Labelled the ‘network for athletes’, Strava has built up an active userbase of cyclists who sweat by the app. The phrase “If it’s not on Strava, it didn’t happen” is prolific in cycle communities and over two thirds of the Tour de France cyclists regularly track stage results on it.
Similar to Under Armour, Strava has built the community by marketing itself as the app for professionals. Fitbit and MyFitnessPal have both been sold as a fitness app for everyone, while Strava’s community is a lot more of a serious commitment. By not releasing any hardware, it has also remained platform agnostic.
For the first few years of Strava’s life, all activity was driven by cyclists. Compared to other apps available, Strava offered far more granular data input. It also featured a social element, in which cyclists could share activities and receive support and compete with the community.
The competition element has become the key factor drawing users back to the app. It has influenced many in the community to put more hours on Strava than any other social platform, with many cyclists painstakingly trying to stay “King (or Queen) of the mountain” on their local route.
In 2017, Strava added more social features, after noticing non-fitness activity on the platform. This could be seen as the first major breakaway from the activity-only mantra Strava sold to its users, and it was led by CEO James Quarles, who had been appointed a few months earlier from Instagram.
Under Quarles, Strava began moving into new forms of GPS tracking, like running and marathons, alongside stationary exercises like treadmill and rowing. It also put more of an emphasis on the social side of Strava, increasing activities posted from one billion in 2017 to three billion in 2020.
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Download ReportThat focus on social has been dialled back since Michael Hovarth and Mark Gainey, the two co-founders, have returned to run the business. The duo relaunched Strava subscription service, called Summit, which features three segments: competition, metrics and discovery.
Strava currently has 76 million users and reportedly adds one million every month. That puts it behind Fitbit and MyFitnessPal on raw numbers, but we suspect many of those on Strava would not migrate to any other platform, which provides Strava with an exclusivity edge.
We have collected data and statistics on Strava. Read on below to find out more.
Strava key statistics
- Strava generated $72 million revenue in 2020. It expects to be cash flow positive in 2021
- In March 2021, Strava had 76 million active users, with two million added every month
- Over one billion activities were completed on Strava in 2020
- In December 2020, Strava was valued at $1.5 billion
Strava overview
| Launch date | July 2009 |
| HQ | San Francisco, California |
| People | Michael Hovarth (co-founder, CEO), Mark Gainey (co-founder, Chairman) |
| Business type | Private |
| License | Proprietary |
| Industry | Fitness |
Strava revenue
| Year | Revenue |
| 2017 | $34 million |
| 2018 | $45 million |
| 2019 | $60 million |
| 2020 | $72 million |
Source: Sensor Tower
Strava profit
Note: Strava has said on three occasions (2015, 2017 and 2019) that it is not profitable. In 2019, Strava CEO Michael Horvath said the company is “on a path to profitability”, but was focused on growth.
Strava users
| Year | Users |
| 2016 | 20 million |
| 2017 | 28 million |
| 2018 | 36 million |
| 2019 | 42 million |
| 2020 | 55 million |
| 2021 | 76 million |
Sources: Strava, Inc
Strava valuation
| Year | Valuation |
| 2019 | $350 million |
| 2020 | $1.5 billion |
Sources: Scale Fanatics, Yahoo Finance
Strava activities
| Year | Activities |
| 2018 | 0.6 billion |
| 2019 | 0.8 billion |
| 2020 | 1.1 billion |
Source: Strava
Strava kilometres
| Year | Kilometres |
| 2016 | 2.7 billion |
| 2017 | 5.5 billion |
| 2018 | 10.7 billion |
| 2019 | 11.2 billion |
| 2020 | 17.1 billion |
Note: This is how many kilometres all Strava users covered in the year
Source: Strava
Strava connected devices
| Year | Connected devices |
| 2016 | 200 |
| 2018 | 300 |
| 2020 | 400 |
Source: Strava
Strava FAQ
How many Tour de France riders use Strava?
120 of the 176 Tour de France riders uploaded stage results to Strava (Inc)
How many kudos are given on Strava each year?
7.1 billion kudos were given on Strava in 2020
How many countries is Strava available in?
Strava is available in 195 countries
How many Strava users are located in the United States?
According to Inc, only 20 percent of Strava users are from the US
How many Strava users have climbed Everest?
Nine Strava users recorded their Everest climb in 2019 (Strava)
How many sports can you track on Strava?
Over 33 sports are available to track on Strava
