Bible app sets record growth as users seek peace, prayer in 2024
News Brief by FāVS News Staff
The YouVersion Bible family of apps experienced a record year of downloads and daily use.
Along with that, YouVersion announced Philippians 4:6 as their verse of the year. It was the most engaged verse. It reads: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.”
Among the top in-app search terms this year were “prayer” and “peace.”
With this Bible verse and those search terms seeing higher interaction, YouVersion Founder and CEO Bobby Gruenewald said it showed people are “more likely to turn to God when they face anxiety and daily struggles.”
“In many cases, our anxiety comes from holding onto worries that we aren’t meant to carry,” Gruenewald said in a Dec. 2 press release. “To me, this verse … is an illustration that our community is seeking God in prayer and choosing to trust Him to carry their burdens.”
Across its family of apps — which includes Bible App, Bible App Lite and Bible App for Kids — YouVersion saw an average of 11.2 million new device installs per month and about 14 million people engaging in the Bible every day.
YouVersion also experienced its fastest growth in daily use in Central Africa, Eastern Africa and Latin America.
The Bible App for Kids, which is available in 70 languages, saw nearly 90 million Bible stories completed by children worldwide in 2024.
“It’s encouraging to see people … in every region of the world, engage with the Bible at such high levels,” said Gruenewald. This trend highlights the commonalities of the global church, he said, “in the struggles we face and in our need for God.”
