Truecaller faces mounting pressures as its growth matures

Truecaller is 1 of the world’s astir wide utilized caller recognition platforms, with more than 500 cardinal users. Now it’s entering a much challenging signifier arsenic maturation slows successful its largest marketplace and contention intensifies crossed telecom networks and smartphone platforms.

Much of Truecaller’s maturation has been driven by India, which accounts for over 350 cardinal users, oregon astir 70% of its planetary base. The measurement of spam and unwanted calls has turned the app from a elemental caller ID work into a much embedded furniture of mundane communication.

That presumption is present shaping its adjacent phase. The institution has introduced features specified arsenic AI Assistant and Family Protection to drive monetization, alongside tools similar Community Suggestions to enactment applicable arsenic contention intensifies. This comes arsenic telecom-led solutions specified arsenic Calling Name Presentation (CNAP), dedicated fig series for verified concern calls, and AI-based spam protection summation traction successful India. Meanwhile, smartphone makers including Apple and Google proceed to physique caller recognition and spam-blocking capabilities into their operating systems.

As contention increases, Truecaller’s maturation is starting to slow. Data shared with TechCrunch from Sensor Tower shows downloads from India fell 16% year-over-year successful 2025, portion planetary downloads declined 5%, marking a reversal aft respective years of growth. Separate information from Appfigures shows downloads peaked astatine 175 cardinal successful 2021, dropped sharply successful 2022 and person since hovered astir 120 cardinal annually.

Image Credits:Jagmeet Singh / TechCrunch

India remains Truecaller’s largest market, but its stock of downloads has declined from implicit 70% astatine its highest to the mid-50s successful caller years, pointing to a gradual displacement successful caller idiosyncratic maturation toward different markets.

Truecaller’s displacement successful maturation dynamics is being intimately watched by investors. The company’s shares person fallen astir 78% since its 2021 IPO and are down astir 37% truthful acold this year, underscoring capitalist concerns astir its maturation outlook and concern model. Chief Executive Rishit Jhunjhunwala told TechCrunch that 1 of the cardinal questions from investors has been astir the interaction of CNAP successful India. He besides acknowledged caller headwinds successful parts of the business, without elaborating further.

CNAP, an inaugural pushed by India’s telecom regulator and is being implemented by telecom operators, displays caller names based connected KYC records astatine the web level without requiring third-party apps. This overlaps with portion of Truecaller’s halfway offering, but is much constricted successful scope.

Truecaller’s Jhunjhunwala said the institution does not spot CNAP arsenic a disruption but arsenic validation of the problem.

“Truecaller operates arsenic a planetary level with a overmuch richer and dynamic quality furniture — spanning spam detection, fraud prevention, concern identity, and idiosyncratic discourse crossed calls and messages,” helium said. “This allows america to spell importantly beyond basal caller ID.”

Truecaller’s Community Suggestions amusement user-generated discourse astir incoming callersImage Credits:Truecaller

Bharath Nagaraj, manager of equity probe astatine Cantor Fitzgerald, said CNAP could dilatory idiosyncratic maturation but is improbable to materially disrupt Truecaller’s halfway concern successful the adjacent term. Instead, helium pointed to unit successful the company’s advertizing conception — driven successful portion by changes from Google — arsenic the much contiguous challenge.

“If you look astatine the net for the company, 65%–70% of it present comes from advertisement revenue. And that impacted recently,” Nagaraj told TechCrunch.

In its last net call (PDF), Truecaller said that it mislaid astir one-third of advertisement postulation from its largest spouse successful August 2025 — a spouse analysts connected the telephone identified arsenic Google. Jhunjhunwala attributed the driblet to an unresolved “algorithm issue,” portion CFO Odd Bolin said the spouse inactive accounts for much than a 3rd of full revenue. The institution is present adding caller partners and gathering its ain advertisement speech to trim dependence connected immoderate azygous platform.

But adjacent moving to an in-house advertisement speech whitethorn not afloat code the challenge. Advertising remains highly competitive, with brands capable to walk crossed aggregate integer platforms, said Nagaraj. “You tin amusement your ads connected Truecaller, but you tin besides amusement them connected Facebook,” helium said.

In-app gross continues to grow

The unit connected advertizing comes adjacent arsenic different parts of Truecaller’s concern are connected a antithetic trajectory. Data from Appfigures shows that portion downloads person plateaued successful caller years, gross in-app gross has risen sharply — from $600,000 successful 2017 to $39.3 cardinal successful 2025. It has already reached $13.4 cardinal this twelvemonth arsenic of April 20.

Monthly gross generated by in-app purchases connected Truecaller is present consistently supra $2 cardinal and inactive climbing, per Appfigures.

Image Credits:Jagmeet Singh / TechCrunch

Truecaller’s beingness connected iOS has besides grown from little than 5% of its full downloads successful 2020–2021 to astir 11–12% successful caller years, per Appfigures, highlighting a displacement toward higher-value markets. The institution has stepped up efforts connected Apple’s platform, including launching real-time caller ID for iPhone successful aboriginal 2025 and rolling retired diagnostic updates to amended parity with its Android app.

Nonetheless, Apple precocious expanded its call-screening capabilities, which could trim the request for third-party apps among iPhone users.

Another cardinal pillar of Truecaller’s monetization strategy is its endeavor offering, Truecaller for Business, which enables companies to verify their identities and pass with customers via calls and messaging. The conception has been increasing steadily, with revenue rising 39% successful changeless currency successful 2025. Truecaller’s Jhunjhunwala said the institution is expanding the level globally by opening its chat services to partners and offering tools specified arsenic verified concern caller ID to assistance enterprises verify individuality and scope customers.

Alongside its endeavor push, Truecaller has besides been expanding its user subscription business, which has implicit 4 cardinal paid subscribers globally, arsenic much users opt for features specified arsenic precocious spam protection, AI-based telephone screening, and an ad-free experience.

In the past, Truecaller has been criticized implicit however it builds and maintains its immense database of telephone identities. An investigation by The Caravan raised questions astir consent and information postulation practices, peculiarly successful India, wherever information extortion laws person truthful acold been little stringent. Truecaller has denied wrongdoing and maintains that it complies with applicable regulations, but the statement underlines the broader situation of balancing utility, scale, and idiosyncratic privacy.

Despite each these challenges, Truecaller sees important country for growth. The institution is focused connected addressing the rising complexity of communication, Jhunjhunwala said, arsenic spam and scam calls go much blase with advances successful AI. Similarly, it plans to grow crossed each 3 gross streams — advertising, endeavor services, and premium subscriptions — arsenic it looks to prolong maturation crossed markets. Whether that volition beryllium enough, however, whitethorn beryllium connected however rapidly it tin accommodate arsenic caller recognition shifts from standalone apps to the network, and to the telephone itself.