20+ Virtual Reality Statistics & Trends (2026)

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Once in a while, we want to catch a break from reality, and Virtual Reality (VR) has provided us with that opportunity.

However, many still find it challenging to understand what virtual reality means, grasp its current market standing, or the impact it will have in years to come.

So, we’ve gathered a list of the most recent and relevant virtual reality statistics and trends.

Top 7 Virtual Reality Statistics (Editor’s Pick)

  • In March 2022, 56% of U.S. respondents cited a lack of interest for not owning a VR headset.
  • In 2021, 9.86 million units of VR & AR devices were shipped globally.
  • The Asia/Pacific region’s VR spending will reach $16.6 billion in 2026.
  • The global VR B2C advertising revenue will increase to $177.3 million in 2027.
  • VR devices in Japan are expected to increase to 244 thousand units by the fiscal year 2027.
  • The VR gaming content industry in 2025 would be worth over 3 times its value in 2020.
  • In January 2022, “First Steps for Quest 2” was the top-rated free VR app (4.77).

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top 7 virtual reality statistics

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1. In 2021, 70% of VR consumers who own a headset have bought a game on it.

The demand for VR devices was also projected to grow 16 times from 2018 to 2022.


2. 42.02% of Steam users with a virtual reality (VR) headset said they had an Oculus Quest 2.

In August 2022, 13.16% had Valve Index HMD, 9.59% had Oculus Rift, 5.67% had HTC Vive, 3.82% had Windows Mixed Reality, and 25.36% had others.

stream users with vr headsets

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3. In March 2022, 56% of U.S. respondents cited a lack of interest for not owning a VR headset.

46% of respondents said that the cost was a significant reason they did not have one, while almost 33% stated a lack of compatibility between VR headsets and their hardware devices.


4. In August 2022, 26% of Japanese respondents were highly interested in experiencing virtual space with a VR device.

More than 50% of these respondents were “somewhat interested.”


5. In 2021, almost 90% of fashion customers participated in virtual worlds to try out new technology.

50% of customers associated with digital fashion companies said the virtual world was a way of escaping from reality. Another 30% of these customers said they participated in virtual worlds because their friends did.


6. In 2021, only 32% of US respondents used virtual reality daily.

31% used virtual reality weekly, 20% used VR monthly, and 11% used it a few times yearly. Only 6% have used VR at least once ever.

virtual reality usage among us users

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7. 7% of South Korean females played VR games in 2021-2022.

This was also true for 5.5% of male respondents.


8. In 2022, over 80% of U.S. respondents using VR shopping tools had two main concerns.

8 in 10 US VR shoppers were concerned about privacy issues and the accuracy of items displayed when purchasing goods with VR tools.

9. In 2021, 9.86 million units of VR & AR devices were shipped globally.

By 2022, an estimated shipment of 14.19 million VR & AR devices was expected.


10. The Asia/Pacific region’s VR spending is projected to reach $16.6 billion in 2026.

The Asia/Pacific region (excluding Japan) is expected to have a VR spending growth rate of 42.4% from 2021 to 2026.


11. The AR & VR market’s largest segment in China was VR Hardware.

This market segment had a volume of $2.4 billion in 2023.


12. The global VR B2C advertising revenue is expected to increase to $177.3 million in 2027.

However, this market segment is expected to stay the smallest in the VR B2C market by then.


13. The average revenue per capita for the global VR headsets industry is expected to grow till 2026.

By 2027, the average revenue per person is expected to be $1.41.


14. In 2022, the sales volume growth of VR headsets was expected to reach 34.4%.

The sales volume growth of VR headsets is expected to reach 13.7% and 8.5% in 2023 and 2024, respectively.

YearEstimated Sales Volume Growth of VR Headsets
202234.4%
202313.7%
20248.5%
20255.5%
20266.5%
20270.6%

15. VR devices in Japan are expected to increase to 244 thousand units by the fiscal year 2027.

This is an increase from 145 thousand units of VR devices (including B2B and B2C) in 2020.


16. VR Head Mounted Display (HMD) devices were projected to ship 17 million units globally in 2021.

In 2025, the number of VR HMD shipments is expected to increase to 59.7 million units.


17. In 2021, 41% of Germans said they were interested in using virtual glasses in the future.

This figure increased to 43% in 2022.

18. The VR gaming content industry in 2025 would be worth over 3 times its value in 2020.

The global revenue of the VR gaming content industry would be $6.9 billion, 3.83x more than the $1.8 billion in 2020.


19. In 2027, the global VR software B2C market is expected to increase to $5.45 billion.

VR gaming will retain the most significant VR software B2C industry market share in 2027.

increase in global vr software b2c market

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20. In January 2022, “First Steps for Quest 2” was the top-rated free VR app (4.77).

“Oculus First Contact” had the second-highest rating of 4.67, and “Echo VR” took third (4.58).

21. Over 2.3 million jobs will be improved by VR and AR technologies in the U.S. by 2030.

This will grow from 340 thousand jobs enhanced via AR and VR in 2022.

YearJobs Enhanced by VR and AR (Estimated)
2022340,000
2023450,000
2024590,000
2025820,000
20261,160,000
20271,570,000
20281,920,000
20292,160,000
20302,320,000

Step Into the Virtual Space

These virtual reality statistics and trends help you understand this fast-growing industry and its impact. Likewise, it shows relevant use cases not just to escape reality but also its influence on our day-to-day lives.

But as the metaverse keeps rising and virtual reality gaming keeps increasing, staying safe against bad actors becomes important. Thus, read our guide to safe gaming to enhance your VR gaming experience.

References:

  1. https://grafa.io/news/global-ar-and-vr-market-to-grow-to-us209-2bn-by-2022/
  2. https://www.statista.com/statistics/265018/proportion-of-directx-versions-on-the-platform-steam/
  3. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1303403/us-adults-vr-headset-reasons/
  4. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1356588/japan-interest-in-experiencing-things-vr-device-virtual-space-that-one-cannot-experience-in-reality/
  5. https://www.statista.com/statistics/653390/worldwide-virtual-and-augmented-reality-headset-shipments/
  6. https://www.idc.com/getdoc.jsp?containerId=prAP49247322
  7. https://www.statista.com/outlook/amo/ar-vr/china
  8. https://www.statista.com/forecasts/1337179/vr-advertising-b2c-market-revenue-worldwide
  9. https://www.statista.com/forecasts/1337176/vr-software-b2c-market-revenue-worldwide
  10. https://www.statista.com/forecasts/1331895/vr-headset-market-revenue-per-capita-worldwide
  11. https://www.statista.com/forecasts/1331897/vr-headset-sales-volume-growth-worldwide
  12. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1311731/virtual-world-participation-reasons-fashion-consumers/
  13. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1356548/vr-and-ar-shopping-tools-concerns/
  14. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1074675/south-korea-share-of-vr-gamers-by-gender/
  15. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1239462/virtual-reality-usage-frequency-united-states/
  16. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1336687/interest-in-vr-glasses-germany/
  17. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1291209/top-oculus-quest-free-apps-by-rating/

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