Tor Statistics By Users, Connections, Bandwidth, Country, Traffic Source, Advantages and Disadvantages

Introduction

Tor Statistics: Tor, also known as “The Onion Router,” is a network that helps people browse the Internet anonymously. It works by sending user traffic through several servers around the world to hide their identity. In 2024, many people still use Tor for secure communication and to access websites that might be restricted. However, some governments and agencies are now watching Tor users more closely, thinking they might be involved in illegal activities. Because of this, certain countries have started blocking Tor.

Despite these difficulties, Tor remains an important tool for people who want to protect their privacy online and for journalists and activists fighting censorship.

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• The Tor network had approximately 2.5 million daily active users.
• By mid-2024, Tor Browser was downloaded more than 200 million times worldwide.
• The United States, Russia, and Germany had the most Tor users, each making up 15% of the total users.
• Meanwhile, Tor supports more than 100,000 active hidden services that securely offer anonymous hosting for websites.
• Over 85% of Tor users browse public websites anonymously, while 15% access hidden services instead.
• As of 2024, there were around 7,000 Tor relay nodes, helping to facilitate encrypted traffic.
• Tor usage increased by 10% in the same year due to the rise in privacy concerns and internet censorship worldwide.
• In 2024, about 80% of Tor’s development funding came from government grants, mostly from the United States.
• Tor Statistics further states that Android browsers made up 25% of all downloads, showing growing concerns about privacy on mobile devices.
• At least seven countries, including China and Iran, block Tor, so users rely on VPNs or bridges for access.

 General Tor Statistics

• From November 5, 2023, to January 31, 2024, the number of daily users accessing Tor directly varied widely, between about 2.88 million and over 6.75 million.
• About 100,000 people download the Tor browser from the Tor site every day.
• As of 2024, Tor has over 145,000 circuits in total, providing a way to browse the Internet with more privacy.
• Only 45% of dark web sites are illegal, while 55% of hidden sites operate legally.
• The number of crypto market vendors on the Tor network is estimated to have reached around 40,000 in 2024.
• The US government helped create Tor and also provided funding for its development and maintenance.
• Tor Statistics also show that approximately 26% of Indian internet users access the dark web through Tor and other similar platforms, followed by Russia (22%) and Brazil (21%).
• There are over 65,000 .onion websites, and 10% of them are used for regular internet activities.
• At the end of the 2nd quarter of 2024, Tor received an average of around 56,000 Windows downloads per day.
• It is estimated that around 6% of all traffic on the Tor network comes from the Dark Web.
• In 2024, approximately 100,000 people download the Tor browser daily from the official Tor site.
• As per Tor Statistics, BitTorrent traffic accounts for over 50% of the Tor traffic.
• Lithuania experienced significant internet censorship incidents in 2024, registering 82 “upturns” and 56 “downturns” related to possible censorship events.
• Linkability allows programmers to track about 27% of HTTP streams from secure browsers like Tor.

(Source: forum.torproject.org)

• In 2024, the Tor Project launched a fundraising campaign where all donations were matched 1:1 up to a cap of USD 300,000, doubling the impact of each contribution.

 Daily Tor Browser Users Statistics

• Russia has the most daily users accessing Tor through bridges, making up 45.97% of the total global population, resulting in 60,581.

 The Tor mean daily users and shares statistics by other top countries from September 2023 to October 2024:

(Reference: statista.com)

• The above Statista report analysis states that Germany captured the highest share of Tor browser users, with 51.27% connecting directly to the service between June and September 2023, resulting in 2,220,323.

The table below represents the Tor statistics distribution of other countries’ daily number of users and shares in the forecasted time.

Tor Statistics By Daily Number of Direct  Connections

(Reference: statista.com)

• Tor Statistics also show that on September 8, 2023, the number of people using the Tor browser worldwide reached its highest point at nearly 7,475,347.

The table below shows the number of Tor network users connecting directly between June and September of 2023:

Daily Number of Indirect Tor Browser Connections By Countries

(Reference: statista.com)

• In the financial year 2023, around 47,973 users from Russia accessed the browser daily, followed by 41,067 from Iran and 25,434 from the U.S.
• Tor Statistics further show that other countries with the most daily Tor browser users connecting through hidden servers were Germany (4,448), Turkmenistan (4,157), China (3,957), France (2,936), United Kingdom (2,858), Netherlands (2,172) and India (2,030)

Tor Statistics By Total Relay Bandwidth

(Source: metrics.torproject.org)

• As of 2024, the total available bandwidth in the Tor network is around 160 Gbps.
• During the same period, the Tor network had approximately 7,000 active relays, which facilitated secure traffic routing.
• Over 2,500 bridges are currently available to help bypass censorship, especially in regions where Tor is blocked.
• Moreover, the current capacity of the network fluctuates, with the network handling around 60-70% of its maximum capacity on an average day.

