HomeAnthropic’s Claude gains surging popularity among paying users
Regardless of how Anthropic's conflict with the Department of Defense ultimately resolves, the resulting publicity—alongside its humorous Super Bowl ads targeting OpenAI and the rapid growth of Claude Code—has driven Anthropic's consumer popularity to new heights.
An analysis of billions of anonymized credit card transactions from roughly 28 million U.S. consumers, performed for TechCrunch by consumer transaction analytics firm Indagari, reveals that Claude is adding paid subscribers at an unprecedented rate.
As with any large-scale data analysis, caveats apply. Although the dataset is substantial, it does not cover every consumer. Consequently, Indagari cannot calculate Anthropic's total current or new user numbers. The data also excludes Claude's enterprise business—its primary revenue source—and its free-tier users who pay nothing. Estimates for total Claude consumer users vary widely (ranging from 18 million to 30 million), but Anthropic has not released official figures. However, a spokesperson told TechCrunch that Claude's paid subscriptions have more than doubled this year.
Notably, consumers opened their wallets for Claude in record numbers between January and February. Additionally, Indagari reported to TechCrunch that returning users also surged to record levels in February.
Claude's total users over six months (Sept–Feb).Image credit: TechCrunch
Indagari reports that most new subscribers are on the lowest tier—'Pro' users ($20 per month, compared to $100 or $200 per month).
Data through early March confirms that subscriber growth is ongoing. (Data is available with a two-week lag.)
Claude weekly new consumer subscribers vs. ChatGPTImage credit: TechCrunch
To recap why consumer awareness of Claude has spiked since January: Anthropic aired several Super Bowl commercials that mocked ChatGPT's decision to display ads to its users and promised that Claude would never do the same. The ads were humorous and effective—and also got under the skin of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.
Claude new consumer users, six months, 09–02Image credit: TechCrunch
Beyond the headlines, Claude Code and Claude Cowork—developer and productivity tools launched in January—have been key drivers of subscriptions. Anthropic tells TechCrunch that the Computer Use feature, released this week, has also triggered a surge. This feature enables Claude to navigate a computer independently—clicking, scrolling, and taking actions on its own. It integrates with Dispatch, allowing users to assign tasks from their phones. These features are not available to free-tier users.
Yet, despite Anthropic's growth among U.S. consumers who are willing to pay for AI, Claude still trails ChatGPT by a wide margin.
Although OpenAI saw a spike in uninstalls immediately after announcing a deal with the DoD—a move that contrasted with Anthropic's safety stance—Indagari's data shows that OpenAI continues to add new paid subscribers quickly and remains the largest consumer AI platform overall.
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Regardless of how Anthropic's conflict with the Department of Defense ultimately resolves, the resulting publicity—alongside its humorous Super Bowl ads targeting OpenAI and the rapid growth of Claude Code—has driven Anthropic's consumer popularity to new heights.
An analysis of billions of anonymized credit card transactions from roughly 28 million U.S. consumers, performed for TechCrunch by consumer transaction analytics firm Indagari, reveals that Claude is adding paid subscribers at an unprecedented rate.
As with any large-scale data analysis, caveats apply. Although the dataset is substantial, it does not cover every consumer. Consequently, Indagari cannot calculate Anthropic's total current or new user numbers. The data also excludes Claude's enterprise business—its primary revenue source—and its free-tier users who pay nothing. Estimates for total Claude consumer users vary widely (ranging from 18 million to 30 million), but Anthropic has not released official figures. However, a spokesperson told TechCrunch that Claude's paid subscriptions have more than doubled this year.
Notably, consumers opened their wallets for Claude in record numbers between January and February. Additionally, Indagari reported to TechCrunch that returning users also surged to record levels in February.
Claude's total users over six months (Sept–Feb).Image credit: TechCrunch
Indagari reports that most new subscribers are on the lowest tier—'Pro' users ($20 per month, compared to $100 or $200 per month).
Data through early March confirms that subscriber growth is ongoing. (Data is available with a two-week lag.)
Claude weekly new consumer subscribers vs. ChatGPTImage credit: TechCrunch
To recap why consumer awareness of Claude has spiked since January: Anthropic aired several Super Bowl commercials that mocked ChatGPT's decision to display ads to its users and promised that Claude would never do the same. The ads were humorous and effective—and also got under the skin of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.
Claude new consumer users, six months, 09–02Image credit: TechCrunch
Beyond the headlines, Claude Code and Claude Cowork—developer and productivity tools launched in January—have been key drivers of subscriptions. Anthropic tells TechCrunch that the Computer Use feature, released this week, has also triggered a surge. This feature enables Claude to navigate a computer independently—clicking, scrolling, and taking actions on its own. It integrates with Dispatch, allowing users to assign tasks from their phones. These features are not available to free-tier users.
Yet, despite Anthropic's growth among U.S. consumers who are willing to pay for AI, Claude still trails ChatGPT by a wide margin.
Although OpenAI saw a spike in uninstalls immediately after announcing a deal with the DoD—a move that contrasted with Anthropic's safety stance—Indagari's data shows that OpenAI continues to add new paid subscribers quickly and remains the largest consumer AI platform overall.
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