World Sites & Apps
Oceania · #183 · 2025–2026

Samoa: internet and everyday apps

Samoa has about 130 thousand people online — a penetration rate of 59.1% and rank #183 worldwide. This page walks through the local digital scene, the app categories people lean on, and 8 apps worth knowing.

Internet users 130 thousand Penetration 59.1% World rank #183 Updated 2026-11-12
TL;DR
  • Samoa has roughly 130 thousand internet users (130,000 people) — about 59.1% of the population and rank #183 globally.
  • The apps people open most: WhatsApp, Messenger, Facebook, Instagram. They cover Messaging, Social, Video, Payments, Travel and more.
  • The one to know first: WhatsApp — The most widely used messenger on earth.

Samoa in numbers

2025–2026
Internet users
130 thousand130,000 · #183
Penetration
59.1%#164
Population
220 thousand220,000 · #183
GDP
$1B#204
GDP growth
+4.7%#57
GDP per person
$5,455#138
Land area
2.8k km²#173
Capital
Apia
Region
Oceania
Official languages
Samoan, English

How Samoa goes online

Apia's community runs on Facebook in a way that makes the island feel smaller than it is. Church notices, village events, family milestones and the buy-and-sell posts all land in the same feed, and WhatsApp handles the private side. Remittances from relatives in New Zealand, Australia and the US are part of most budgets, and the services that move that money have gone online. The Samoa Observer carries the news, and mobile coverage does most of the connecting.

Around 59.1%. With a population of about 220 thousand and 130 thousand online, roughly 90 thousand people are still offline — mostly because of rural coverage, device cost and age.

All 8 apps below are grouped by category.

What people actually use

8 Most-used apps

Messaging

2 Most-used apps →
WhatsApp Messaging · Meta · 2009 Messenger Messaging · Meta · 2011

Social

2 Most-used apps →
Facebook Social · Meta · 2004 Instagram Social · Meta · 2010

Video

2 Most-used apps →
YouTube Video · Google · 2005 TikTok Video · ByteDance · 2016

Payments

1 Most-used apps →
PayPal Payments · PayPal · 1998

Travel

1 Most-used apps →
Booking.com Travel · Booking Holdings · 1996

Websites people in Samoa actually use

8

The 8 sites locals open most often — news, shopping, search, banking and government services. Every link goes to the official site.

News1Government1Travel1Banking1Transport1Education1Telecom1Utilities1
Samoa ObserverNewssamoaobserver.wsThe Observer is what I read with my morning koko, mostly for the letters to the editor. Government of SamoaGovernmentsamoagovt.wsI check samoagovt.ws for the public holidays and the ministry notices before I plan anything. Samoa Tourism AuthorityTravelsamoa.travelAnyone asking about the beach fales gets samoa.travel from me, and then I tell them to take the ferry to Savai’i. Central Bank of SamoaBankingcbs.gov.wsWhen the exchange rate moves, the shopkeepers in Apia all quote the Central Bank; the site is where I check what the tala is doing. Samoa AirwaysTransportsamoaairways.comGetting to Savai'i or over to American Samoa usually means Samoa Airways, and I check the site early because the small planes fill up fast. National University of SamoaEducationnus.edu.wsThe national university. Bluesky SamoaTelecombluesky.com.wsThe main mobile network. Electric Power CorporationUtilitiesepc.wsThe power utility.

2808 websites →

Frequently asked questions

6 Q&A
How many people in Samoa are online?

About 130 thousand (130,000 people). That works out to roughly 59.1% of the population, which puts Samoa at #183 in the world for total internet users. Figures come from DataReportal’s Digital 2026, which draws on ITU and national statistics.

Which apps do people in Samoa use most?

Mostly WhatsApp, Messenger, Facebook, Instagram — they cover Messaging, Social, Video, Payments, Travel. The full list, grouped by category, is further down this page.

What is the leading Messaging app in Samoa?

WhatsApp, Messenger dominate this space. The best-known is WhatsApp — The most widely used messenger on earth.

How high is internet penetration in Samoa?

Around 59.1%. With a population of about 220 thousand and 130 thousand online, roughly 90 thousand people are still offline — mostly because of rural coverage, device cost and age.

Where do these app facts come from?

Usage figures come from DataReportal’s Digital 2026 (Kepios, based on ITU and national statistics); app details come from each product’s official site. Updated 2026-11-12.

Which websites are most popular in Samoa?

The everyday ones are Samoa Observer, Government of Samoa, Samoa Tourism Authority, plus the other 8 sites listed above. They cover news, shopping, search, banking and official paperwork, and every link points to the official site.

Sources

Updated 2026-11-12
Cite this pageWorld Sites & Apps. “Samoa: internet and everyday apps”. 2026. https://abcvv.com/c/ws.html