 Tor Steering Group on Gender Statistics

• As mentioned in Tor Statistics in 2024, around 23% of people contributing to Tor’s development and infrastructure are women.
• In contrast, 30% of global participants in Tor conferences are women, up from 26% the previous year.
• Women hold 15% of leadership roles in the Tor project, intending to increase to 25% by 2025.
• The number of non-binary and gender-diverse contributors to Tor increased to 4%, up from 2.5% in 2023.
• In 2024, more than 50 workshops focused on gender were held around the world.

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 Tor Website Traffic Statistics

(Source: similarweb.com)

• As of September 2024, tor.com had 122.9 thousand website visits, a decrease of 0.61% from last month.
• However, the bounce rate of the website turned out to be 88.56%
• From July to September 2024, tor.com’s global ranking improved from 450,595 to 439,831.
• Tior Statistics show that the website’s global ranking at the same time is #439,831, followed by the U.S. rank (#163,208) and category rank (#717).

 By Country

(Reference: similarweb.com)

• Tor Statistics shows that the United States had 93.35% of the website’s total traffic, an increase of 55.66%.
• In September 2024, the next two countries recorded the highest total traffic share: Australia (4.27%) and the Philippines (2.38%).

By Traffic Source

(Reference: similarweb.com)

• In 2024, direct search generated the highest traffic rate to tor.com, with 46.06%
• Almost 38.33% of the share comprises organic traffic searches, while 8.58% is from social.
• Others are followed by referrals (6.56%), mail (0.08%), and display (0.32%).

Tor Statistics by Advantages and Disadvantages

Demand Influencing Factors for Tor

• Increased Internet Surveillance: Many countries have ramped up their online surveillance efforts, which is pushing more people to use Tor. In 2024, reports show a 20% rise in Tor users in the United States alone due to growing concerns over government monitoring.
• Censorship in Authoritarian Regimes: Countries with heavy internet censorship, such as China and Russia, have seen significant demand for Tor. There was a 35% increase in Tor use in China as users sought to bypass government blocks.
• Rising Concerns About Data Privacy: With global data breaches affecting over 100 million people in 2024, individuals and organizations are increasingly turning to Tor for safer browsing, leading to a 25% increase in global usage.
• Growth in Dark Web Activity: The dark web, which operates through the Tor network, will expand by 15% by the end of 2024. This increase drives the demand for Tor as more users seek access to this part of the Internet.
• Improved Anti-Censorship Technologies: Tor’s development of stronger anti-censorship tools, like Snowflake and bridge relays, has made it easier for users to access the network in restricted countries, boosting usage by 30% in regions like the Middle East.
• Support for Whistleblowers and Journalists: As of 2024, more journalists and whistleblowers are relying on Tor to communicate anonymously and protect their sources, leading to a 12% increase in Tor use within this community.
• Rising Digital Activism: Online activists, especially in regions where freedom of speech is limited, are using Tor to organize and communicate safely. In 2024, the number of digital activists using Tor rose by 18%.
• Cost-Free Security Solution: Tor’s appeal as a free privacy tool has driven its adoption, especially in low-income countries. In 2024, usage in Africa increased by 22%, largely due to its cost-free nature.
• Global Awareness of Privacy Issues: Public awareness campaigns around digital privacy, especially following major scandals in 2024, have contributed to a 28% rise in Tor downloads worldwide.
• Corporate Use of Tor: In 2024, more businesses concerned with protecting intellectual property and sensitive data are turning to Tor. There has been a 10% rise in corporate usage, especially in industries handling confidential information.

 Conclusion

Tor has been termed as an important tool for maintaining privacy and staying anonymous online for the last few years. However, Tor has received great attention from governments and agencies. Some countries are blocking Tor and linking it to illegal activities. Even after facing many challenges, many people still use Tor to browse safely.

This article on Tor Statistics highlights the ongoing debate between keeping privacy and ensuring security in the digital world. The future of Tor will depend on finding a balance between these concerns while protecting people’s online freedoms.