Some of the most popular and most visited websites have been ruling the Internet for about a decade now. We do see some newcomers every year, but some giants at the top always manage to knock them out of the water.
The answers are quite obvious for anyone using the Internet. All of these websites are ones that everyone visits almost every day, so it’s no surprise that they’ve got it made in the digital world.
There’s something to take away in some cases, while other winners are quite obvious. Whether you’re just curious or are planning to build your website around a good idea, our list of the top ten websites might be of help to you.
To keep things from being less obvious, we’ve excluded search engines from our list. The ten most popular websites in the world in 2023 are as follows:
- Google Search
- YouTube
- Baidu
- Wikipedia
- Yahoo
- Yandex
- WhatsApp
We’ve also excluded adult websites to keep things family-friendly and leave the darker part of the Internet untouched for now. To view the complete list, you can visit Wikipedia’s list of most-visited websites.
YouTube is an obvious one. The video sharing and streaming site has been up since 2005. YouTube gained gradual success over the years and went mainstream in 2014. The expanse of YouTube has spawned a new career path of being a ‘YouTuber’. YouTube has been popular since the late 2000s, and it grew massively in the later years of the 2010s.
And while there have been many controversies revolving around YouTube, it continues to be the preferred video website for most people.
For instance, one of the recent updates that YouTube rolled out was removing the dislike count from videos. The decision has been criticised heavily. But then CEO Susan Wojcicki said that she stands by this decision as it has reduced bullying and “dislike attacks”.
Viewers have also criticised the increasing number of unskippable ads on YouTube videos.
But regardless of all this, YouTube still dominates as the leading video sharing platform, and we think it won’t be replaced anytime soon.
The reason is simple. From live streaming to the user comment system to internationalising and making content accessible, YouTube does a very good job. And it is an excellent platform for creators, too. As a subsidiary of Google, it is likely going to stay at the top, right next to Google search.
Facebook is the most popular social media platform that has been around since 2004. Facebook allows sharing various types of content and connecting with other people through Messenger.
It also provides advertisement opportunities for businesses and has paid promotions for content.
Facebook also has a news feed that lets users know about upcoming events or highlights in groups.
Facebook has been keen on strict moderation on the website, and any content that fails to live up to Facebook’s standard rules is not published to the public.
Over the years, many users have claimed to have had their accounts hacked and wrongly banned by Facebook. Many have also raised concerns regarding privacy.
But even with all the controversies, Facebook is a tech giant and a leading digital marketing platform that is not going to be replaced that easily.
Instagram is a subsidiary of Facebook. It is primarily a photo-sharing social media platform but also serves marketing purposes. Like Facebook, it also has many marketing features that allow for good business advertisements.
Instagram was released in 2010 and has since been prominent for its use of filters, hashtags, and geographical tagging systems.
Like all other big platforms where users share their content, Instagram has also come under a lot of scrutiny for some of its illegal and explicit content. While Instagram takes quick action to remove any pornographic and provocative content, many have criticised it for wrongly deleting their accounts.
But with many big names on Instagram, it is hard to believe that this publicising platform will go down easily.
Twitter made waves recently when Elon Musk bought it. And with every new update that rolls out, it continues to stay in the highlights.
But Twitter was already a big one when Musk bought it. It was founded in 2006 and is another social media platform, relying heavily on text but also allowing photos and videos to be posted.
Just like Instagram, Twitter also goes with the hashtags. It has been called “the SMS of the Internet” for good reason.
With over 550 million active users, Twitter is a news source for many and a place where no incident goes uncovered.
Musk rebranded Twitter to X in July 2023 and changed the iconic blue bird logo to an X. Twitter has changed quite a bit since his takeover, and opinions have been divided. But now that Musk’s empire is in charge, Twitter (or X) is bound to grow even more.
Our personal favourite on the list is Wikipedia. Wikipedia is the largest online encyclopaedia and the most-read reference work in all of history.
