OpenAI’s ChatGPT, which currently has over 1 billion downloads on Google Play and the App Store, remains the world’s most widely used AI chatbot, but new market data suggests that rival Claude AI is gaining users as people increasingly compare AI tools based on coding, research, and workflow performance.
According to data from market intelligence firm Sensor Tower, ChatGPT accounted for 47% of global downloads among six major AI chatbot apps in the second quarter of 2026 so far. That figure was down from 67% during the same period in 2025.
At the same time, Anthropic’s Claude recorded significant growth. Sensor Tower said Claude represented 14% of AI chatbot downloads in Q2 2026, compared with roughly 1% throughout 2025.
Sensor Tower also reported that Claude’s monthly active users increased by 627% year over year, while ChatGPT’s monthly active users grew 67% during the same period.
Despite the decline in market share, ChatGPT remains the clear leader in total users and app activity. Similarweb data showed ChatGPT still accounted for 53.7% of AI chatbot web visits in April 2026.
The recent growth of Claude appears to be driven largely by developers, researchers, and technical users seeking tools to manage longer conversations and larger workloads.
Technology writer Yadullah Abidi wrote in a MakeUseOf report on Tuesday that he canceled subscriptions to ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity after deciding Claude could handle most of his daily work.
“Claude’s biggest advantage for me isn’t a single feature… ” It’s the consistency,” Abidi wrote.
He said Claude performed better during coding projects, document analysis, and long technical discussions because it handled context more effectively than competing chatbots.
“When I give it a messy, multi-layered prompt, it interprets the intent rather than just parsing the words,” he wrote.
Abidi also said some competing services struggled during extended conversations or complex tasks.
“The more I pushed it on complex, multi-part tasks, the more it fell apart,” he wrote about ChatGPT, citing “wrong answers” and “slow loading times in longer chats.”
Another factor behind Claude’s growth is Anthropic’s effort to simplify switching from rival chatbots. Forbes reported the company recently introduced tools allowing users to import their data and conversation history from competing AI platforms into Claude.
Anthropic special projects manager Greg Feingold promoted the feature on X with the message: “Ready to make the switch?”
Claude also received increased attention earlier this year after a dispute between Anthropic and the Trump administration over Defense Department AI contracts.
According to Forbes, Claude app downloads rose 55% week over week following public criticism from Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei regarding the possible use of AI for mass surveillance and autonomous weapons systems.
Some users have also drawn comparisons between how different chatbots respond to sensitive or unrealistic prompts. Critics of ChatGPT have argued that some AI systems are overly agreeable or excessively validating during conversations, while supporters of Claude say it is more willing to challenge flawed assumptions or reject unsafe requests.
Instead of paying separately for multiple services for coding, research, writing, and automation, some users now appear to prefer a single AI platform that can handle most tasks adequately.
Though ChatGPT continues to dominate the AI market overall, recent data indicate that people are increasingly willing to test perceived alternatives.
Claude AI currently has over 10 million downloads on the Google Play and Apple App Store.
