We’ve accumulated a list of the twenty most popular Twitter applications, based on monthly unique visitor data from Compete.
Twitpic, an app that lets users share photos on Twitter, took the top spot with 1,236,828 unique visitors in January. Tweetdeck, which came in second with 285,864 monthly visits, is a Twitter app that streamlines notifications and tweets. Third place went to Digsby (with 233,472 monthly visitors), an application that centralizes e-mail, IM and social networking accounts into one desktop program. With 149,812 visits, the fourth most popular app, Twitterfeed, offers to automatically tweet posts published on a user’s blog using RSS. A Twitter user ranking site, Twitterholic, is the fifth most popular application, with 147,164 people visiting monthly.
Interestingly, two of the top twenty apps – Digsby and Hellotxt, an application that allows users to update their status across social networks – are not exclusively focused on Twitter. We recently wrote a detailed post on why we cover Twitter-related news so often, and we think the fact that there are so many applications developed as an offshoot of the microblogging system is another testament to the fact that Twitter is not just another startup. This is our attempt to figure out which ones are gaining the most traction.
While we think this is a pretty comprehensive list based on the chosen proxy for popularity, it’s but a first pass at a list we hope will become more authoritative over time. Keep in mind that this methodology is only one measurement of engagement; many people use Twitter iPhone apps and other clients without ever visiting these services’ websites. Derivative site traffic is only a proxy for usage but the most easily measurable one.
We also ran these sites though Quantcast and Google Trends, but chose to measure by Compete because it had the most comprehensive set of data, especially for the smaller sites. So the absolute numbers are unquestionably higher for some of these Twitter apps. If you know additional Twitter apps that should be listed here, or if you have better ideas on how to compile this list, please leave a message in the comments.
It should also be noted that there is a plethora of Twitter application databases out there. Here are a few that we looked at particularly closely: Twitter Fan Wiki, Twitdom, Twapps, Twitstat, and TwitTown.
Update: As many people are pointing out in the comments, Twhirl is not included in this list. That’s because the list is based on Compete data, and Compete measures Twhirl at under 13,000 visitors per month. As we said above, this is just the first pass at creating a list and we certainly realize Compete traffic is not a perfect way to gauge the popularity of applications.
Update 2: So it looks like we owe a “mea culpa” on Twhirl, since we looked up the wrong address on Compete originally (it’s at .org not .com). Twhirl.org actually has 143,000 visitors, putting it at the #6 spot.
Update 3: By popular demand, here is a list of the Top 21 Twitter Clients (According To TwitStat).
| Twitter Applications | Monthly unique visits (Compete) |
|---|---|
| 1. Twitpic | 1,236,828 |
| 2. Tweetdeck | 285,864 |
| 3. Digsby | 233,472 |
| 4. Twittercounter | 212,200 |
| 5. Twitterfeed | 149,812 |
| 6. Twitterholic | 147,164 |
| 7. Twhirl | 143,333 |
| 8. Twitturly | 88,793 |
| 9. Twtpoll | 74,154 |
| 10. Retweetist | 60,051 |
| 11. Tweepler | 51,304 |
| 12. Hellotxt | 45,754 |
| 13. Twitdom | 45,411 |
| 14. Tweetscan | 44,463 |
| 15. Tweetburner | 41,754 |
| 16. Tweetvisor | 31,621 |
| 17. Twittervision | 30,708 |
| 18. Twitterfall | 29,592 |
| 19. Monitter | 25,433 |
| 20. Twibs | 17,168 |
| 21. Twistori | 16,229 |
| 22. Twitbin | 14,986 |
Forgot about Tweetube? http://tweetube.com ?
and twitter.tearn.com. Here’s the link to the Techcrunch page. http://twitter....techcrunch.html
Also http://bf.tearn.com/ and http://gf.tearn.com/ for the singles crowd.
also forgot http://www.what...watching.uni.cc – most recorded tweets I believe.
Looks like you missed twitthis.com which would be very high up
http://siteanal....com/?metric=uv
Twhirl is reported by many sources for having about 5 to 7% of all tweets being sent I am surprised you do not mention it here, how is compete reliable for a client?!
I Second that..
You apparently completely avoided Twhirl the Compete.com stats for it have it at 143,333 Monthly Uniques which sets it at 6th on this list.
You’re right. Using a compete.com rank for a client of a 3rd party site doesn’t make any sense. It should be by number of tweets. Top 3 are twitter.com, tweetdeck, and twhirl IIRC.
I Third that..
also agree with it
It’s not. We say so in the post. What would be a better metric to use?
