How Many People Use Zelle? (2019–2026)
Online payments rank among the top forms of payment accepted by small businesses in the United States—and it’s not hard to see why. The speed and convenience it offers help buyers simplify transactions and provide them with better control over their finances.
As it stands, the number of Venmo users in the United States is set to increase by 9.5% in 2023, to 85.1 million. What about Zelle, another rising digital payment service and one of Venmo’s biggest competitors? Here’s a look at how many people use Zelle.
How many people use Zelle in 2023?
According to a recent study, the number of Zelle users in 2023 is set to hit 67.8 million, registering a 10.1% annual increase, from 61.6 million the previous year.
Even though Zelle has fewer users than Venmo, expert analysis shows that the company’s peer-to-peer payments (in terms of dollar amount) exceed that of Venmo. The growth rate of its number of users in 2023 is also faster than Venmo’s.
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Despite Zelle’s double-digit growth this year, it actually marks a deceleration from the previous year. In 2022, Zelle grew its number of users by 13.9%.
The number of people using Zelle has been rising year after year. In 2019, there were 33.5 million users. In other words, from 2019 to 2023, Zelle more than doubled its user base, growing it at an impressive annual growth rate of 19.7%. During this period, the largest year-on-year increase came in 2020, when the number of Zelle users rose by 37.3%, to 46 million.
How many users does Zelle have: 2024–2026 forecast
Looking ahead, experts expect Zelle’s user count to continue growing—albeit at slower, single-digit rates. In 2024, Zelle is predicted to increase its total user base by 8%, to 73.2 million, before growing another 7.1% in 2025, to hit 78.4 million. By 2026, forecasts show there will be 82.4 million Zelle users, a 5.1% annual increase. From 2024 to 2026, the average annual growth rate of Zelle users is expected at 6.7%.
Should the growth continue as analysts have predicted, there would be 48.9 million more Zelle users in 2026 than in 2019—an increase of 48.9 million, or 146%.