BeReal, which claims to have 40 million monthly users, will launch ads in the United States.
It's time for BeReal to be honest with itself, as it proves difficult to make profits in a social photo-sharing app without resorting to advertising sales or implementing subscriptions. After receiving an investment of 500 million euros, the situation is changing.
BeReal, the social photo-sharing app, is at a crucial crossroads to generate revenue. Following its sale to the French company Voodoo for 500 million euros, BeReal has decided to implement advertising in the U.S. market. Its new strategy includes in-app ads that follow the same double-camera posting style, as well as branded takes that occupy the entire day.
The app had already conducted ad trials with well-known brands such as Levi's, Nike, Netflix, and Amazon, but it is now set to formally launch an advertising platform in the U.S. To lead this new approach, BeReal has hired Ben Moore, who previously worked at TikTok, to head up a team in the U.S. focused on sales, partnerships, and expansion.
According to company reports, BeReal has approximately 40 million monthly active users, with 5 million located in the U.S. A notable figure is that 85% of its users belong to Generation Z. In its key markets, which include the U.S., France, and Japan, 50% of users log onto the app at least six days a week, though these figures have not yet been independently verified.
Founded in 2019, the ephemeral social app did not reach its peak until 2022, when it raised $30 million in a Series A funding round through a16z and Accel. During that period, both Meta and TikTok tried to capitalize on BeReal's virality. In October 2022, estimates from Sensor Tower indicated that 53 million people had downloaded the app, although only about 9% of active Android users opened it daily. A cultural milestone was reached when the app was the subject of a parody on SNL that same month.
Despite its notable growth, BeReal has seen a slowdown in downloads in recent years. Since its launch, it has been downloaded 115 million times on iOS and Android, with 33% of these downloads coming from the U.S. However, in 2023, the total downloads worldwide reached approximately 31.5 million, representing a 60% decrease compared to the previous year, with only 12.7 million downloads in 2024.