came into existence in 1980.

Interestingly, the majority of the protocols used today to build and maintain the internet remain the same. 

Websites sit on the internet, it wouldn’t be possible to travel between pages and view all the information without the internet. 

Of course, when it started there were just a few simple web pages, today it’s a very different story.

After all, with over 5 billion people connected to the internet, there’s a lot of people looking for the right information. 

Key Statistics

• As of 2023 there are 1.88 billion websites
• Approximately 576,000 websites become live daily
• YouTube is the most visited site in the world
• In 2020 there were approximately 6 billion web pages
• It would take three million years to download all the information on the web
• 70,000 websites are hacked daily
• The average us internet user visits 130 pages a day!
• 76% of websites are mobile friendly
• At the end of 2022 there were over 350 million domain names

How Many Websites Are There In The World in 2024? 

1. As of 2023 There Are 1.88 Billion Websites

The latest figures show that there are over 1.88 billion websites which have already been created.

That’s a huge number which suggests one in three internet users have a website. 

The number of websites has grown rapidly in recent years.

In 2010 there were less than a quarter of a billion websites.

By 2016, there were just over half a billion, and in 2017 it shot up to 1.75 billion. 

The numbers dipped slightly in 2018 and 2019, before returning to 1.76 billion in 2020 and climbing again.

As mentioned, today there are over 1.88 billion sites.  

Of course, many businesses have multiple websites which account for some of these numbers.

However, more interesting is the fact that the majority of these sites aren’t active. 

The latest figures suggest that just 200 million sites are active.

The rest have either been closed down, are waiting to go live, or are simply holding pages to prevent competitors getting the site. 

(Statista)

2. Approximately 576,000 Websites Become Live Daily

The internet is constantly changing and evolving.

The proof of this is in the number of new websites which appear daily. 

Current studies show 576,000 websites go live every day.

However, while you may think this will quickly increase the number of global websites, that’s not the case. 

Many of the sites which become live will only last a short time before being closed down.

Others are simply replacing existing sites, giving them a modern look.

A very small percentage of these sites are truly new and hoping to break into a specific industry.

Some of these sites will make it and add to the increasing number of global websites.

Others won’t. 

It’s worth noting that the percentage of active websites compared to created websites hasn’t really changed in the last five years.

(Internet Live Statistics)

3. YouTube Is the Most Visited Site In the World

You probably won’t be surprised to learn that YouTube is the most visited website in the world.

It’s also the most visited website in the US. 

The channel has over 1.625 billion visitors every month, and that’s just from the US.

If you look globally, it has over 8.5 billion monthly visitors. 

Interestingly, Facebook takes the second spot globally with 3.5 billion monthly visitors.

However, in the US the second most visited site is Wikipedia which manages just over one billion visitors every month. 

Facebook is the fourth most visited site in the US, after Twitter. 

Globally, Wikipedia comes in third and Twitter fourth.

It’s the same four whether you look at global or US statistics, the order simply changes slightly. 

Amazon takes the fifth place globally and in the US with an impressive 618 million monthly visitors across the globe.

492 million of these are from the US. 

(Earthweb)

4. In 2020 There Were Approximately 6 Billion Web Pages

According to a study completed in 2020 there were six billion indexed web pages.

The survey didn’t quantify whether the pages were active or not, meaning there is no way of knowing how many are inactive. 

However, assuming that the majority of websites with multiple pages are those that are active then roughly 1.5 billion websites are simply using a page to hold the site.

The 200 million active sites will account for approximately 4.5 billion web pages between them.

That’s an average of 20 web pages per site.

Once you start looking at sites you’ll realize that this is plausible.

For example, Nike is one website.

However, it has multiple web pages, such as Women’s running shoes, women’s lifestyle shoes, women’s shorts, and so on. 

If every site were to create multiple pages the amount of data on the web would rise significantly. 

(worldwidewebsize)

5. It Would Take Three Million Years To Download All The Information On The Web

Assuming you had a supercomputer with a huge memory bank and a consistent download speed of 44 megabits per second, it would still take you three million years to download all the available information on the web. 

That illustrates just how big the internet is and no one knows if there is a limit to the amount of data the internet can hold. 

Unfortunately, you don’t have three million years to wait, therefore you’ll have to continue browsing the pages which interest you the most.

