Current virtual reality statistics show that this technology has yet to grow and develop. Unfortunately, there are certain limitations to its use, such as uncomfy headsets and poorly-made treadmills.
Still, VR found its place in multiple industries, like healthcare, retail, or education. A shift from gaming to other markets is visible as VR expands and reveals its benefits.
However, VR has yet to become what people expect it to be. Chances are, a few more years will pass until people can use VR with ease.
Virtual Reality Facts (Editor’s Choice)
- About one in five US consumers used VR in 2020.
- By 2030, there will be 23 million jobs that will use VR tech.
- The market size of AR and VR was estimated at $15.81 billion in 2020.
- By 2022, the number of VR users in the US could reach 32.7 million.
- A total of 77% of VR users want improved social engagement with their devices.
- Approximately 35% of customers aged 16 to 34 have a VR headset.
- Poor user experience is the main difficulty in adopting VR technology.
- A total of 40% of customers would spend more on VR customizable products.
Virtual Reality Trends
This decade marked the beginning of VR development. Millions of people own a VR headset device, and many more will purchase it in the near future. Besides gaming, VR will be used at work across multiple industries.
1. There were 30.6 million VR users in the US in 2020.
(Source: Statista)
Based on some estimates, there were 30.6 million VR users in the US in 2021 who used VR without a headset. For comparison, there were 28.3 million VR users with headsets, according to the virtual reality industry report.
2. About one in five US consumers used VR in 2020.
(Source: Oberlo)
Nearly one in five US consumers used VR in 2020. That’s about 19% of the population. For comparison, in 2019, 16% of Americans used VR. What’s more, 55% of people claim to be satisfied with the experience.
3. By 2030, there will be 23 million jobs that will use VR tech.
(Source: Oberlo)
Based on the virtual reality market forecast, there will be 23 million jobs that will use VR by 2030. VR will also bring additional employment opportunities. Currently, less than one million jobs are impacted by VR or AR.
4. China and the US are two leading investors and are expected to spend about $5 billion each on this tech.
(Source: Oberlo)
China is expected to spend $5.8 billion, and the US is expected to invest $5.1 billion in VR technology, according to virtual reality future predictions. China’s spending will account for 30.8% of total global spending on VR.
5. In 2020, 4.93 million VR headsets were sold globally.
(Source: Statista)
In 2020, 4.93 million units of VR headsets were sold globally, while the cumulative installed base reached 14.02 million. If predictions are correct, by 2024, there will be 14.31 million sold units, with a 34.03 cumulative installed base of VR headset sales.
6. Sony’s PlayStation VR and Facebook’s Oculus Quest were the top sellers in 2019.
(Source: Music Ally)
In 2019, Sony’s PlayStation VR and Facebook’s Oculus Quest were the top sold VR headsets, with 338,000 and 317,000 sold units, respectively. Quest was simple enough for most consumers. However, the VR headset market has yet to reach its full potential.
7. In 2020, Oculus surpassed $100 million in sales.
(Source: TechCrunch)
When it comes to top selling VR headsets, Oculus Quest remained the star of the market in 2020 as well. Facebook revealed it had hit $100 million in sales.
8. VR will also reach 25% of internet users in the US by 2023.
(Source: Cloudways)
The latest trends also show that VR still has more room to grow. So much so that by 2023, it could reach 25% of all internet users. That’s about 70.2 million people globally.
Virtual Reality Market Analysis
The current market size for VR technology has more room to grow. Head-mounted displays are still leading devices, and semi and fully-immersive VR account for the largest market share. Regionally, China and the US are leading countries.
9. The market size of AR and VR was estimated at $15.81 billion in 2020.
(Source: Grand View Research)
The global virtual reality market size was valued at $15.81 in 2020. Additionally, it’s expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 18% from 2021 to 2028. The current virtual reality market size is mostly affected by the VR games and entertainment industry.
10. The head-mounted display accounted for the largest revenue share of 60%.
(Source: Grand View Research)
The head-mounted display had the largest revenue share of the VR market in 2020. HMD accounted for 60% of all market revenue. What’s more, it’s expected HMD will keep its dominance on the market and surpass the VR headset market share of 2020 in the forecasted period.
11. However, the gesture tracking device will see an immense growth rate of 20% from 2021 to 2028.
(Source: Grand View Research)
The gesture tracking device segment is another aspect of the VR market that will see the fastest growth from 2021 to 2028. According to the forecasts, it will have a growth rate of 20% for the stated period.