Actually I wrote a tool to judge the top twitter clients based on the number of tweets made per day on twitter using the source ID of each client they use on twitter using the firehose from GNIP of all the public tweets twitter.
That metric is FAR better then is one. This isn’t news.
I would run the stats for you anytime! They are much more accurate.
great, do it. send the results to tips[at]techcrunch. and explain how you did it.
Simple use http://tweetsta...m/twitter_stats counts all clients accessing the site.
done
http://www.tech...ng-to-twitstat/
How can you not feature Twhirl? I know tonnes of people who use it, myself included!
Huge fan of BrightKite here. GeoTag those uploaded pics and automatically publish them to Twitter (if you like): http://brightkite.com/
Tweetdeck and Twitterfeed are great power apps. Twitterfeed is kind of like the Yahoo! Pipes of Twitter.
Thanks Eric
I wonder why Brightkite is not on this list. If we were, we’d be in the top 3.
Martin
Just launched Twitter Top1000 at http://twitter.tearn.com/ – a photo, video integration with Twitter. Find, view, and chat. Comments welcomes.
7% of tweets sent as I speak from this source:
http://twitstat...lientusers.html
not fair that it is not even on your list.
I’ll agree with that. I use Twhirl and it is pretty good. nice and compact.
I’ll agree with that. I use Twhirl and it is pretty good. nice and compact.
I think there is an unfilled need for measurement of desktop client traffic to web services. The list is ok since Leena disclosed the selection criteria (”measured by unique monthly visitors”), but desktop clients do get shorthanded by today’s measurement vendors (comscore, compete, hitwise).
If they use Compete rankings to compare too.. Twhirl should be on the list. At #6
143,333 people accd. to Compete for Twhirl.
Since when is TC considered as fair??
I’m using Twhirl and loving it.
Good job missing Twhirl.
No twhirl?
What about Twhirl. Most of my friends that use Twitter use Twhirl as their preferred client app.
What? Where is Twhirl in this post?
Why is Twhirl not even mentioned. Honestly, I prefer it over Tweetdeck.
So, check me if I’m wrong, but by your own calculations, leveraging Compete.com, shouldn’t 12seconds.tv be #6? See for yourself…
http://tinyurl.com/apahew
I use Twhirl, it rocks!
I think twhirl is one of the best for me. Multiple accounts, laconi.ca support, seesmic recording (see comments below!), and more. I love twhirl http://twhirl.org
How can you not have thwirl in the list? The list just looks plain wrong without it.
erm Hello how on earth did you forget Twhirl ????
I have to admit that it is amazing to me that Twhirl is not in this list. It is the cleanest desktop app available. How do you miss one of the premiere twitter apps?
I agree with Loic. Twhirl has been a staple since before most other apps existed.
No twhirl = fail.
I love-love-love Twhirl – it’s much more convenient than Tweetdeck.
Whilst I agree with a ot of the list….
How can it be that twhirl doesn’t even get a mention despite its huge number of users???
So you only need about 450 visitors per day to make the top 20 twitter app list on TC? WOW, good job twitbin
Well the thing is those are compete ranks, and twitbin is a Firefox addon, which doesn’t register in compete. And since you dont need to actually visit Twitbin.com to get the app installed, they suffer in compete ranks.
we also get the shaft from Alexa since 95% of our traffic is from firefox users.
We have 16,000 daily active users according to mozilla’s add-on stats.
re: 450 visitors, we get about 5x that uniques per day on the site according to google analytics (also unreliable to some degree)
Realistically these measurements are all bunk, we need twitter to release an internal list of API usage. that would put this all to rest.
I hate twhirl I am happy it is not included! just kidding Loic… Leena how do you not put twhirl there? I am mean seriously!
I use twhirl and I think it’s great I don’t know why it wasn’t used…
What? No Twhril? Why?
I think Twhirl is agreat desktop twitter app, especially to manage multiple accounts.
while there are lots of twitter apps none of them outside of a small few maybe less than a handful really have any shot at a big acquisition from twitter or others buying them to compliment their service because they dont solve any real problems. the summize crew had the right idea and hit a homerun for an application that solved a real problem. the rest of these guys would be lucky to buy a box of pizza with money earned from their app. moral of the story aim high and leave the small trivial problems to the hobbyist developer looking to earn enough to buy a box of pizza.
These numbers are meaningless!
Tweetdeck is a desktop app that I use for hours on end everyday, yet haven’t been to the site itself for months!
