Market size and growth
- The AI companion app market is projected to grow from roughly $10.8 billion in 2024 toward $290 billion by 2034, a compound annual growth rate near 39% (Market.us).
- Consumer spending on AI companion apps passed $221 million by mid-2025, with first-half 2025 revenue up 64% year over year (AppFigures data, reported by ElectroIQ).
- North America is the largest regional market, holding roughly 36% share.
Users and downloads
- AI companion apps have been downloaded more than 220 million times globally, with about 60 million downloads in the first half of 2025 alone.
- Character AI reported around 22 million monthly active users at its 2024 peak reporting; Replika has an estimated 25 million registered users.
- New AI companion app launches grew from 16 in 2022 to over 120 in 2025 — an eight-fold expansion in three years.
Search demand (Google Keyword Planner, USA + Canada, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026)
- "AI girlfriend" is searched about 165,000 times per month in the US and Canada alone.
- Roleplay-related queries are the fastest-growing segment: "AI chatbot roleplay" grew +402% year over year to 18,100 monthly searches, and "roleplay chat bot" grew +171%.
- Combined girlfriend- and roleplay-related queries exceed 360,000 monthly searches in North America.
- Interest spikes hard around events: "create your own AI girlfriend" jumped from ~1,000 to 60,500 searches in December 2025 before settling back.
Notes on sourcing
Figures above are compiled from public market research (Market.us, AppFigures via ElectroIQ) and Google Keyword Planner exports we ran in August 2026. Different research firms define this market differently, so treat totals as directional rather than exact. This page is updated as new data is published — cite it freely with a link.
Exploring the category itself? Start with our Top 5 AI girlfriend apps or the best AI roleplay apps ranking.