How Many Indians Use Short-Video Apps? Reels, Shorts, Moj and Josh (2026)

How Many Indians Use Short-Video Apps? Reels, Shorts, Moj and Josh (2026)

By Ashok Sachdev, Founder of JustShoot · Published 8 October 2026 · Sources read 8 October 2026

Short answer: No single source counts short-video users across apps in India. The best independent numbers are advertising reach, not users: YouTube 500 million and Instagram 481 million in India (DataReportal, Digital 2026: India, based on the platforms' own ad tools). Neither Google nor Meta publishes an India user count for Shorts or Reels. The Indian apps publish their own figures: ShareChat's site claims 100 million+ monthly users for Moj today, down from 160 million in its 2023 statement; Josh was reported at 150 million in April 2022, while app-tracking data cited by Inc42 put it at 9.4 million in July 2024.

So the question has two honest answers. For the two global platforms, the closest numbers are ad-reach estimates for the whole app. For the Indian apps, the numbers are company claims, and at least one is contradicted by outside data.

The numbers side by side

Ad reach is not users

DataReportal is the most-cited source for these numbers, and it is careful about what they mean. Its India report says ad-reach figures do "not necessarily represent the same thing as monthly active user figures" and "may be meaningfully different". It quotes Meta's own ad tools: "Estimated audience size is not a proxy for monthly or daily active users, or for engagement."

Two consequences for anyone quoting them:

1. They are whole-app numbers. YouTube's 500 million covers long videos, Shorts, music and TV viewing together. Instagram's 481 million covers the feed, Stories and Reels. Neither tells you how many of those people watch short videos.
2. They can move for reasons that have nothing to do with people. DataReportal warns that platforms "correcting" for fake or duplicate accounts can make a number fall even when real use did not.

For how many Indians use YouTube in total, and for how long each day, see our breakdown of YouTube users in India and daily watch time, which compares every count and what it measures.

What Meta and Google say about Reels and Shorts

Reels. Meta's India newsroom post of 11 September 2025 reports an Ipsos survey it commissioned: more than 3,500 people across 33 centres. In that survey, 97% said they watch short-form video at least once a day, 92% chose Reels as their preferred platform, and 95% said they watch Reels every day — "at least 12 percentage points ahead of other surveyed platforms". These are shares of a survey sample, commissioned by Meta. They are not a user count, and a survey paid for by one platform will not be the neutral way to compare platforms.

Shorts. The figure Google gives is global: more than 2 billion logged-in users watch Shorts every month, announced with Alphabet's results in July 2023. YouTube has not published an India figure for Shorts that we could find.

The Indian apps: claims vs. outside data

Moj (ShareChat / Mohalla Tech). ShareChat's website shows two numbers for Moj. Its current product tiles say 100 million+ monthly active users, 550,000+ creators and 40 minutes of average daily time. Its company description, dated 2023, says 160 million MAU for Moj and 325 million+ across all its apps. Both are the company's own claims. Read together, they suggest the claim itself has come down.

Josh (VerSe Innovation). In April 2022, TechCrunch reported Josh at 150 million monthly active users, at the time of VerSe's funding round. In July 2024, Inc42 reported app-intelligence data from Data.ai showing Josh's MAU falling from 20 million in July 2023 to 9.4 million in July 2024, and monthly downloads down nearly 80%. VerSe now reports "over 350 million users across platforms" for its whole group (Entrackr, September 2025), without a separate Josh figure.

The gap between 150 million and 9.4 million is more than fifteen times. Part of it is time, and part is method: company MAU definitions are not published, and app-tracking firms estimate from panels. Neither is an audit. But the direction is consistent across sources: the Indian apps that grew after TikTok's 2020 ban are smaller now than at their peak, while Reels and Shorts sit inside apps with hundreds of millions of reachable users.

What this means for a creator choosing a platform

Shorts and Reels have the reach. Both live inside apps with about half a billion reachable people in India. The Indian apps can still matter for Hindi and regional-language creators, but their reach claims are smaller and less certain.

Reach is not the same as being watched. A big app with a feed you cannot get into is worth less than a smaller one where your videos are seen. The deciding number is your own retention, not the platform's user count.

The first two seconds decide. On every short-video feed, a viewer chooses within a swipe. Before you post, test the opening line with the free hook generator, which writes three hooks in Hindi, Hinglish or English. For turning one long video into Shorts and Reels without writing each cut from scratch, see repurposing a YouTube video into Shorts and Reels. For what Shorts pay, see YouTube Shorts monetization in India.

How to quote these numbers

• Say what each number is: "481 million Instagram ad reach in India (DataReportal, late 2025)", not "481 million Instagram users".
• Label company claims as claims, with the date.
• Never add ad-reach figures across platforms. The same person counts in several apps.

Where JustShoot fits

JustShoot runs the pre-production pipeline — research and fact-check, script, storyboard, thumbnail brief, SEO package and shorts — in your channel's own voice, in 11 languages. The shorts step cuts a long script into short-form scripts with their own hooks, ready for Shorts, Reels or Moj.

Pricing is per script: Trial ₹0 (7 days, 2 scripts lifetime, no card) · Starter ₹499/mo (3 scripts) · Creator ₹999/mo (7 scripts, most popular) · Pro ₹1999/mo (15 scripts) · Studio custom. No rollover, GST included, monthly only. Details on the pricing page.

FAQ

How many people use short-video apps in India? No source counts them across all apps. The nearest independent figures are ad reach for the whole app: YouTube 500 million and Instagram 481 million in India (DataReportal, Digital 2026: India). Indian apps publish their own claims, such as Moj at 100 million+ monthly users.

How many Instagram users are there in India? Meta does not publish an Indian user count. Instagram's ad reach in India is 481 million (DataReportal, late 2025), which Meta itself says is not a measure of monthly active users.

How many people use YouTube Shorts in India? YouTube does not publish an India figure for Shorts. Its global figure is more than 2 billion logged-in monthly viewers (July 2023). YouTube's total ad reach in India is 500 million (DataReportal, October 2025), covering all YouTube viewing.

How many users does Moj have? ShareChat's website currently claims 100 million+ monthly active users for Moj. Its 2023 company statement gave 160 million. Both are company claims.

How many users does Josh have? Josh was reported at 150 million monthly active users in April 2022 (TechCrunch). App-tracking data from Data.ai, reported by Inc42, put it at 9.4 million in July 2024. VerSe does not publish a separate Josh figure now.

Sources, read 8 October 2026. DataReportal / Kepios, Digital 2026: India (5 November 2025). Meta, Five Years On, Reels Reigns as India's Top Short-Form Video Platform (about.fb.com, 11 September 2025; Ipsos survey commissioned by Meta). TechCrunch, Google says 2 billion logged-in monthly users are watching YouTube Shorts (25 July 2023). ShareChat, company website (sharechat.com/about). TechCrunch, Dailyhunt and Josh apps parent firm raises $805 million at $5 billion valuation (6 April 2022). Inc42, VerSe Innovation's Josh Is Fizzling Out (24 July 2024; Data.ai estimates). Entrackr, VerSe Innovation revenue jumps 88% in FY25 (September 2025).