Valentines.exe: AI Girlfriend Apps Rake $427M Since ChatGPT Dropped 💘

NSFW and romantic AI companion apps have generated 165.3 million downloads and $427.3 million in consumer spending worldwide across Apple's App Store and Google Play since ChatGPT launched in late 2022, according to data provided to Decrypt by analytics firm Appfigures Intelligence. "The rankings are categorized by type and reflect either downloads or gross consumer spending before Apple/Google extract their platform fees, typically 30%," Appfigures Head of Insights and Media Relations Randy Nelson told Decrypt. Appfigures identified 214 NSFW and romantic AI companion apps, which generated $162.8 million in consumer spending during the first half of 2026, with general or "PG" AI companions bringing in $164.8 million in the same period. Nelson noted that while PG apps had nearly twice as many downloads, romantic apps generated almost the same revenue.

Among NSFW and romantic AI companion apps, Zeta ranked first by gross revenue in the first half of 2026, generating $33 million, according to Appfigures. Tipsy Chat: Live Your Story followed with $15.2 million, ChatBox: AI Chat Bot Assistant with $13 million, Crushie AI: Chat & Companion with $8.8 million, and Emochi: Chat With Character with $7.5 million. Emochi was the most downloaded romantic AI companion app during the same period, reaching 7.9 million installs, followed by Amora: A Hint of Your Soulmate with 3.6 million downloads, Zeta with 3 million, BIMOBIMO with 2.8 million, and MiraiMind with 2.6 million.

The data comes as more people turn to AI chatbots for companionship, including a growing "digisexual" subculture centered on emotional connections with AI companions. In May 2026, researchers at Brigham Young University, the Institute for Family Studies, and the Wheatley Institute found that 15% of partnered U.S. adults ages 18 to 30 regularly used AI romantic companions, with 69% of regular users saying they hid the full extent of their use from their partner. That same month, AI companion platform Joi AI announced it would pay 10 people $2,000 a month to test an AI-guided masturbation feature and document its effects on stress, sleep, mood, and confidence. The company said the campaign was intended to collect product feedback while exploring AI's role in digital intimacy. By July 2026, Joi AI said the campaign drew more than 150,000 applicants worldwide, forcing the company to create a formal selection process.

Appfigures said it categorized the apps using store metadata, descriptions, age ratings, and terms linked to romance and adult content. However, the figures only cover the visible mobile market and exclude web-only platforms such as Joi AI, Candy AI, and SpicyChat AI, meaning total consumer spending across all AI companion platforms is likely higher.