If you want the most authentic source of knowledge on the Internet, it is Wikipedia. No one doubts anything they’ve read on it, and that’s because Wikipedia tells you the rock-hard facts without any bias and leaves you to form your own opinions.
Not to mention, it is available in multiple languages, giving a diverse audience free access to unlimited knowledge.
It was launched in 2001 and has been maintained by a community of volunteers. Wikipedia hasn’t relied on anything but ‘value’ to make it as big as it is now.
As long as someone out there still has the hunger for knowledge, Wikipedia will continue to reign, as no other online repository is as vast or accurate as it is.
WhatsApp is another subsidiary of Facebook. It is a messaging app that came out in 2009. WhatsApp has been the preferred form of instant messaging for years now, as it is easy to use and very secure.
Initially, it lacked encryption and wasn’t secure. But with the addition of encryption in 2012, security has continued to improve.
And while it has repeatedly been criticised for its possible manipulation of user data, WhatsApp is still the top option for messaging in most countries.
WhatsApp also allows calls and posting status videos that have a duration of one day.
With a simple, customisable interface, WhatsApp is the default way for many to communicate.
Amazon is the biggest e-commerce platform on the Internet, founded in 1994. Amazon is a platform that is used by not just buyers but also sellers and stores. In addition, dropshippers also find it to be very useful.
Because of how big it is, there’s practically nothing you can’t find on it unless it’s something that isn’t tangible. From nails to dog leashes, you can find all sorts of things on Amazon.
For this reason, it has been the go-to shopping store for many users. Especially as the online shopping trend seems to be soaring, with COVID-19 having locked many people up in their homes, Amazon’s policies have been heavily criticised, and it has been under constant scrutiny for a couple of years, with many people being vocal about their hate for Amazon.
But with its range already so wide, it’s hard to replace Amazon’s platform on the Internet.
TikTok, released in 2016, is a short video hosting platform that has been loved just as much as it has been hated. In fact, many have called for its complete ban in many countries. But what makes TikTok stay so high at the top despite all that controversy?
It is aimed at the younger generation, who are compelled by the variety of functions the platform offers, from manipulating videos to adding voiceovers and music to their videos.
With quick videos, TikTok became the fastest-growing infotech that surpassed Google’s popularity in 2021. Other short video platforms have imitated TikTok’s features.
As the wave of new-gen tech trends continues, TikTok is sure to stay relevant in the future too.
9. Live
Live is owned by Microsoft Corporation and is used for many purposes, including email. If you aren’t familiar with Live, then you may have heard of Microsoft Outlook.
Outlook is the leading email service that goes a step ahead of Gmail with increased functions.
Microsoft is a big enough name that it isn’t surprising to see one of its many products on the list of most popular websites. Where Live is concerned, as it is a convenient sharing tool, it is used by students, workers, and businesses alike.
Moreover, Outlook, or Live, is a very safe tool for use with enterprise-grade security, which makes it the go-to email service for big corporations and enterprises.
We are glad Reddit made it to this list (even though it technically didn’t, but we took out the search engines from the official list to make it happen).
Reddit is a forum website where users post all sorts of content for other users. The posts are upvoted or downvoted based on which poster earns ‘karma’. Although this karma doesn’t really do anything, among redditors, it is seen as a mark of respect as it indicates a user has been a redditor for a long time.
Reddit has been loved by Internet users and is essentially where all the memes are generated before spreading all over the Internet. It was founded in 2005 and has since grown to be one of the most popular websites in the world.
What sets Reddit apart is that it has a lot of freedom, which in turn has spawned many questionable subreddits. As long as posts and these subreddits aren’t in violation of Reddit’s policies, they’re good to go, regardless of how strange they may seem.
This has made certain subreddits controversial. And since Reddit doesn’t take action against objectionable content as long as it’s legal, the spread of misinformation has been quite high.
But this is exactly what makes Reddit a favourite for many internet users. And as long as people find freedom to say absurd things on the internet, we believe Reddit will stay relevant.