12. The semi and fully immersive segment of the market accounted for 80% of the VR market in 2020.
(Source: Grand View Research)
According to the current virtual reality market growth data, the semi and fully-immersive segment accounted for the largest share of the market, with over 80%. What’s more, it’s forecasted that this segment will see the highest CAGR from 2021 to 2028.
13. VR was mostly used in commercial applications that had a global market share of 53%.
(Source: Grand View Research)
The commercial applications of VR technology had a total global market share of 53% during 2020. It’s also estimated that it will keep the lead in the VR market share in the years to come. In addition, retail stores, car showrooms, and real estate markets will provide new growth opportunities.
14. Regionally, the Asia-Pacific area had the largest revenue share of 40%.
(Source: Grand View Research)
The Asia-Pacific region had the largest revenue share of 40%. This is because of increasing developments in VR technology. Additionally, China was the major distributor of HMDs. Regarding the North American region, the US was a leader in the market, with the most extensive research activities involving VR technology.
Virtual Reality Demographics
According to the latest data, 70% of US kids are interested in VR tech. Adults are also not shy of using VR and AR. Still, more men than women buy VR equipment.
15. By 2022, the number of VR users in the US could reach 32.7 million.
(Source: Statista)
It’s expected that VR technology will soon rise in usage. By 2022, the number of VR users (non-headset) is expected to jump to 32.7 million people in the US alone.
16. Only one in five US households with children under 18 had a VR device in 2018.
(Source: Kidscreen)
VR statistics show that one in five US households, 21% of families with children under 18, had a VR device in 2018. Back then, the majority of the families, a total of 65%, weren’t planning on purchasing a VR device.
17. Still, 70% of US children were extremely or fairly interested in VR experiences.
(Source: Kidscreen)
The latest research from 2017 also noted that about 70% of children aged eight to 15 were extremely or fairly interested in having a VR experience. Additionally, only 6% of parents stated that one or more children used VR each day, virtual reality facts show.
18. Regarding adults, 19% of them tried VR in some form.
(Source: AR Insider)
According to the data from 2020, 19% of adults have already tried VR or AR in some form. For example, Facebook hosts over 70 million 360-degree images and one million 360-degree videos, which generate 580 million views.
19. A total of 77% of VR users want improved social engagement with their devices.
(Source: Tokens Guide)
Virtual reality usage statistics show that 77% of VR users want improved social engagement with their devices. They desire social engagement like watching videos, playing games with others, communicating, and similar.
20. Gender-wise, only 14.3% of women purchased VR headsets online.
(Source: Mediakix)
When it comes to gender, only 14.3% of women purchased VR headsets online together with a console game. However, females account for 44.6% of shoppers who purchased console, mobile, and PC games. This shows that women are interested in gaming but not that much in VR tech.
21. Approximately 35% of customers aged 16 to 34 have a VR headset.
(Source: Tokens Guide)
According to VR demographics, 35% of people aged 16 to 34 have a VR headset in the UK and the US. However, a total of 26% of VR headset owners are aged 35 to 44, and only 12% of people aged 45 to 54 have this device.
22. Additionally, 41% of people aged over 18 would try a VR headset device.
(Source: Tokens Guide)
Additionally, 41% of people aged over 18 claimed they would try VR if they could. On average, 44% of people aged 18 to 35 are interested in getting a VR device.
VR Fun Facts
Besides gaming, VR is used in retail, and it brings multiple benefits. For example, those organizations that used VR for employee training have also witnessed fewer workplace accidents and reduced training time.
23. Poor user experience is the main difficulty in adopting VR technology.
(Source: FinancesOnline)
When it comes to crucial barriers in VR adoption, bulky hardware, and technical glitches are at the top of the list of issues in 26% of cases. In addition, the lack of content offering is also common, in 24% of cases, according to VR adoption rate data.
24. A total of 37% of businesses believe VR and AR technology will go mainstream in the next two to five years.
(Source: Perkins Coie)
When it comes to immersive technologies like AR and VR, a total of 37% of businesses believe they will become mainstream in the next two to five years. Another 25% believe the adoption will occur in the next two years, and only 6% think that VR will go mainstream in eight to 10 years, augmented reality statistics show.
