• 2 min read
Max overtakes Telegram as growth nearly stalls
Max overtook Telegram in Russia’s June 2026 monthly audience, but growth nearly stopped as the service reached 86.26 million users.
Image: 3dnews
Max surpassed Telegram in monthly messenger audience in Russia for the first time in June 2026. But the service is already showing signs of a plateau: 86.26 million people over 12 used it during the month, according to Mediascope, barely above May’s figure.
Max’s monthly reach rose from 85.35 million in April to 86.06 million in May, then added just 198,000 users in June. At that scale, the increase is almost lost in statistical noise.
Telegram declined much more sharply. Its June audience was 75.69 million, down from 87.92 million in April, when it still led Russia’s messenger market. WhatsApp ranked third with 63.51 million users.
Recommended reading
Meta tests AI app for children’s bedtime stories
Image source: 3dnews
Daily reach puts Max further ahead
Mediascope’s figures cover both mobile and desktop versions of the services, and Russians over 12. Max reached 70% of the country’s population by monthly audience, compared with 61.4% for Telegram and 51.5% for WhatsApp.
Its lead is even larger in daily reach. In June, 69.03 million people used Max each day, versus 35.41 million for Telegram and 23.62 million for WhatsApp. The gap suggests Max has become a routine daily app for many users, rather than a service opened only occasionally.
Restrictions helped drive Max’s initial growth
Max’s rapid rise coincided with restrictions affecting foreign messengers. In August 2025, Roskomnadzor announced limits on calls in Telegram and WhatsApp. In November, it introduced successive restrictions targeting WhatsApp, and in February 2026 said similar measures against Telegram would continue.
That gave the Russian service a broad starting audience, not only for messaging but also for more frequent everyday use. The first surge now appears to be fading: Max added about 900,000 monthly users over two months, while its latest increase fell within the statistical margin of error for a platform of this size.
The next contest may be less about installations than retention and daily engagement. Telegram still benefits from channels, news, and user habit; WhatsApp remains rooted in everyday communication. Max has reached the same broad scale, but its June figures show that holding first place could be harder than reaching it.
Computing Editor
Tomas lives in the terminal. He covers chips, laptops, and operating systems with a focus on performance and efficiency. He reads kernel changelogs the way other people read fiction, and he's always on the hunt for the perfect mechanical keyboard switch. If it processes data, Tomas has an opinion on it.
via ITzine
