Gmail on the up, but still trails Yahoo and Hotmail
Gmail’s traffic has increased since it dropped the requirement to be invited by an existing member, but it’s still nowhere near as popular as Yahoo Mail and Hotmail.
In the two months after it allowed open registration in February, visits increased by 17 percent, according to Hitwise. Traffic for the entire year between April 2006 and April 2007 was up 30 percent.
However, Yahoo Mail dominates the market with a share 13 times greater than Gmail’s. Hotmail is number two, with six times greater share of visits than Google’s offering.
It’s not all bad news for Google though as Gmail users are more likely to be young, high income, and early adopters.
For the four weeks ending 28 April, 54 percent of visits to Gmail were from users between 18 and 34, compared to 42 percent for Yahoo Mail and 44 percent for Hotmail. Eighteen percent of Gmail’s visits were from those with average annual household incomes between $100,000 and $149,999, compared to 15 percent from Hotmail and 13 percent for Yahoo Mail.
Claritas PRIZM NE social group data shows Gmail’s strength in what are typically early adopter groups, like Urban Uptown (U1), Elite Suburbs (S1) and the Affluentials (S2).