Twitpic, on the other hand, is a website that I visit at least two or three times a day – usually following links from within Tweetdeck.
Comscore data simply cannot be used compare Twitpic and Tweetdeck – apples and oranges.
I can’t believe you do not list Twhirl! I have tried MANY different 3rd party Twitter apps and nothing works as well for me as Twhirl. Seesmic’s support is top notch too, which goes a long way in my books. I think you need to edit your list.
If they are basing the numbers on Compete, all that will show up are web based apps, no? So it is a false statement at the very least to say the most popular.
It would not even be accurate to say this is the list of most popular web based twitter apps. I’m looking at Digsby as an example. Yes you can update your Twitter, but compete is merely checking on who goes to the Digsby website. Not the same thing in the slightest.
I use Twhirl on my desktop almost exclusively. Where is Twhirl? It is quite a nice app and should be mentioned!
On my iPhone, I use Tweetie.
I feel that Twhirl hasn’t been given a fair shake. for it’s age and functionality, and as hard as their team continues to work on it, it will soon be in a top spot.
Happy to see Twtpoll in #7. Just wished my other twtapps had made it too!
I’m shocked that Twhirl isnt mentioned. I dropped Tweetdeck in favour of Twhirl and know several other people who have done the same.
And where is twhirl ? now i understand why i never read techcrunch !!
yet you are reading now
liar!!
Where is Twhirl and Seesmic??? I use Twhirl almost exclusively and I LOVE IT (thanks for makin it Loic!)
Twhirl has 5 to 7%. NOT FAIR. {seesmic_video:{”url_thumbnail”:{”value”:”http://t.seesmic.com/thumbnail/3ynDbgRuzE_th1.jpg”}”title”:{”value”:”Twhirl has 5 to 7%. NOT FAIR. ”}”videoUri”:{”value”:”http://www.seesmic.com/video/3zM5pLy4Sk”}}}
lol Loic begins to trigger some Loren Feldman face tricks when he gets angry.
I wonder how long it is going to take before we see “an update” with twhirl mentioned?
Hi Leena,
Thank you for including Twitturly in your list.
While it doesn’t effect our position, we are under reported by about 30,000 unique visitors according to Google Analytics.
Twitturly is now getting around 115,000 uniques per month.
Thanks for linking to Twitdom. We have over 450 Twitter Applications listed currently and the list is growing on a daily basis.
sorry… said Comscore, meant Compete…
I use Twhirl and many people I know using it.
I don’t think this is fair !!!!
Wow!! Twhirl isn’t on this list ?? According to compete they are over 100k! On top of that users only go there to grab the app
This is the reason I quit reading this site. You guys suck at actually coming up with facts that you can back up. The only person here that I’ve ever seen be able to back his shit up is Michael.
Next time make sure you actually get the proper information before you post something.
Where is Twitterific and Twhirl?
No twhirl? That’s a joke, right?
Twhirl is missing because? I have to discredit the article because of that. Check you facts tweetstats which checks on all apps coming into twitter via Gnip doesn’t include half the stuff on this list (but does include Twhirl) http://tweetsta...m/twitter_stats.
Holy crap… Loic Lemmings UNITE! You all missed the bigger error…
Adobe Air apps like Twhirl and Tweetdeck can’t be measured by Compete! Therefore any comparison between a website like TwitPic and an app like Twhirl or Tweetdeck is meaningless.
Rather than including Twhirl, they should be excluding Tweetdeck…
I was just thinking the same thing. Loic’s video (above) nails it exactly: Compete doesn’t measure an AIR client.
All in all, some surprises on the list. There’s a lot of services out there for monitoring Twitter and it seems like that’s what a bunch of these are.
Hence why the whole article shouldn’t have been published. If TechCrunch wanted to compare stuff they should of used something like the TweetStats info via Gnip not Compete
This is all nonsensical since Compete gives stats on websites, and most Twitter apps are desktop apps.
Even so, twhirl is being mentioned a lot in these comments, Compete has the twhirl site at 143,333 which makes it #6 on this list.
If you are going by Compete ranks , http://Pikchur.com , which posts images to twitter, identi.ca, facebook etc. has 38k+ but we all know that compete scores are highly under rated.
Colin, I agree with you. I just told Loic on Twitter, that this list is like comparing apples and oranges to bananas… totally pointless. Brightkite and Twhirl both have good points about not being on it, but with over 400 Twitter apps in existence, probably others do too. Sending an RSS Feed from your blog to Twitter automatically, is hardly the same as using an alternate Twitter client to access Twitter. I don’t get the point here.