(Physics.org)

6. 70,000 Websites Are Hacked Daily

Current estimates suggest that 70,000 or more websites are successfully hacked every day.

Thousands more are unsuccessfully targeted. 

While that may seem relatively small compared to the 200 million active websites or the 1.88 billion registered sites, it’s a significant number.

Every hack releases data and will cause a variety of problems for those who have had their data compromised.

Indeed, being hacked can also seriously damage a business reputation.

In short, it causes serious financial issues or even the failure of your site.

That’s why you need to be aware of this number and take the necessary precautions Especially if you are just creating your own website. 

(Statista)

7. The Average US Internet User Visits 130 Pages A Day!

It’s fortunate there are so many websites and pages when you find out that the average American will visit 130 web pages every day! 

Considering the average American spends six-and-a-half hours on screens daily, that number isn’t as large as it could be. 

However, the US is one of the largest internet users in the world.

With over 300 million Americans online and at least half-a-billion websites hosted in the US, it definitely dominates the World Wide Web.

(Kickstand)

8. 76% Of Websites Are Mobile Friendly

In 2023 Google looked at all the data from websites to assess how mobile friendly they were.

The data revealed that 76% were designed to work on mobile screens as effectively as desktops.

That’s a significant increase compared to 2016 when less than 25% were designed to work with mobile devices. 

This increase is likely linked to an increase in mobile access.

Specifically, 2016 was the first year mobile internet access overtook desktop. 

Today, over 50% of websites are visited from a mobile device, meaning that 24% of websites are theoretically missing out on consumers. 

Don’t forget that 48% of people in a recent Virtual Window survey stated that web design was the best way to establish the credibility of a business.

If the design doesn’t work on a mobile then your credibility is shot before you start. 

(Google)

9. At The End Of 2022 There Were Over 350 Million Domain Names

A domain name is the address of a website, also referred to as the URL.

It’s what you type in to go directly to a webpage. 

In general, businesses will buy domain names that match their business name, this makes it easier to find them online and build brand awareness. 

What’s interesting is that the latest figures show over 350 million domain names have been registered, even though there are only 200 million active websites. 

A large part of this number is likely to be businesses covering all options.

For instance, taking the .org name as well as the .com, and the .net URL. 

The top domains, and the ones you should care about the most, are .com and .net.

These are considered the top-level domains and the ones that see the most growth. 

In general, the number of domain names grows every year, although the total is currently lower than it was in 2020. 

(Verisign)

Understanding The Types Of Website

There are actually 5 different types of websites.

It’s useful to understand the difference.

The first, static websites, are now very rare but the either four types can be easily found online. 

1. Static

Static websites are effectively a fixed advertisement.

The site can’t be edited and it can’t be interacted with, just uploaded and viewed. 

They work well to tell people about an event but they have very limited appeal and are rarely used today. 

2. Dynamic

Dynamic websites took webpages to a new level.

These can be interacted with and edited as and when you need. 

In fact, sites like Facebook and LinkedIn are dynamic as they allow all users to interact with all other users. 

Surprisingly, only 15% of websites are dynamic.

3. eCommerce

These websites are designed to sell goods.

The sites are designed to illustrate products and they usually have payment options integrated into the site, making the paying process fast and simple. 

PayPal is a perfect example of this.

New ones are created daily.

4. CMS

Content Management Systems (CMS) are websites created without technical expertise.

WordPress is the most obvious example.

These types of sites supply all the tools you need to create a unique website.

You’ll have complete control over the theme, layout, and other design elements. 

Approximately 37% of websites are CMS.

5. Progressive

This can be seen as a website or an extension to a website.

It effectively allows third-party integration.

Used properly it can allow multiple third-party apps into one page. 

Summing Up

The current answer to how many websites are there in the world is 1.88 billion.

However, this number is constantly changing as new sites are created. 

Of course, what really matters is how many websites are active, how many are in your industry, and how many you are likely to be in direct competition with.

Working this out is much more difficult but will allow you to assess your competition and discover what you need to do to stand out from the crowd.

It’s an essential part of your business success, and starts with understanding the sheer number of sites created which could potentially go live. 

Today there are 200 million live sites out of 1.858 billion created.

In five years the numbers could look very different.

It’s important to monitor them regularly and prepare for the future today.

Sources

EarthWeb	World Economic Forum	Blogging Wizard
Statista	Website Setup