25. Over 600 million people use Spark AR on Facebook and Instagram.
(Source: FinancesOnline)
There are over 400,000 AR effects creators on Facebook and Instagram, publishing a total of 1.2 million effects on each platform. Additionally, more than 600 million people use Spark AR on Facebook and Instagram every month.
26. VR training reduces the chances of workplace injury by 43%.
(Source: FinancesOnline)
Virtual reality statistics for 2020 show that VR training reduces the chances of workplace injury. At the moment, 26% of businesses use VR in training, and it has a retention rate of 75%, surpassing lectures, reading, and audio-visual learning.
27. Police officers with VR training are 2.7 times more likely to have successful missions.
(Source: FinancesOnline)
VR is especially handy in training soldiers and police officers. So much so that policemen with VR training are 2.7 times more likely to have successful missions based on virtual reality data.
28. Boeing cut training time by 75% with the implementation of VR.
(Source: Light Reading)
What’s more, Boeing is another great example of using VR for training. The company managed to cut training time by 75% by implementing VR solutions and technology. Boeing also uses VR for some manufacturing tasks.
29. A total of 40% of customers would spend more on VR customizable products.
(Source: FinancesOnline)
Customers seem drawn by technology, and 40% of them say they’d spend more on products that can be customized in VR, virtual reality statistics show. Additionally, 70% of shoppers would be more loyal to brands that offer a VR shopping experience.
30. We Make Up increased its CTR by 53% after generating a VR filter on Facebook.
(Source: FinancesOnline)
One of the best examples of VR in retail is We Make Up. The company managed to increase the click-through rate by 53% just by generating a VR filter for its Facebook page. This led to a 28% rise in sales and a 7.9-point increase in brand awareness.
Conclusion
Current virtual reality statistics show that VR is slowly entering the lives of individuals. What’s more, it’s also not ignored by businesses. However, the main obstacle to individual use is related to poor user experience.
The headsets people use today are bulky, and the content is highly limited. Still, that doesn’t prevent businesses from using VR to train their employees and showcase products on social networks.
The virtual reality market is forecast to grow in the near future, and it’s only a matter of time until every household will use it for shopping, gaming, and other activities.
FAQ
Right now, people have access to three types of VR experiences. The first one is a fully immersive experience. This experience is achieved with a complete set of hardware like headsets, gloves, or a treadmill.
Semi-immersive simulations are the second type of VR. Here, users have partial access to VR that’s combined with the real world. Finally, the third type of VR is non-immersive. These are actually the most common ones, where users sit in a physical reality but interact with virtual reality via screens.
There are numerous examples of how VR is used today. VR allows engineers to experiment with the appearance and the build of cars in the automotive industry. In healthcare, VR is used for education and to help experts prepare for working on real bodies.
In retail, VR lets customers choose their favorite piece of clothing by providing a VR shopping experience. What’s more, VR is also found in tourism, where it lets people check on hotels and restaurants virtually before they decide on a destination. VR technology also works great with real estate, architecture, gambling, and other industries.
Virtual reality has multiple pros and cons. For example, it can be used for training in all situations where a dangerous environment or a situation could endanger human life. VR is also handy for all sorts of conferences, regardless of the industry.
Regarding cons, VR can be highly addictive since people spend a lot of time in the virtual world, interacting with other avatars. This can additionally impact human health and cause loss of spatial awareness, nausea, or dizziness.
The impact of VR on businesses is powerful. It can help in all steps of production, marketing, and sales. VR makes it possible for manufacturers to see their creations before finalizing the product.
When used in marketing, it gives businesses a way to dictate how their customer will feel when interacting with the product. VR can also be used in online stores to improve sales by helping customers decide on the ideal shape or size of the item they want to purchase.
For comparison, as of 2018, there were 171 million active VR users globally. There will also be an increased need for VR headsets and other related technology that will improve the user experience.
In the US, the number of VR users is based on whether the users have a VR headset or not. In 2021, there were 30.6 million non-headset VR users and 28.3 million VR headset users.
Currently, China and the US are leading the market for VR technology. China has the leading role in the shipment of VR headsets. Additionally, the technological developments in Southeast Asian countries will also positively affect the market’s growth.
China is expected to spend $5.8 billion, and the US is expected to invest $5.1 billion in VR technology. What’s more, China’s investment will account for 30.8% of total global spending on VR, based on virtual reality statistics. On the other hand, the US region will see high adoption of VR technology due to multiple tech companies.